The beautiful Renaissance villa on Corso Magenta known as Casa degli Atellani continues to have a special history, even in contemporary times: reopened to the public for Expo 2015, it had become one of Milan's finest cultural destinations. Then, in late 2022, the news of its purchase by the French tycoon. Since then it has again been closed to the public, at the center of a discreet renovation site. Meanwhile, curiosity is growing, and with it speculation about its future: would the LVMH patron have chosen the historic Casa degli Atellani as his new Italian residence? Rumors of his possible relocation are thickening.

If one thing is certain, it is that Arnault does not lack good taste. With the purchase of the Casa degli Atellani, the tycoon has secured one of the rarest surviving examples of a Renaissance aristocratic mansion in the heart of Milan. Built in the 15th century, it was given by Ludovico il Moro to Giacomo da Atellano, one of his most trusted courtiers.

But the real treasure is to be found in the back garden, where a rare plot of Malvasia granted in 1498 by the duke himself to Leonardo da Vinci spreads out. Known today as Leonardo's Vineyard, it was destroyed by bombing during World War II and then reconstructed philologically in 2015, using the same vine varieties grown at the time.

The villa, however, is also no different: it has spanned the centuries like an architectural palimpsest, layering styles, functions and memories. Its moment of greatest splendor came perhaps in the 1920s, when Ettore Conti entrusted Piero Portaluppi with a major restoration project that not only recovered what had been lost, it reinvented its spaces, brought to light 16th-century frescoes, and built a perfect balance between modern 20th-century geometries and Renaissance memory.

Some imagine a future opening to the public, perhaps for exclusive events, fashion shows, private dinners. Some speculate the birth of a foundation, or even a new cultural epicenter linked to LVMH, along the lines of the Pinault Collection in Venice.

What is certain is that the Casa degli Atellani, today more than ever, embodies the tensions and transformations of a Milan that is changing face.

The city, already home to the headquarters of the biggest international luxury brands, is emerging as a new center of gravity for the global elite. This is thanks to an increasingly powerful combination: quality of life, creative density, business opportunities and tax instruments designed to attract major international assets.

From the Arnault family, so far, no official statement. But it is possible that it is precisely Casa degli Atellani that will become the silent - and very powerful - symbol of a Milan that is increasingly international, exclusive, and deeply aware of its symbolic value.

Opening image:  Casa degli Atellani. Photo by Francisco Arzola on Flickr