All Monuments

The Mausoleum of Galla Placidia is a funeral monument in Ravenna, located in Via Galla Placidia, in the northern part of the historical center of the city.   SHORT HISTORY OF THE MAUSOLEUM OF GALLA PLACIDIA According to tradition, the structure was built by Galla Placidia, daughter of the Roman Emperor Theodosius I, and mother of the Emperor Valentinian III, for herself, her husband Constantius III and her brother Honorius. She was Queen consort to Ataulf, King of the Visigoths, between 414 and 415, Empress consort to Constantius III between 417 and 421, and managed the government administration as a regent during the early reign of Valentinian III. Although the legend has it that the body of Galla Placidia was brought back to Ravenna and placed in a sarcophagus in the mausoleum, it was almost certain that she died in Rome in 450, and she was buried in the Honorian Mausoleum. The mausoleum was probably used as a chapel of the Church of the Holy Cross (Chiesa di Santa Croce), located nearby. In 1996, the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia was included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites entitled Early Christian Monuments of Ravenna.   ARCHITECTURE OF THE MAUSOLEUM Read more [...]

Arco di Augusto (Arch of Augustus) is a Roman triumphal arch in Rimini, located in the southern part of the historical center of the city. The Arch of Augustus is the best-preserved Roman arch in the world. Together with the Bridge of Tiberius, the arch is one of the symbols of Rimini, and both monuments appear on the coat of arms of the city.   SHORT HISTORY OF ARCO DI AUGUSTO Arco di Augusto was built in 27 BC, by decree of the Roman Senate, in order to honor Emperor Augustus for having restored Via Flaminia, Via Emilia and Via Popilia. In fact, the arch marked the end of Via Flaminia, which connected Rimini to Rome, the capital of the Empire. Back then, Via Flaminia was continued by the decumanus maximus (east-west-oriented Roman road), today’s Corso d’Augusto, which led to the entrance to the ancient Via Emilia. Arco di Augusto remained the main gate of the city, flanked by modest buildings, until the Fascist period. Between 1936 and 1938, at the behest of Benito Mussolini, it was isolated by demolishing the adjacent buildings.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF THE ARCH OF AUGUSTUS The arch was built in travertine from Nabresina, Read more [...]

Ponte di Tiberio (Bridge of Tiberius), also known as the Bridge of Augustus, is a Roman bridge in Rimini, located in the northern part of the historical center of the city.   SHORT HISTORY OF PONTE DI TIBERIO The construction of the Tiberius Bridge was started in 14 AD under the government of Emperor Augustus, and was completed in 21 AD under Emperor Tiberius. It served as a bridge over the Marecchia River, before the course of the river was diverted. The bridge is a national monument since 1885, and it appears on the coat of arms of Rimini. Until recently, the bridge was part of the city road network and was open to normal traffic, excluding heavy vehicles. The definitive pedestrianization of the bridge began on an experimental basis on May 30, 2020.   ARCHITECTURE OF THE BRIDGE OF TIBERIUS The Bridge of Tiberius was built in Istrian stone, in a sober, but, at the same time, harmonious style. The bridge is paved with trachyte stones, has a width of 4.80 meters and a length of 74 meters. It is flanked by sidewalks about 30 centimeters high and about 60 centimeters wide. The structure is made up of five Read more [...]

Porta Palatina is a Roman city gate in Turin, which once allowed access from the north to the ancient city of Iulia Augusta Taurinorum. The gate is located in Piazza Cesare Augusto, not far from the Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista.   SHORT HISTORY OF PORTA PALATINA The Palatine Gate was built in the 1st century BC during the Augustan or the Flavian Age, preceding the construction of the city walls. Porta Palatina maintained its function as a city gate for a long time, and in the 11th century it was transformed into a fort. In 1404, after centuries of decay, the left tower was rebuilt, and both towers were completed by battlements for defensive purposes. In the early decades of the 18th century, the urban renewal process initiated by Vittorio Amedeo II provided also for the demolition of the Palatine Gate. However, the dismantling was not carried out thanks to the intervention of the architect Antonio Bertola, who managed to convince the duke to preserve the ancient monument. Starting with 1724, the towers of the gate were used as a prison. In 1860, with the construction of the new prison of the city, Porta Palatina was restored. In the Read more [...]

