Verona's Villa Girasole is an ahead-of-its-time architectural marvel. That's because the home, designed by railway engineer Angelo Invernizzi, rotates to follow the movement of the sun.
The complicated and expensive structure was under construction from 1929 until 1935.
It worked then, and it still does.
The two-part building resembles a clock face with a 44-metre-diameter circular base and L-shaped hands connected by a 40-metre-high pivoting turret. Three diesel-powered circular rails allow for a complete rotation of the building in nine hours and 20 minutes, more than enough time to follow the movement of the sun. Every day, the two-storey villa rotates to allow its main windows to face the sun.
Inside the building, the first floor features living, dining and entertaining spaces. A series of bedrooms and bathrooms are found at the top of the sweeping spiral staircase.
Italian villa rotates with the sun
