Built in 1552, the garden of these “monsters” remained neglected throughout the 19th century to nearly the end of the 20th century. Until the 1970s, a program of restoration of the garden was underway. To date, Bomarzo has become a major tourist attraction.

In 16th century Italy, the nobility often left behind generations proof of their greatness through the religious art form. But Pier Francesco Orsini wanted to be famous in a completely different way.

He wanted his wonder to impress by delighting visitors with awe-inspiring surprise with the monsters.

This garden is called Bomarzo, in the province of Viterbo (Lazio, Italy), in the lower Tiber valley, 68km from Rome. It was part of the forest near the bottom of the valley where the Orsini family castle was built. For him, the garden was a place of retreat after a period of life in the instability and stress of society at that time.

During the 19th century to almost the end of the 20th century, the garden was forgotten and became an abandoned garden. Until the 1970s, a program of garden restoration was underway. To date, Bomarzo has become a major tourist attraction.

The sculptures in the garden are placed in different corners in no particular order, in order to increase the curiosity of visitors who love to explore.

Visitors will not be able to see what images make them wonder behind the hidden corners. Some of the works are carved directly on large rocks, making viewers sometimes startled.

Pier Francesco Orsini, also known as Vicino (1528 – 1588), was a mercenary who lived during the Italian Renaissance. He spent his life remembering his wife.

Mentally broken after the death of his wife, he devoted himself to the construction of the garden with the assistance of the then famous architect Pirro Lugorio. The sculptures of monsters in the garden are extremely diverse, including the gods Pegasus, Poseidon and Proteus…

These monster statues do not seem to have a connection with each other in the mythological period or fit the space around where they are located.

Perhaps because of grief over the untimely death of his wife, Vicino decided to build this seemingly bizarre park. However, after hundreds of years, researchers have not been able to solve the real mystery behind it.