Palazzo Carignano (Carignano Palace), Turin

The Carignano Palace (Palazzo Carignano) is located on Carignano Square, facing the Academy of Sciences Street (Via Accademia delle Scienze). Once the private residence of the Princes of Carignano-Savoy, it now houses the Museum of the Risorgimento, the reunification of Italy. In 1997, it was listed with 13 other residences of the House of Savoy as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Carigano Palace, built between 1679 and 1684, was commissioned by Prince Emmanuel Philibert. Among his other talents, he was considered a true connoisseur of architecture. The Prince's architect was Guarino Guarini. The Baroque-style building is of brick. The facade is unique in its undulating curvilinear appearance.

Guarini designed the building as a square. The east facade was to be straight. The exterior facing the Carigano square was elliptical. Guarini also designed a forecourt in the center of the palace. The window decorations on the piano nobile, the main floor, recall the 1667 exploits of the Carignan Regiment against the Iroquois.

The interior is lavishly decorated with stucco and frescoes. The Carigano Palace is the birthplace of Marie-Louise de Lamballe, a confidant of Marie Antoinette. Carignano Prince Charles Emmanuel was born there in 1770. King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel II, was born in the palace in 1820. From 1848 to 1861, the Carigano Palace housed the Parliament.