A villa of the end of the 19th century

The Villa, located at the beginning of Via Dante Alighieri, clearly refers in its external characteristics to an architectural typology of medieval inspiration, while the general layout of the villa presents remarkable and surprising analogies with a previous project of a small villa, realized by Francesco Sappia and published in 1899 in the magazine "Memorie di un architetto", which was commissioned to the architect from Sanremo by Girolamo Vigo, whose house was built in other forms in Via Ruffini.

It was born as Villa Impero and the only evidence of the origin of the villa is an inscription on the wall of the facade (even if you can't see so much now) which says that the villa was completed in 1898.

As far as its history is concerned, the sources all derive from information handed down by hearsay from the current owners of the villa.

It is known that it was built on behalf of a Lombard countess; she in turn sold it and it was inhabited for some time by a mayor whose name we do not know, as we do not know that of the first two owners.

A certainty about the owners comes from a deed dated 1st September 1946, from which it is clear that at that time the villa belonged to a certain Signora Maddalena Altoviti Avila of Florence, but it is not known when she became the owner.

With the same notarial deed, the villa, including two gardens of 150 square metres each, was purchased by Mrs Lucia Amato in Fiorentino from Milano.

Without respite, in the same year, with a deed of 1st September, Mrs. Amato sold it to Mr. Arturo Bonifacio of Vercelli, who changed the name of the villa from Empire to Cristina in honour of his wife, Cristina.

The villa has always remained the same except for one thing the Bonifacio around the '50s of the last century, closed that beautiful terrace to make a bath creating qurello that is said to be "an abomination" and no other change.

At his death the inheritance went to his two daughters Germana and Maddalena this last opera singer, at that time also very successful.

The two sisters divided the inheritance into two parts the first two floors to Germana and the last two to Maddalena.
Later Germana sold the second floor to Mr. Dario Modena, a forestry professional, who in 1992, having separated from his wife, sold this floor to the current owners.

Also Germana, in 2005, proposed to them the purchase of the first floor so, accepting it, they became the owners of the first two floors.

In the meantime, Maddalena died and left the two upper floors, including the tower with the pyramid roof, to the Borea Massa Marsaglia Institute, which, however, sold them to the current owners in 2018.

Inside, a staircase connects all four floors, now of a single property.

The villa should be restored because the facade is very bad and no one has ever bothered, in so many years, to fix it.
The owners, however, have the intention, as soon as possible, to proceed with the restoration.

(source: news provided by Alida belonging to our FB Group; private pictures)