The Restoration of Palazzo De Caro in Cetraro

The building object of this study is located at the entrance of the historical center of Cetraro (CS), a village facing the Tyrrhenian sea in a privileged position on the Calabrian coast. Built in 1860 on behalf of don Ludovico De Caro the palace occupies lands that were bought for “ducati 1300” by the rich nobleman, and appears today to have absorbed the marks of time. Entering the ancient gates, history shows the particular oxymoron typical of the nineteenth-century buildings: the lower floors, typically rural with the old olive-press, and the upper floors, noble and primly divided by the servants’ rooms, connected in a path that highlights the lounges and living rooms with their sculptures, curtains, family portraits that narrate histories and legends. In this context, my choice as a restorer has been not to distort the spirit of time and places and their historical authenticity, respect the ancient mansion as it unveils itself to the habitual visitor. This operation doesn’t only aim to rehabilitate an ancient mansion, but, throught it, to retrain an entire historical centre, nowadays as abandoned as rich of history, art, architecture and beauty. The restoration of the buildings intents to be the beginning of a more structured project for a “Scattered Hotel”, whose benefits and responsibilities are shared by all the citizenry. The proposal for the project therefore considers the centrality of the functions inside Palazzo De Caro (restaurant, hall, reception) to be at service of a wide network of scattered guest houses in the historical centre connected by paths though squares, alleys and picturesque views.

Il Palazzo De Caro quale elemento identitario di una comunità è posto alle porte del centro storico di Cetraro (CS) ed è collocato in una posizione privilegiata da cui è possibile osservare la costa dell’alto tirreno cosentino. Il Palazzo risalente al 1860, realizzato su commissione di don Lodovico De Caro che acquistò i terreni per “la somma di ducati 1.300”, mostra i segni del tempo con la tangibile testimonianza storica con un peculiare ossimoro, tipico dei palazzi ottocenteschi, tra piani inferiori, tipici dell’architettura rurale con il vecchio frantoio, e piani superiori, nobili e, rigidamente separati dalla servitù, collegati in un percorso che esalta salotti, statue d’epoca, tendaggi, ritratti di famiglia. Le peculiarità e i valori testimoniali impongono la salvaguardia del palazzo anche per l’avvio di un processo che deve interessare l’intero centro storico, oggi tanto abbandonato quanto ricco di storia, arte, architettura e bellezza.