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Paraggi Castle today

Italy · Still standing

Paraggi Castle

Castello di Paraggi

Paraggi Castle (Castello di Paraggi) is a small coastal castle on a promontory at the eastern side of Paraggi Bay in Liguria, Italy. Built in the era of the Republic of Genoa, it later became a private residence and remains an intact, habitable building.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons

Its prime

1626

Today

Still standing

As it stood in 1626

What Paraggi Castle looked like in its prime.

A compact, roughly rectangular tower block of warm yellow-beige stucco with weathered patches, topped by a crenellated stone parapet and a steep pyramidal slate-tiled roof with small dormers. A decorative band of brick or corbelled arches runs beneath the battlements. Three rounded canopy windows with small wooden balconettes project from the main façade; a small angled oriel turret punctuates the corner. Walls are heavily clothed in climbing ivy and the building sits among dense Mediterranean pines on a rocky coastal promontory.

Its story

The story of Paraggi Castle.

Paraggi Castle stands on the small promontory that closes the eastern side of the bay of Paraggi in Liguria, within the comune of Santa Margherita Ligure along the road to Portofino. It was built in the era of the Republic of Genoa.

Altered several times across the centuries, the castle later became a private residence and remains intact and habitable. In the 1990s its then owners, the Bonomi Bolchini family, rented the property to Silvio Berlusconi.

Step inside

7 places to explore in 1626.

The record describes 7 distinct spots at Paraggi Castle, including the full exterior approach. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.

Approach from the coastal roadView from Paraggi Bay (from the sea)Battlement/parapet walkFaçade with three rounded canopy balconiesCorner oriel turretLower façade and ground-level verandaWooded promontory at the castle's base

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Questions about Paraggi Castle

What is the history of Paraggi Castle?

Paraggi Castle was built in the era of the Republic of Genoa to protect the coast of the Tigullio area. Some sources give 1626 as the year when its construction was decided. It was occupied by Napoleonic forces from 1812 to 1814, later became a private residence, and was rented to Silvio Berlusconi by the Bonomi Bolchini family in the 1990s.

Why was Paraggi Castle built, and what was it used for?

Paraggi Castle was built as a coastal defence post for the Tigullio area during the Republic of Genoa. Its purpose later changed when the structure became a private residence after undergoing several changes across the centuries.

Where is Paraggi Castle?

Paraggi Castle is on a small coastal promontory at the eastern side of Paraggi Bay, in Liguria, within the comune of Santa Margherita Ligure. It stands along the road to Portofino, in the municipality of Santa Margherita Ligure.

When was Paraggi Castle built?

Paraggi Castle dates from the seventeenth century, although the exact year it was first raised is not recorded. Some sources give 1626 as the year when its construction was decided, placing its origins in the 1600s.

What did Paraggi Castle look like in its prime?

Paraggi Castle is a compact, roughly rectangular tower block with warm yellow-beige stucco walls, a crenellated stone parapet and a steep pyramidal slate roof. Its façade has three rounded canopy windows with wooden balconettes, while a small angled oriel turret marks a corner. Ivy and Mediterranean pines surround the building.

Is Paraggi Castle still standing or is it a ruin?

Paraggi Castle is still standing as an intact, habitable building rather than a ruin. It has been altered several times across the centuries, but remains a complete castle on its coastal promontory.
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