All Palaces in Emilia-Romagna

Palazzo Rasponi del Sale is a striking example of late-Baroque civil architecture in the historic center of Ravenna. Erected in the late 18th century, this palace stands close to the city’s central square, Piazza del Popolo, and reflects both the legacy of the influential Rasponi family and the urban transformations that shaped Ravenna during the early modern era. While lesser known internationally than Ravenna’s UNESCO monuments, Palazzo Rasponi del Sale offers visitors an authentic glimpse into the aristocratic residences that once defined the city’s civic identity.     Short History of Palazzo Rasponi del Sale Palazzo Rasponi del Sale was built around 1770, during a period when Ravenna’s historic center was no longer expanding rapidly and many noble families were facing financial constraints. The palace likely originated from the initiative of Count Fabrizio Rasponi. His son, Giuseppe Rasponi, married Benedetta del Sale, a union that gave rise to the Rasponi del Sale branch of the family. Before the palace was constructed, the land it occupies was home to the medieval residence of the Artusini family and may even have contained remains of Roman structures, underlining the long-standing strategic and symbolic value of the site. During the 19th century, the estate Read more [...]

Palazzo Rasponi dalle Teste is one of Ravenna’s most impressive historic buildings, renowned for its monumental Baroque architecture and rich connection to one of Romagna’s most influential noble families. Standing proudly in Piazza Kennedy, the palace occupies over 5,000 square meters and is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful palaces in the city. Originally constructed between the late 17th and early 18th centuries, the palace today houses cultural events, exhibitions, and institutional functions, contributing to Ravenna’s vibrant cultural life. Its façade, grand internal spaces, and historic symbolism reflect both the aspirations and the complex fortunes of the Rasponi family, whose influence shaped the city’s political and social fabric for centuries.     Short History of Palazzo Rasponi dalle Teste Palazzo Rasponi dalle Teste was commissioned in the late 1600s by Giovanni Rasponi, who served as Bishop of Forlì from 1689 until his death in 1714, together with his brother Count Giuseppe Rasponi. The palace was built on a site already owned by the Rasponi family since at least the 15th century, reflecting their long-standing prominence in Ravenna. The family’s name, “dalle Teste”, literally means “of the Heads” – a moniker derived from the distinctive sculpted heads featured on Read more [...]

Palazzo dell’Arengo, known in the past as Palatium Comunis, is a palace in Rimini, located in Piazza Cavour, between Palazzo del Podestà and Palazzo Garampi, in the historical center of the city. In the late Middle Ages, the council of the people of Rimini met in the palace.   SHORT HISTORY OF PALAZZO DELL’ARENGO The loggia of Palazzo dell’Arengo was erected in 1204 by the podestà (chief magistrate) of Rimini, Mario de Carbonesi. The fact is remebered by an epigraph on one of the pillars of the loggia. The palace was restored several times, in 1562, in 1672, and between 1919 and 1923. The original construction was profoundly altered by these renovations. Today, Palazzo dell’Arengo, together with the adjacent Palazzo del Podestà, houses the new Museum of Contemporary Art of the City – PART, Palazzi dell’Arte Rimini.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF PALAZZO DELL’ARENGO Palazzo dell’Arengo has a facade in Romanesque-Gothic style, surmounted by battlements, with a large loggia on the ground floor. The loggia is set on a massive colonnade which supports pointed arches. On the upper floor, there is a large hall with mullioned windows (Sala dell’Arengo), in which are preserved frescoes of the Rimini school from the Read more [...]

Palazzo del Podestà is a medieval palace in Rimini, located in Piazza Cavour, between Palazzo dell’Arengo and the Amintore Galli Theater.   SHORT HISTORY OF PALAZZO DEL PODESTÀ The palace was built in 1334, more than a century after Palazzo dell’Arengo, and was the seat of the podestà, the chief magistrate of the city of Rimini. The palace undergone considerable transformations over the years. Between 1912 and 1922, it was restored by the architect Gaspare Rastrelli. Since 2020, Palazzo del Podestà, together with the adjacent Palazzo dell’Arengo, houses the new Museum of Contemporary Art of the City – PART, Palazzi dell’Arte Rimini.   ARCHITECTURE OF PALAZZO DEL PODESTÀ The palace has a Gothic facade with three pointed arches on the ground floor and five small windows on the upper floor. The facade is surmounted by battlements.   HOW TO GET TO PALAZZO DEL PODESTÀ Palazzo del Podestà is located about 900 meters away from the Rimini railway station. The closest bus stop is Duomo, about 450 meters away, on the bus Line 1.

