Fencing Academy

Luigi Moretti – House of Arms, Rome Foro Italico Italy, 1934-1936

The Fencing Academy, also known as the House of Arms, is a sports building in the Foro Italico complex in Rome. Designed by architect Luigi Moretti in 1934 as the Casa del Balilla sperimentale (Experimental Balilla House), completed in 1936, it was dedicated to fencing, taking the name Casa delle Armi (House of Arms) and then Accademia della Scherma (Fencing Academy). In 1981, it was adapted as a bunker for the Rome courthouse, another name by which the building has been known.

The Fencing Academy was architecturally conceived as an advanced typological experiment by the Opera Nazionale Balilla, of which Moretti was technical director. The Casa delle Armi, located on the southern edge of the Foro Italico, across from Enrico Del Debbio's guesthouse (later a hostel, now partially occupied by offices and awaiting its intended use), has an L-shaped plan.
The short side facing the Tiber is divided into two parts: one half is blind and the other half is marked by a giant horizontal grid of windows. The second half housed the actual fencing hall, 45 meters long and 25 meters wide, which allowed 160 athletes to compete on the platforms simultaneously. The facades are uniformly clad in white Carrara marble.
The large external mosaic is by the painter Angelo Canevari.

After being transformed into a courtroom with serious internal tampering, it was left in a state of semi-abandonment. It is now owned by CONI and restoration work is being carried out (April 2013) while waiting for a new destination.
Source: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accademia_di_scherma_al_Foro_italico