Britannica
Sources used in this answer
What was Andrea Palladio’s first major public commission in Vicenza?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Andrea Palladio
Villa Rotonda, near Vicenza, Italy, by Andrea Palladio, 1550–51.
Andrea Palladio’s first major public commission in Vicenza was the reconstruction of the city's 15th-century town hall, which has since been known as the Basilica.
Although designs for the project had been submitted by other architects as early as 1534, Palladio prepared his own plans in 1546, which were officially accepted in 1548. The project involved recasing the existing structure with a two-story arcade of white stone to serve as a buttress, a design noted for its proportional subtlety and use of classical motifs. While the work began in the mid-16th century, it was not completed until 1617.1