Rome City of Gardens

The first book to celebrate the Eternal City’s exquisite gardens, from ancient times to modern day

Rome is – and always has been – a city of gardens. Since ancient times, the Italian city’s green hills, from the imperial Palatine to the rural Janiculum, have been covered with ornamental gardens, orchards, and groves.

Rome: City of Gardens invites readers to explore three 'golden ages' of Roman horticulture through twenty-three intriguing outdoor spaces. Featured are the romantic ruins and sculpture of Hadrian’s Villa at Tivoli; the splendid water theater of the Villa d’Este; the lush terraces of the Villa Lante; and the Belvedere Courtyard and Casina of Pius IV within the Vatican. More contemporary designs include Palazzo Parisi, the family estate of Arabella Lennox-Boyd; La Torrecchia Vecchia, a green-and-white garden by Dan Pearson that winds around the ruins of a medieval town; and the reimagining of the Bass Garden and the Villa Aurelia by Laurie Olin, at the American Academy in Rome.

Each garden is showcased with lush, specially commissioned photography, as well as handsome antiquarian prints. Gregory Long’s authoritative text delves into the fascinating stories behind the gardens – romantic tales starring a unique array of artists and architects, Roman emperors and empresses, cardinals, popes, aesthetes and social climbers, aristocrats, and nouveaux riches.

Beautifully designed, with a stunning cover stamped in white foil, Rome: City of Gardens is an unforgettable grand tour of the region’s alluring outdoor oases.