Within the abandoned castle, you can find the Peacock Room with incredible colors and geometries, the White Room with Moroccan mosaic tiled floors and wrought iron chandeliers hanging from the ceilings, the gallery between the Hall of Mirrors and the octagon of the Smoking Room, the Hall of Lilies, the Stalactites, the Lovers and also a small chapel. The castle has 365 rooms, one for every day of the year and each room has its own name and differs from the others.

Sammezzano Castle is in the Moorish style, with intricate designs and a breathtaking assortment of patterns and colors. Appreciating the architecture and uniqueness, in 2018 a Dubai-based company placed an offer of $18.1 million on the third auction and became the current owner. There was a group dedicated to finding an owner who would restore and honor the castle. Only in 2012 did the FPXA committee (short for Ferdinand Panciatichi Ximenes d’Aragon) acquire the property, since which time they have sought to secure funds to properly restore the masterpiece. It was then abandoned and closed to the public. In 1999 Sammezzano Castle was auctioned off and was bought by a British investor, and some stabilization and restoration work was done. The castle’s commercial turn thrived in the post-World War II era, but as revenues dwindled, the hotel was shuttered and subsequently abandoned. What happened with Sammezzano CastleĪfter the Second World War, Sammezzano Castle was used as a luxury hotel with apartments, spa, golf, and country club until its closure in the 1990s. Using entirely local craftsmen, he had all the bricks, tiles, and friezes made under his supervision on site. The result is a stunning mix of the Moorish with the Byzantine, the Indian with the Chinese. During this time King of Italy Umberto was hosted and stayed here in 1878.īetween 18, Ferdinando completely reshaped the medieval castle into an Orientalist palace in line with the fashion of the time, particularly in Florence.

He redesigned the Sammezzano Castle between 18. When he moved, Ferdinando Ximenes Panciatichi, inherited the castle. It is designed in an eclectic Moorish style. Located in the midst of a sprawling wooded estate, the abandoned Sammezzano Castle occupies the same spot as a royal palazzo first established by a Spanish nobleman of the name Ximenes of Aragon The main building was built in 1605.

Abandoned castle in italy