Étampes, France
1130-1150
Thomery, France
1859
Sigy, France
14th century
Montfort-l'Amaury, France
1815
Janvry, France
1600-1650
Bouray-sur-Juine, France
1632-1635
Bourron-Marlotte, France
16th century
Bouville, France
1291
Condécourt, France
1668-1696
Ballancourt-sur-Essonne, France
1620
Nangis, France
1436
Jouars-Pontchartrain, France
1633-1662
Diant, France
13th century
Boissy-Saint-Léger, France
17th century
Brou-sur-Chantereine, France
17th century
Villecerf, France
11th century
Maule, France
16th century
Louveciennes, France
2008
Rosny-sur-Seine, France
c. 1598
The Villa d'Este is a 16th-century villa in Tivoli, near Rome, famous for its terraced hillside Italian Renaissance garden and especially for its profusion of fountains: the extraordinary system contains fifty-one fountains and nymphaeums, 398 spouts, 364 water jets, 64 waterfalls, and 220 basins, fed by 875 meters of canals, channels and cascades, and all working entirely by the force of gravity, without pumps. It is now an Italian state museum, and is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site.
Tivoli had been a popular summer residence since ancient Roman times due to its altitude, cooler temperatures and its proximity to the Villa Hadriana, the summer residence of the Emperor Hadrian I.
The Villa was commissioned by Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este (1509-1572), second son of Alfonso I d'Este, the Duke of Ferrara and grandson of Pope Alexander VI, along with Lucrezia Borgia.