Description
The Bishop's Palace, also called Palazzo Bianchi, is the residence of the Bishop of Mantua, on Piazza Sordello next to the Cathedral: an 18th-century palazzo you recognize from the square by the two great telamons holding up the entrance.
It was built in the mid-18th century by Marquis Giuseppe Bianchi, who bought it in 1756 and gave it a monumental staircase. The vaults of the second floor are frescoed by Giuseppe Bazzani, one of the painters of 18th-century Mantua.
The palazzo stands on the site of two older buildings: one belonged to the Agnelli, who at the start of the 14th century handed it over to Rinaldo Bonacolsi. In 1824 Marquis Alessandro Bianchi sold the palazzo to the diocese, which keeps its curia there and, since 1967, the diocesan historical archive.
It was built in the mid-18th century by Marquis Giuseppe Bianchi, who bought it in 1756 and gave it a monumental staircase. The vaults of the second floor are frescoed by Giuseppe Bazzani, one of the painters of 18th-century Mantua.
The palazzo stands on the site of two older buildings: one belonged to the Agnelli, who at the start of the 14th century handed it over to Rinaldo Bonacolsi. In 1824 Marquis Alessandro Bianchi sold the palazzo to the diocese, which keeps its curia there and, since 1967, the diocesan historical archive.