In the second half of the sixteenth century Gio Francesco Balbi brings together a series of his medieval buildings near the church dell'Annunziata and creates the first nucleus of the family "domus magna", which in 1588 is already present in a list of the Palazzi dei Rolli.

In 1614, while Stefano Balbi was engaged in the creation of the large private road that still bears the name of the family, the palace was restored; given to the Cattaneo della Volta in the 70s of the eighteenth century, it was completely redecorated.

Restored and partially rebuilt by Luigi Daneri after the Second World War, since 2001 the building houses the Faculty of Letters and Philosophy of the University of Genoa. In the Hall of the second floor can be admired the Cattaneo painting, which includes a group of 4 magnificent family portraits, by Vaymer and Pellegro Parodi.

The Palaces of the University of Genoa are open during the teaching and research activities; the spaces that host the classrooms are open only when the lessons are not in progress.

To learn more, here is the link to the official website: https://unige.it/ateneo/patrimonio-storico-artistico-universita-genova 

To learn more about the history of the Palace, here is the link to the page on the Rolli and Strade Nuove website:

https://www.rolliestradenuove.it/rollo/27-palazzo-di-gio-francesco-balbi/