A historic 15th-century Venice palazzo said to be ‘cursed and haunted’ by murders, suicides and mysterious accidents has gone on the market for £17million.

With nine bedrooms, eight pillared bathrooms, grand reception halls, a garden, a boat ramp and a roof terrace with sweeping views of Venice’s canals and cupolas, the gilded Ca’ Dario palazzo is described as an architectural gem.

But it is also linked to a dark and twisted past that has fuelled centuries of disturbing tales. A grisly string of deaths has led some to believe the building is haunted and brings bad luck.

Christie’s, which is handling the sale along with the high-end property agents Engel & Volkers, said the palazzo is situated ‘on the most prestigious part of the Grand Canal’.

While the price is only available on application, it is understood that offers in the region of €20million (£17.3million) are expected.

The palazzo was painted by Claude Monet during his only trip to the lagoon city in 1908 and was mentioned by Henry James in Italian Hours, his 1909 travelogue.

It was built in 1489 for Giovanni Dario, a merchant and diplomat who negotiated a peace agreement with the Ottomans, for which he was handsomely paid by La Serenissima, as the Venetian Republic was known.

Since then, it has been linked to a series of misfortunes.

With nine bedrooms, eight pillared bathrooms, grand reception halls, a garden, a boat ramp and a roof terrace with sweeping views of Venice’s canals and cupolas, the gilded Ca’ Dario palazzo is described as an architectural gem

But it is also linked to a dark and twisted past that has fuelled centuries of disturbing tales. A grisly string of deaths has led some to believe the building is haunted and brings bad luck

After Dario’s death, the palazzo passed to his daughter Marietta and her husband, a wealthy spice merchant. But tragedy soon followed. His business collapsed, he was stabbed in a fight, and Marietta later took her own life.

The couple’s misfortune did not end there. Shortly afterwards, their son was killed in Greece, in a suspected vendetta-style ambush. 

 In 1896, French poet Henri de Régnier stayed at Ca’ Dario as a guest – but was struck down by a mysterious illness and forced to flee Venice.

Decades later, in the 1960s, celebrated operatic tenor Mario del Monaco planned to buy the palazzo, only to abandon the deal after being seriously injured in a car crash while travelling to view it.

The deaths continued. In the 1970s, the palazzo was bought by Italian aristocrat Count Filippo Giordano delle Lanze, who was murdered inside the property by his lover, a Yugoslav sailor. 

The sailor fled to London – where he was later murdered himself.

In the 1980s, the palazzo was purchased by Italian tycoon Raul Gardini, who became embroiled in the sprawling Tangentopoli (‘Bribesville’) corruption scandal. 

He later took his own life in Milan in 1993. 

The palace was built in 1489 for Giovanni Dario, a merchant and diplomat who negotiated a peace agreement with the Ottomans, for which he was handsomely paid by La Serenissima, as the Venetian Republic was known. Pictured: An illustration from the 19th century

The curse appeared to strike again in 2002, when John Entwistle, bassist of The Who, died of a heart attack in a US hotel just one week after renting the palazzo for a holiday.

In 2006, Ca’ Dario was bought by an American firm on behalf of its current owners, whose identities have never been made public.

Its unsettling reputation has only deepened with the fact that the palazzo has stood empty ever since.

Arnaldo Fusello from Christie’s International Real Estate dismisses the ‘curse’ of Ca’ Dario as a baseless fable.

‘If you look at any palazzo in Venice that is 500 years old, you will find that, of course, plenty of tragic things happened over the centuries,’ he told The Telegraph. 

‘I have been inside the property maybe 150 times and I can tell you I never felt a shiver down my back – unless the windows were open in the middle of winter.’

The palazzo may have been empty for 20 years, but it is beautifully preserved and would not require an extensive restoration or a substantial investment, he said.

‘It’s only been back on the market a little while but we have had a lot of interest from prospective buyers.’

He refused to reveal the asking price, saying only that it would be in the range of ‘several million’ euros.

‘The residence features two noble floors, a magnificent, decorated staircase, a library, service quarters and a panoramic terrace,’ Engel & Volkers said on its website.

‘Every architectural detail tells the story of Giovanni Dario, a man of culture, merchant and diplomat, who designed Ca’ Dario as the perfect fusion of private residence, place of representation and symbol of 15th-century Venetian magnificence.’

The estate agency added: ‘Ca’ Dario is not just a property: it is a piece of history, a noble residence with deep roots and a bright future, perfect for those seeking elegance, prestige and an authentic connection with the most exclusive Venice.’