Palazzo Massani is a Neoclassical palace in Rimini, located across the street from the city’s Cathedral, Tempio Malatestiano. Today, the palace houses the offices of the Prefecture.   SHORT HISTORY OF PALAZZO MASSANI Palazzo Massani was built at the end of the 19th century for the nobleman Guglielmo Massani, a great benefactor of the poor. The construction of the palace was entrusted to Ghinelli di Santarcangelo, who designed the structure in Neoclassical style. During the Second World War, the palace was badly damaged by bombings. After the war, it was the subject of a hasty and incomplete reconstruction. Recently, the palace was restored by Paolo Beltrambini.   ARCHITECTURE OF PALAZZO MASSANI The main facade of the palace overlooking Via IV Novembre has three floors. On the ground floor, there are six large windows, with a large portal in the center. The portal is surmounted by a balcony. Each of the two upper floors has nine rectangular windows. On the second floor, the windows have round pediments, while the windows on the third floor are surmounted by a cornice. Inside, we can find the remains of an ancient Roman domus (house), with a floor in pink marble slabs, and an 18th-century Read more [...]

Palazzo di San Crispino, also known as the Oratory of the Shoemakers (Oratorio dei Calzolai), is a palace in Ferrara, located in Piazza Trento e Trieste, at the corner of Via Mazzini and Via Contrari.   SHORT HISTORY According to tradition, the palace was built in 808 at the behest of Charlemagne and dedicated to the art of cobblers as a reward to a shoemaker for the services he offered. Historically, between 1461 and 1567, the palace was the seat of the Faculty of Literature, part of the University of Ferrara. In 1567, after it was partially destroyed by a fire, by the decision of the Shoemakers’ Guild, the palace was reduced to an oratory, while the public school was moved to the new headquarters in Palazzo Paradiso. The oratory was dedicated to the Saints Crispin and Crispinian, the patron saints of cobblers, tanners and leather workers. Starting with 1841, the palace was renovated by the architect Giovanni Tosi, who transformed the ancient loggia, giving it a Neoclassical aspect. The facade was decorated with marble medallions by famous artists from Ferrara. The frescoed facade of 1675, work of Francesco Ferrari, which represented Charlemagne on the throne flanked by knights on Read more [...]

Palazzo della Borsa is a large palace in Ferrara, located in Largo Castello, in the historical center of the city, facing the Este Castle.   SHORT HISTORY Starting with the 15th century, the site of the current palace was occupied by the Pavilion Gardens (Giardini del Padiglione) built by the Duke Ercole I d’Este, in place of previous vegetable gardens and small peasant houses. The palace was built between 1756 and 1761 at the behest of the cardinal legate Giovanni Francesco Banchieri, who entrusted its design to the architect Angelo Santini. In 1761, it became the seat of Monte di Pietà (Mount of Piety). In 1796, with the arrival of the troops of Napoleon Bonaparte, the institution was suppressed and all the precious goods preserved inside, such as jewels, precious stones, gold and silver, were requisitioned. In 1807, when the French troops left, its management was entrusted again to Monte di Pietà. In 1930, the institute was absorbed by Cassa di Risparmio di Ferrara, already owner of the palace and partially operating on the ground floor of the building. Later, the structure became the seat of the Stock Exchange. During the Second World War, the palace was damaged and the Read more [...]

Palazzo Municipale (Municipal Palace) is a palace in Ferrara, located in Piazza del Municipio, adjacent to Piazza Trento e Trieste, in the historical center of the city. The palace was the residence of the Este family until the 16th century, when the court moved to the nearby Castello Estense. Today, Palazzo Municipale is the seat of the Municipality of Ferrara.   SHORT HISTORY The original nucleus of the palace was begun in 1245 along Via Cortevecchia, and was completed between 1472 and 1481. On June 2, 1451, the equestrian statue of Marquis Niccolò III d’Este was placed on the right side of the entrance to the palace, on a support inspired by the Roman triumphal arches. The construction of the monument was entrusted to the Florentine sculptors Antonio di Cristoforo, Nicolò Baroncelli, and Meo di Checco. The statue of Borso d’Este, also finished in 1453 by Baroncelli, was placed on the left side of the entrance. The palace changed significantly over the centuries. Between 1924 and 1928, the facade overlooking Piazza Trento e Trieste was rebuilt by Carlo Savonuzzi in a Neo-Gothic style, while the remaining part along the current Corso Martiri della Libertà had already been remodeled in 1738. Read more [...]

