Ignazio e Franca Florio bought the property in 1899 from english admiral Sir William Domville. Ignazio, the head of this entrepreneurial family, one of the richest in Sicily, named the villa after his daughter, Igiea. 👑 He planned to convert this grand building into a luxury hotel, worthy of the most stringent international standards. He commissioned Ernesto Basile, the award-winning Palermitan architect and pioneer of the Sicilian Liberty movement. It was inaugurated in the early 1900s, the jewel in its crown the beautiful, frescoed Salon Basile, decorated by Ettore De Maria Bergler and furnished in a wonderful floral style by Vittorio Ducrot. ✨ In a moment of magical splendour of the cultural life in Palermo, Florio’s aim was to transform Villa Igiea as the ultimate luxury retreat for the Belle Époque and, for a short time, it was. 📌In 2019, Villa Igiea was acquired by Rocco Forte Hotels. ➡️More on —> ROCAILLE.IT #villaigiea #roccofortehotels #floriofamily #ignazioflorio #francaflorio #ernestobasile #ettoredemariabergler #libertystyle #palermoliberty #historichotel #belleepoquedecor #rocailleguide #rocailleblog #elegantitalianadventures (presso Villa Igiea, a Rocco Forte Hotel) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLe5YNEHqWK/?igshid=er22ign1s9ih