The war of the Torlonia: two billion in statues and palaces

The danger of seeing an Italian heritage worth about 2 billion made up of 623 original ancient Greek and Roman marbles, from an Etruscan collection, from some of Rome's historic buildings in the hands of international collectors, it triggered the war over the inheritance of one of the most famous families in the capital, the Torlonia.

The collection of statues and buildings such as Palazzo Torlonia in via della Conciliazione, Villa Albani on via Salaria and Villa Delizia in Castel Gandolfo were seized yesterday, Wednesday 21 November, by judge Fulvio Vallillo of the eighth section of the Civil Court of Rome.

It was precisely Alessandro's heir, the eldest son Carlo Torlonia, who turned to the court to clarify the matter and opposed his siblings Paola, Francesca and Giulio. Assisted by the lawyer Adriana Boscagli, Prince Carlo Torlonia claimed to have been estranged from his father in his last years of life: I "discovered the papers of the disease, current accounts closed shortly before his death, boxes closed and ready to be sent elsewhere ”, reads the appeal of which large excerpts were published by Il Messaggero.

The contested will dates back to November 2016, when Alessandro's eldest son "was unable to reach his father even with telephone communications - continues the prince - which were filtered by the second daughter or by the secretary, who reported an excellent state of health. Only by chance did I learn from the press that a Torlonia Foundation had been set up, in which neither my children or I had any role and which had assumed the management of all the collections of works on loan".

Some works in the Torlonia collection come from archaeological excavations carried out in the family's possessions, while others were purchased from noble houses in difficulty and according to experts the overall value of the series of works of art is higher than that of the collection of the Capitoline Museums and the Vatican Museums.

Carlo Torlonia explained: “I would like these works of art to be part of a museum in my name, for example in Palazzo Giraud-Torlonia for all citizens of the world”. Why yes, it is a series of private works, but which represent an all-Italian artistic wealth, instead the documents revealed "the attempt to sell the works abroad". In particular, according to what Carlo Torlonia denounces, “the family's marble collection would have been the subject of a sale negotiation – which later failed – between the Foundation, the Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles and the ministry. My brothers are depleting the assets”.

The Torlonia family's assets also include various farms and shares in Banca del Fucino, of which Alessandro Torlonia was president until his death in December 2017. The story could last a long time "due to the need for a complex preliminary investigation" waiting for all the works to be inventoried, cataloged and estimated, to then be divided equally among the heirs.