Villa Bernard Sancholle Henraux

The Art Nouveau Villa Henraux was built in 1897 by order of Mr. Bernard Sancholle Henraux, nephew of the Napoleonic officer in charge of the marble quarrying activity in Alta Versilia. In 1922 the villa was purchased by Nello Pilli, a young lawyer from Apuan Alps and a poet of profound sensitivity, who transformed it into his love nest with the Russian princess Gabriella Kourtsoh De Solva Sevrouk. Illustrious figures such as Gabriele D'Annunzio and Giacomo Puccini stayed there and, during the Second World War, it was occupied by the SS command, becoming the scene of barbarity and violence. Heavily damaged by the war, it was later restored. In 1949 it was purchased by the Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart and became a girls' college for the orphans of the fallen of the Italian Navy. Inside you can admire the magnificent staircases in white marble monoliths and the monumental fireplaces. Also of note are the external balustrades in white marble with interlocking workmanship, the majolica tiles in the attic of the façade and the surrounding park which housed botanical rarities. In the garden there is a part of the white marble column which is believed to have been extracted by Michelangelo from the quarries of Monte Altissimo: intended for the façade of the Cathedral of San Lorenzo in Florence, it broke during the journey and was abandoned. Today the villa has been transformed into a holiday residence and is still managed by nuns.

Date of Construction: 1897