Rediscovering Pietro Gaudenzi's Lost Frescoes in Rhodes

Pietro Gaudenzi, born in Genoa in 1880 and passing away in Anticoli Corrado in 1955, created frescoes in 1938 for the Hall of Bread and the Hall of the Family at the Castle of the Knights in Rhodes, under the commission of Governor Cesare De Vecchi. Only the cartoons of these works survive and were displayed in 2014 at Galleria del Laocoonte in Rome during the exhibition "Pietro Gaudenzi. The Lost Frescoes of the Palace of the Knights in Rhodes," curated by Marco Fabio Apolloni and Monica Cardarelli. Gaudenzi, who studied in La Spezia and at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Genova, relocated to Rome in 1904 and wed Candida Toppi in 1909. He received the Premio Mussolini in 1936 and later served as president of the Accademia di San Luca, with his frescoes illustrating both sacred and secular themes, blending holy imagery with family life.