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Count Nicolò di Toppo and his brother Marzio adorned the park with Roman artifacts recovered from Aquileia, creating the initial nucleus of the only archaeological-botanical park remaining in northern Italy.
Francesco, Nicolò’s son, was responsible for the 19th-century layout of the park. Under the direction of the architect Giuseppe Rho, native and exotic tree species were introduced, along with approximately 600 archaeological artifacts collected by Francesco. In the new greenhouse, seeds brought back from a trip to southern Italy found their place. The final appearance can be described as “ruinistic”, focusing on the aesthetic of ruins.
Upon Francesco’s death in 1883, his wife Margherita continued the renovations of both the buildings and the park. Their niece, Vittoria Ciconi Beltrame, his heir, engaged in wine production, cultivated vegetables and tobacco, grew flowers, and created a rose garden that became famous.
In 1943, the German command took over the villa, initiating the removal of some archaeological artifacts, a process later continued by the Americans.
During the period when the villa housed the College for Disabled Boys, radical transformations took place in the park: a staircase and central avenue adorned with palm trees were constructed in place of the boxwood and oak labyrinth. A significant portion of the green area in the eastern part of the park was sacrificed to create three sports fields, below the current Lapidarium.
