Borghese gallery tour:
Bernini, Caravaggio, and a cardinal's obsession
Destination
Rome, Italy
Duration
1.5 hours
Tour size
Max 15
Language
English
Overview
The Borghese holds some of the greatest sculpture and painting ever made, in the villa a 17th-century cardinal built to show off the collection he gathered, commissioned, and sometimes stole. This Borghese Gallery tour gets you guaranteed entry to a museum that sells out for weeks, with an art historian to share Bernini and Caravaggio for you across a calm, ninety-minute visit.
- •Walk in with pre-reserved tickets to a gallery that's notoriously hard to book
- •See Bernini's Apollo and Daphne, with marble carved into fleeing flesh and leaves
- •Stand before Caravaggio's David and Goliath and his St. John the Baptist
- •Take in Raphael's Deposition, Titian, and Canova's reclining Pauline Bonaparte
- •Explore at an unhurried pace in a small group, in a gallery kept deliberately quiet
What's included
- Pre-reserved Borghese Gallery tickets
- An expert art historian guide
- A small group of 15 guests maximum
- Headsets on groups over six
You will visit
- Bernini's Apollo and Daphne, Rape of Proserpine, and David
- Caravaggio's David and Goliath and St. John the Baptist
- Raphael's The Deposition
- Titian's The Scourging of Christ
- Canova's Pauline Bonaparte
Get a taste of Borghese gallery tour
What to expect
The cardinal's villa
You'll start where the collection has always lived, the 17th-century home of Cardinal Scipione Borghese, who collected, commissioned, and occasionally stole the art around you. Because it was a private residence rather than a sprawling palace, the gallery is compact enough to see fully in ninety minutes. Your art historian sets up the cardinal's appetite for beauty before you step into the rooms.
Bernini in marble
The heart of the gallery is Bernini's sculpture, and your guide walks you through Apollo and Daphne, the Rape of Proserpine, and his David. Up close you'll see what makes them astonishing: marble worked into fingers pressing into flesh, leaves sprouting from fingertips, motion frozen mid-turn. These are the works that made Bernini's name, in the room they were made for.
"People gasp at Apollo and Daphne. You can see her fingers turning to leaves, carved from a single block of marble. I never tire of watching that moment land."
Marta,
WalksDevour art historian guide
"The Borghese only lets so many people in at once. After the Vatican, walking into a quiet room with a Caravaggio almost to yourself, that's the luxury here."
Guido,
WalksDevour art historian guide
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Frequently asked questions
Our guides love answering your questions. Here are some things they’d like you to know before you arrive.
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