Discover A Bizarre Garden Of Unsettling Sculptures At Italy's Overlooked Park Of The Monsters

A grotesque fish-head, two giants locked in brutal, bloody combat, and a giant head with its mouth agape in a silent scream — these are hardly the images we traditionally associate with beautiful Italian landscapes. But the Sacro Bosco, known locally as il Parco dei Mostri (Park of the Monsters) in Bomarzo, Italy, is no ordinary ornamental garden. It was never meant to be a place of peace, of Renaissance symmetry, or even to be attractive. Many interpret it as an expression of grief, deep emotional pain, and a physical representation of trauma.

Located just outside Viterbo, on the border of Umbria and Lazio, Bomarzo is a quintessential central Italian town. Nondescript new constructions give way to a charming old center, all honey-colored stone and narrow, winding alleyways, surrounded by agriturismos and rolling hills. A fairly innocuous spot and one that has dupes all across Italy — certainly not somewhere that, on the face of it, you would rush to visit. But the bizarre, unsettling sculpture garden at its northern edge makes a visit a must.

In 1553, Prince Pier Francesco Orsini, the lord of Bomarzo, was captured while on a military campaign and held prisoner in Germany until 1556. According to Accenti, he'd spent more than a decade in the Pope's army by the time he was released, and four short years later, his beloved wife, Giulia Farnese, died. Wracked with grief and potentially still traumatized from his experiences during the war and his captivity, he commissioned the celebrated architect Pirro Ligorio to create an ornamental garden dedicated to the memory of his spouse.

The Sacro Bosco was something completely different from the usual style of the time. It seems like it was designed to shock rather than to please, with uncomfortable symbolism and perturbing inscriptions leaving visitors unsure how to feel. While the design roughly follows a Mannerist style, the statues and sculptures are surreal, almost Surrealist. In fact, Surrealist artists were enchanted with the place and Salvador Dali himself used the gardens as a set for one of his short films, as well as using them as the inspiration for one of his paintings.

A visit to this weird and wonderful place is an individual, personal experience, but there are a few highlights that are worth devoting time to. The first steps should be through the mouth of the Ogre, the giant, screaming, grotesque face with the words 'all reason departs' inscribed above. It is worth seeing the largest statues, those of Hercules and Cacus, and of Nike atop a tortoise. Hercules tears the giant Cacus apart with his bare hands, while Nike (the goddess of Victory) stands proudly on the back of a gigantic tortoise while a whale waits hungrily below. It is also worth seeking out the Temple of Eternity, dedicated to Prince Pier Francesco Orsini's beloved late wife.

Bomarzo is best visited by car, as it is an easy drive from Rome. The park is open year-round, except on Christmas Day, It always opens at 9 a.m. but closing times vary by season, per Sacro Bosco. Guided tours are available and are a fabulous way to get a deeper, more immersive experience of this fantastical garden of wonders. Tours are available in English, but learning a few words of Italian before your trip can make the experience far more rewarding.