Rome pays last respects to fashion 'emperor' Valentino in a two-day public viewing

The funeral for the jet-set Italian designer, who built his house in the Italian capital, will be held on Friday in the Basilica di Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri in central Rome.

Universally known by his first name, Valentino was adored by generations of royals, first ladies and movie stars, from Jackie Kennedy Onassis to Julia Roberts and Queen Rania of Jordan, who swore the designer always made them look and feel their best.

Hundreds of fashion celebrities, authorities and Roman citizens lined up to honor the “last emperor” of Italian fashion during the public viewing. He always maintained his atelier in Rome, while he mostly unveiled his collections in Paris.

Mourners waited in line to enter the headquarters of Valentino’s foundation and stop for a few moments in front of his coffin, adorned with just one red rose and surrounded by white flowers.

Only his closest relatives and friends sat on both sides of the coffin, including his two beloved fawn-colored pugs.

“I worked for him for 14 years ... Those were the most beautiful years of my life, the ones with him," said hairdresser Alba Armillei. “Everything he touched became beautiful.”

Hailing him as one of “Italy’s most luminous and beloved figures,” Rome's Mayor Roberto Gualtieri underlined the designer’s strong links with the Italian capital.

Alba Verga, in her red Valentino coat, remembered Valentino as “the biggest, most immense forever.”

"He made us dream. His dresses for me were sculptures, works of art, but above all dreams and through his dresses, I always dreamed,” she said.

Alessandro Michele, the current creative director of the Valentino fashion house, said the Maestro would be irreplaceable, but left a sound heritage.

“He's been a great example of life,” Michele told reporters before entering the foundation for his last salute. “He came from afar and built something immense.”

Dancer Eleonora Abbagnato recalled “the first dress created by Valentino for the Vienna Opera when I danced for New Year’s Eve with ostrich feathers, true elegance, the red, the emotions and effect that he created.”

Windows of the central Valentino store were covered up with black with his famous quote: “I love beauty. It is not my fault.”

Never one for edginess or statement dressing, Valentino’s nearly half-century career stretched from his early days in Rome in the 1960s through to his retirement in 2008.

He founded the house of Valentino on Rome’s central Via Condotti in 1959.

Valentino’s fail-safe designs made him the king of the red carpet, the go-to man for A-listers’ awards ceremony needs.

His sumptuous gowns have graced countless Academy Awards, notably in 2001, when Roberts wore a vintage black and white column to accept her best actress statue. Cate Blanchett also wore Valentino — a one-shouldered number in butter-yellow silk — when she won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 2005.