Villa San Michele, Capri, Italy - Tour of Axel Munthe House Museum and Garden. Relaxing video.

Villa San Michele is located in Anacapri, on the beautiful island of Capri. The Villa San Michele, was the home of Swedish author and doctor Axel Munthe. The villa has stunning panoramic views of Capri, Marina Grande and the Bay of Naples.The villa’s beautiful, tranquil Mediterranean garden, is a sanctuary where you can relax, stroll and take in the views. The garden was voted Italy’s most beautiful private garden.

If you want to escape the crowds on Capri then this is the perfect place to visit. Stroll through the house, enjoy the tranquil Mediterranean garden. Easily accessed by bus or taxi from the main town or Marina Grande or for the more energetic by walking the Phoenician Steps.

Anacapri
If you are looking to get away from the crowds and bustle of the “Piazzetta” in Capri then head for the peace and charm of Anacapri. Anacapri has three of the top tourist attractions on the island, the Blue Grotto, Monte Solaro and the Villa San Michele.

The Villa
Built on the site of an ancient Roman villa, it is perched high on the north-eastern slopes of Anacapri, the villa offers some of the best views on the island. The rooms and loggia house the museum which preserves the rooms as lived in by Munthe and his guests. The villa houses an important personal classical art collection, acquired by Munthe including Roman, Etruscan and Egyptian sculptures. One of these is a 3200-year-old sphinx, located by the chapel, looking out to sea. Other important pieces include, The Cosmat Table, sculptures of Priapus, Hermes, Tiberius, Head of Medusa and The Roman Woman with Child. There are information panels on display throughout the house. The hermes loggia, houses a number of outstanding busts and statues, leads into the garden pergola, which provides a shaded walk on a hot day. The villa has a fabulous restaurant a perfect place for lunch. The villa is a convenient short walk from the centre of Anacapri and the chair lift to Monte Solaro. The museum is open all year round.

Axel Munthe - was a Swedish doctor and author who wrote The Story of San Michele, which was successful world-wide, in which he described how he built and decorated the villa, from the remains of Roman palaces which he found on his land. "My home shall be open in order to let in the sun, and the wind, and the voices of the ocean, like a Greek temple, and there shall be light, light everywhere!" In 1892, Munthe was appointed physician to the Swedish royal family and from 1910 onwards was visited each year by the Queen of Sweden, during her visits to Capri. In the 1920s Capri became popular with bohemian artists, writers and the gay community.

Munthe risked his life while volunteering to treat patients in Naples, during a cholera outbreak in the 1880s. He also served in the ambulance corps during the First World War. Munthe was an animal lover and purchased the mountains that overlook the villa, which he turned into a sanctuary for birds. In later years he nearly went blind. An operation restored his sight allowing him to spend several more years at the villa before returning to Sweden where he died in 1949 at the age of 91.
Several of his properties are now museums and cultural centres. He willed Villa San Michele to the Swedish nation, and it is maintained by a Swedish foundation. The complex functions as a cultural centre, hosting concerts, visiting Swedish scholars, and the local Swedish consulate. The foundation also maintains the Mount Barbarossa bird sanctuary, which covers over 55,000 square metres. Each summer the villa stages a number of cultural events in the open air theatre in the garden.

The Location: Villa San Michele, Viale Axel Munthe, 34
80071 Anacapri

If you have visited the Villa and gardens please add your comments about your experience in the comments below.

Music credits

The Shining by mezhdunami [Vlog No Copyright Music]
https://soundcloud.com/mezhdunami
Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0
Free Download / Stream: http://bit.ly/_TheShining
Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/e5yKvDLiUeE
Wanderlust - Nomyn [Vlog No Copyright Music]
https://soundcloud.com/nomyn Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/wanderlust-nomyn Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/Q66WFX4eeVw

Pachabelly - Huma-Huma (No Copyright Music)
Music: Pachabelly - Huma-Huma https://youtu.be/87ZE7VB8Ofk
Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Music promoted by Audio Library

Thank you for watching my film, if you enjoyed it then please feel free to like it and leave a comment. Why don’t you have a look at some of the other films on my channel.

The rights for all trademarks and copyrighted material remains with the owners, no infringement of copyright is intended. Any content used here is with the intention of fair use.

Видео Villa San Michele, Capri, Italy - Tour of Axel Munthe House Museum and Garden. Relaxing video. канала MrFord4210