History of the Villa
La Commenda Concordia
How it all started
Italy is one of the Mediterranean gems where the spirit of beauty was translated from people who were born here into everything that was ever created or build on this land. Visiting once you are captured by the beauty, by the unique charm of the land. Thousands of tourists are coming back just to feel it again that beautiful sense of union between soul and nature.
Italy was fortunate to be a home for many talented people throughout the whole history but also it was charming and welcoming for many other art enthusiasts, who supporting talented people by creating favorable conditions for them. Many artworks were also found and added to the private collections. There was always understanding and appreciation of Art. Music and art in Italy cannot be underestimated and both are serving to link the divine with the human, to open the heart and touch the souls of many even centuries later and for many more centuries ahead. There were good and bad times in the History of Italy but it never failed to bring beauty to our lives in the form of artworks, music, architecture, and gastronomy.
The history of our place started long before the villa was built. There were traces of the Late Neolithic discovered in the park by archeologists.
Also, it is known that the foundation of the villa is the part of an old military observation tower that explains the marvelous scenery views from the rooms.
Ruins
So how it started...The land was always very attractive to the talented people, those who were creating, transforming, and improving the quality of life by their inventions. The most significant example is that the history of the Medici family started from the valley of Mugello. The first family estate was here in Vicchio, the place where Giotto, "the father of European painting and the first of the great Italian masters", the founder of proto-Renaissance, were born.
In the middle of the XIX century the Peratoner family, aristocrats from Switzerland, moved to our small town Vicchio. They were captured by the beauty of the Mugello Valey. The land and estate were bought and the development of the land started. Piero Peratoner, an agronomist, was responsible for introducing new and innovative methods of cultivation and crop rotation utilising the 1000 hectares of agricultural land which the family-owned. The family worked hard and quickly became an innovative leader in Tuscan agriculture of the time. Later the head of the Family Alberto Peratoner became the Mayor of the city, respected and remembered by many locals for his dedication to the development of living conditions of people. There are many records and testimonies that can be found in the local archive about it. The Peratoners opened the first school for the local children, which at that time was uncommon in Europe.
To build the family estate the family wanted some unique location and they found it. They found a picturesque spot near the riverside. Earlier there used to be a fort among the deep forest but at that point, there were only remainings of the fort. The best architects and designers of that time started their work to create the family estate in Florentine style with a careful fusion of the modern at that time Liberti trend. Galileo Chini, one of the most renowned designer companies at the time, worked on interior design. The company is also known for its work in Montecatini Terme, the spa place near Florence famous for its curative waters.
The Galileo Chini Museum is located in Borgo San Lorenzo, 20 minutes from our place.
Liberti
Later the house was sold and belongs to many other owners. Each of them added their changes to the interior and nearby park area.
Some of the original frescos were simply covered in paint but luckily were found by Stefan Zarkov during the last restoration works in 2016-2019. Beautiful frescos were not lost but seem had their long "beauty sleep" awaiting when someone special comes and brings them back to life, to the glory of the old good days.
Stefan Zarkov, the artist and a very experienced restorer, was the "Prince Charming" who worked with designer Natalia Pantyuhina and under the directions of a design house "Geometra". Combining experience and ideas they succeeded to not only bring the house to the old years glory but to create an elegant atmosphere of the new place.