In Gorizia, a city that in the 19th century was known as the “Austrian Nice” due to its mild climate and welcoming, multicultural atmosphere, Count Alfredo Coronini designed an exemplary garden boasting a variety of landscaping features.
In 1870, upon returning from a period of extensive travelling across Europe, Count Alfredo decided to settle in his property in the city of Gorizia, situated on the right bank of the Corno stream and embellished with a small regular-shaped garden which was enlarged and enriched in keeping with the international landscaping trends in fashion at the time, with an eye to the then recently-finished park of Castello di Miramare. The new landscaped layout of Parco Coronini Cronberg was organised around a few key features: the southern walls were screened off by an artificial hill and a belvedere hillock, and the south-eastern area was turned into a panoramic terrace. Once these interventions were concluded, the main entrance to the property was moved to the new road, today’s Viale XX Settembre. Between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, the area, structured on different levels was planted with evergreen vegetation reflective of Gorizia’s twofold Alpine (Nordic) and Mediterranean (Italic) identity. The key features of the park are its landscaped views, the chromatic and luminous effects of the tree areas and its triple-level structure. The last owner, Count Guglielmo, who died in 1990, donated the villa and the park to the city of Gorizia, a bequest that gave rise to the Coronini Foundation, a cultural institution working for the protection and enhancement of the entire area with its valuable tree population, composed of cedars, ginkgo biloba, holm oaks, myrtles, Aleppo pines, pittosporum, cork trees, yuccas and dogwoods.
Highlights
The main avenue
Once through the imposing portal whose pillars were taken from the 18th-century enclosure of Villa Attems in Piedimonte del Calvario, we find ourselves on a monumental avenue lined with imposing trees, topiary, and bamboo canes.
The mythological statues and the small temple
The niches set in the old rustic ashlar walls are home to 18th-century statues of Paris, Flora and Apollo by Orazio Marinali of Vicenza. On the opposite side, on an artificial rise, stands a small circular building built in 1914 by architect Girolamo Luzzatto.
The plateau
At the back of palazzo Coronini Cronberg, at the end of a winding path leading to the rock garden there is a vast levelled area. Surrounded by holm oaks, cedars and pines, this location has become the ideal stage for various cultural events, including the famous Sergio Amidei Film Prize, named after the illustrious screenwriter from the Isonzo area.