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| Where | Portoferraio - Piazzale Napoleone |
|---|---|
| Opening hours | Monday and Thursday: 2:00 pm - 6:30 pm (last entry at 6:00 pm)
Tuesday: closed Wednesday and Friday: 9:00 am - 1:30 pm (last entry at 1:00 pm) Saturday, Sunday and holidays: 9:00 am - 1:30 pm (last entry at 1:00 pm) |
| Tickets | Full price € 5.00 / Reduced € 2.00
Reductions and free admission according to state museum regulations. Payment in cash only. |
| Temporary exhibitions | In 2026, the anthological exhibition “50 Years of Creation” by sculptor Andrea Roggi was inaugurated, a display dedicated to fifty years of his artistic career. The exhibition unfolds between the Palazzina dei Mulini, Villa San Martino, and the Molo Elba in Portoferraio, creating a dialogue between the artist's contemporary works and the places linked to Napoleon's stay on Elba Island. |
| Accessibility for disabled visitors | Partial. The ground floor is easily accessible, but to reach the first floor you must climb a staircase. |
| Filming and photo purchase | upon agreement with the director, according to current regulations |
| Use of spaces | limited to the garden |
| Visitor experience | Suitable for visitors over 65 - Suitable for families with children - Dogs not allowed |
| Contacts | phone +39 0565 915846 |
Built in 1724 by Grand Duke Gian Gastone de' Medici, it became Napoleon's city residence during his stay on Elba Island.
Initially, the villa did not have its current appearance: it was adapted to Napoleon's needs by the Livorno architect Paolo Bargigli. In addition to demolishing some military buildings to create a delightful Italian-style garden, the works included the construction of a ballroom, the renovation of the adjacent theatre, and the conversion of the former prison into stables.
The gallery on the ground floor connects the main rooms of the Emperor's apartment: the first room is the salon, followed by the library and the bedroom. Beyond the staircase leading to the ballroom, originally intended for Maria Luisa but later inhabited only by his sister Pauline, are the study and the valets' room.
The original furnishings, brought by Napoleon from his sister Elisa Baciocchi's residence in Piombino, have since been lost. A careful restoration project has refurnished the rooms with beautiful 19th-century Empire-style furniture, recreating the imperial atmosphere that can still be felt in the villa's rooms today.
The library, on the other hand, preserves the most important Napoleonic materials: the books the Emperor brought with him from the libraries of Fontainebleau and those donated to him by his uncle, Cardinal Fesch.
The garden between the villa and the sea is adorned with two beautiful statues: a Minerva said to date back to ancient Greece, and a copy of the Galatea by Canova (for which Pauline Borghese is said to have posed), whose original is now kept in the Demidoff Gallery of San Martino.
On the occasion of the Bicentenary in 2014, Villa dei Mulini underwent an important restoration project. In 2025, a new and extensive recovery intervention restored the historic gardens, recognizing their exceptional historical, landscape, and cultural value. The project also reopened large sections of paths, bastions, and green areas that had long been closed to the public or compromised.
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