Exterior view

About the middle of the 15th century, a new style of living came into fashion among the gentry of central Italy. It began with the Medici. Members of that family took to spending part of the year in the country. At first they stayed at the old fortified farm-houses that had protected their estates in the later Middle Ages. However, they soon began to require something more refined, little country palaces where they could relax, entertain friends, read and hear music. Palladio's villas on the Venetian mainland - part working farms, part country retreats - mark the apogee of the form.

The Villa Foscari received its nickname "La Malcontenta" when the spouse of one of the Foscaris was locked up in the house because she allegedly did not live up to her conjugal duty.

The photo shows the front elevation.

View the <a href="#" onClick="w=window.open ('/support/plans/p/palladio/3/foscari2.html', 'newWin', 'scrollbars=yes,status=no,dependent=yes,screenX=0,screenY=0,width=400,height=600');w.opener=this;w.focus();return false">ground plan and front elevation</a> of Villa Foscari, Malcontenta di Mira.