“One of the most remarkable and comprehensive illustrations of Renaissance culture at its most refined,” Villa d’Este is a 16th-century palace and garden in Tivoli, 30 km from Rome. Its terraced hillside garden, with spectacular fountains and ornamental basins, one of the first giardini delle meraviglie (gardens of wonders), was an early model for the development of European gardens.

The Villa was commissioned by Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este (1509–1572), of the powerful Este family of Ferrara, who were patrons of the arts. The complex covers an area of about 4.5 ha. and has an irregular plan because the architect had to include parts from a pre-existing monastic building.