The Milanese Colony of the Arcadian Academy

The Milanese colony of the Arcadian Academy, established in the city in 1704 at the behest of Father Gian Antonio Mezzabarba, found the ideal place for its meetings in the garden of Count Carlo Pertusati’s residence. Serviliano Latuada describes its layout, with a central path lined by tall trees, a system of symmetrical flower beds, fountains and sculptures. The statue of Hercules in the act of killing the lion of Nemea gave the place the name “Herculean Garden”. During the warm months, dances, literary meetings and banquets were held there. Today the Arcadian Garden, the most important example of this typology in eighteenth-century Milan, still bears traces of its past, albeit profoundly modified. Through the documentation in the Milanese archives, it is possible to piece together the life of the Academy and its headquarters, and the role it played in the Milan of that time.