Palazzo dei Banchi (Palace of the Banks) is a 15th-century palace in Bologna, located in Piazza Maggiore, next to the Basilica of San Petronio and Palazzo del Podesta. The palace takes its name from some shops that practiced currency exchange during the 15th and 16th centuries.   SHORT HISTORY Palazzo dei Banchi was the last building erected in Piazza Maggiore, starting with 1412. The palace consists of several buildings joined behind the same facade. The facade of the palace and the portico, known as Pavaglione, were built after a project by the architect Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola, and were completed between 1565 and 1568. Behind the palace, there is the Mercato di Mezzo, a series of alleys where, since the Middle Ages, a market of typical products and crafts was established. Also located behind Palazzo dei Banchi is the city’s archaeological museum (Museo Civico Archeologico) and the Church of Santa Maria della Vita.   ARCHITECTURE Palazzo dei Banchi has a Renaissance-style facade, with a long portico on the ground floor (Pavaglione). The asymmetric facade of the palace has 15 rounded arches, two of which are larger and lead to the alleys mentioned above, while the others are lower. All the Read more [...]

Palazzo dei Notai (Palace of the Notaries) is a medieval palace in Bologna, located in Piazza Maggiore, between the Basilica of San Petronio and Palazzo d’Accursio.   SHORT HISTORY The palace was built starting with 1381 as the seat of the Notaries Guild. Its construction had two stages: the part facing the Basilica of San Petronio dates back to 1381, but the one facing Palazzo d’Accursio was rebuilt by Bartolomeo Fioravanti in 1437. In 1422, a loggia was added to the building, and the current door was opened in Via dei Pignattari, next to the Basilica of San Petronio. In 1792, when the vault of the great hall was transformed and raised according to a design by Giuseppe Tubertini, many battlements were damaged, and the palace partially lost its characteristic medieval appearance. In 1908, Palazzo dei Notai was completely restored by Alfonso Rubbiani, who mainly intervened on the facade and demolished the great hall of Tubertini.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE Palazzo dei Notai is a rectangular structure made of bricks, crenellated on top, with Gothic mullioned windows. Inside the palace, in the Salone dei Notai (Hall of Notaries), you can admire the 15th-century frescoes representing the Incredulity of Saint Thomas, Read more [...]

Buy tickets & tours:GetYourGuide Palazzo d’Accursio, also known as Palazzo Comunale, houses the Town Hall of Bologna. The palace is located in Piazza Maggiore, flanked by Palazzo del Podesta and Palazzo dei Notai.   SHORT HISTORY Palazzo d’Accursio is actually a collection of buildings joined over the centuries, hidden by the same facade. The original nucleus, purchased by the Municipality at the end of the 13th century, was the home of Accursio, a jurist and teacher of law in Bologna. Only in 1336, the palace became the residence of the Anziani (Senior Citizens), the highest magistracy of the Municipality of Bologna and, therefore, the seat of the city government. In the 15th century, the palace was renovated by Fioravante Fioravanti and an astronomical clock was added on the Torre d’Accursio, with a carousel of automata that paraded at each hour change. Other architectural renovations date back to the early 16th century, after the fall of the Bentivoglio family. At the end of the 16th century, the double flight of stairs that gives access to the interior, attributed to Donato Bramante, was completed. In recent history, the palace became famous for the massacre that bears its name. On November 21, 1920, Read more [...]

Palazzo del Podesta is a beautiful palace in Bologna, located in Piazza Maggiore, adjacent to Palazzo Re Enzo, opposite the Basilica of San Petronio.   SHORT HISTORY OF PALAZZO DEL PODESTA At the beginning of the 13th century, the Municipality of Bologna expropriated several buildings to create the wonderful Piazza Maggiore, and erected the first complex of palaces destined for public administration, starting with Palazzo del Podesta. Proving insufficient for the needs of the city’s government, between 1244 and 1246, Palazzo Re Enzo was built as an extension of Palazzo del Podesta. In 1453, Aristotile Fioravanti renovated the Romanesque facade of the palace in a Renaissance style, at the behest of Giovanni II Bentivoglio, although he never finished the work due to the expulsion of the Bentivoglio family from the city. The great Hall of the Podesta (Salone del Podesta), located on the upper floor, once a courtroom, was used from 1581 to 1767 as a public theater, and, later, as a playing field for ball games. Salone del Podesta was completely frescoed by Adolfo De Carolis at the beginning of the 20th century, with The Glories of the City of Bologna. Today, Palazzo del Podesta is a prestigious venue Read more [...]