Italy Guide
Piemonte and Valle d'Aosta
The Palazzo Madama
Address: Piazza Castello
The newly restored Palazzo Madama ( 
www.palazzomadamatorino.it ) is an appealing building with an ornate Baroque facade by the early eighteenth-century architect Juvarra, who also redesigned the piazza and many of the streets leading off it. Inside, the originally fifteenth-century palace incorporates parts of a thirteenth-century castle and some Roman portal foundations. The most noteworthy architectural pieces are Juvarra's Great Staircase and the archeological excavations of the Medieval Court ( Opening time: Tues– Fri & Sun 9am–7pm, Sat 10am–8pmPrice: free. It's well worth visiting the Museo Civico d'Arte Antica (Tues– Fri & Sun 10am–6pm, Sat 10am–8pm; ticket office closes one hour before museum closing time; €7.50, free first Tues of the month) – a stunning collection of thousands of objects that includes everything from early Christian gold jewellery via a vast array of world ceramics to royal furniture such as an inlaid Gothic commode, all complete with excellent multilingual captions.