Porta Galliera is an imposing medieval gate in Bologna, located in Piazza XX Settembre, in the northern part of the historical center of the city. Porta Galliera is the most decorated of all the remaining gates of Bologna.   SHORT HISTORY Porta Galliera was built at the beginning of the 13th century, when the third wall of the city was raised. With a length of about 7.6 kilometers and a polygonal shape, the outer wall of Bologna had 12 gates equipped with a drawbridge, to cross the external moat. The gate was rebuilt in the 14th century, in conjunction with the works for the construction of the nearby Galliera Castle (Castello di Galliera), erected between 1330 and 1333 by Cardinal Bertrando del Poggetto for the Pope John XXII. The fortress was however destroyed in 1334 by the Bolognese population rebelling against the Papal State. In the 17th century, the gate was subject to several renovations, and between 1661 and 1663, due to the poor state of the original foundations, it was completely rebuilt based on a design by Bartolomeo Provaglia. Porta Galliera witnessed the final event of the insurrection of August 8, 1848. Through the gate, the last left open Read more [...]

Arco della Pace is a triumphal arch in Milan, a Neoclassical monument located in Piazza Sempione, separated from Castello Sforzesco by the Sempione Park. The arch, inaugurated on September 10, 1838, during a ceremony attended by the newly crowned emperor Ferdinand I of Austria, is dedicated to the peace established between the European nations at the Vienna Congress of 1815.   SHORT HISTORY The first arch was built in January 1806, on a design by Luigi Cagnola, to celebrate the arrival in Milan of the newlyweds Eugène de Beauharnais, Viceroy of Italy, and Princess Augusta of Bavaria. The arch was raised on Corso di Porta Orientale, now Corso Venezia, and was built from canvas, plastic and timber. Given the success of the arch among foreign visitors, the council of Milan, the Municipality of the time, decreed on 8 February that a new marble arch will be erected in a more appropriate place. The new work, designed also by Cagnola to celebrate the French victory in the Battle of Jena, was built starting with the autumn of 1807. The works were directed by Cagnola himself and supervised by Domenico Moglia, Nicola Pirovano, Francesco Peverelli and Bai Gio Battista, under the pressure Read more [...]

Porta San Giacomo (Saint James Gate) is one of the four Venetian gates of the Città Alta, the ancient part of Bergamo. The gate represents the southern entrance to the old city, and due to its elevated position, it can be seen from afar.   SHORT HISTORY The construction of the Venetian walls (Mura Venete) surrounding the Città Alta began in 1561, as part of a defensive system meant to protect the western territories of the Venetian Republic from Milan, which, after the peace treaty signed in 1559 at Cateau-Cambrésis, became a Spanish province. The Venetian walls have four gates: Porta San Lorenzo, Porta Sant’Agostino, Porta Sant’Alessandro and Porta San Giacomo. The gates were named, except for the Porta Sant’Agostino, after neighbouring churches. Porta San Giacomo was built in 1593, replacing a wooden structure dating back to the middle of the 16th century. The gate was completed with a fresco depicting the winged lion of Saint Mark by Gian Paolo Cavagna. The masonry bridge leading to the gate was built in 1780, and renovated at the end of the 19th century, to enlarge the access area to Palazzo Medolago Alabani, located nearby. The two small arches of the gate were Read more [...]

The Roman Amphitheater of Catania is an amphitheater located at the base of the Montevergine Hill, in Piazza Stesicoro, in Catania.   SHORT HISTORY The amphitheater was probably built in the 2nd century – the exact date is uncertain, but the architecture suggests the era between the emperors Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. The monument was enlarged in the 3rd century, thus tripling its size. Because the monument was abandoned for a long time, in the 5th century, Theodoric, King of the Ostrogoths, granted the inhabitants of the city the right to use the amphitheater as a quarry for building material. In the 11th century, it seems that Roger II of Sicily also used materials from the amphitheater for the construction of the Cathedral of Sant’Agata, including the granite columns that decorate the facade of the church. In the 13th century, the entrances of the monument were used by the Angevins to access the city during the so-called War of the Sicilian Vespers. In the following century, the entrances were walled up and the ruin was incorporated into the Aragonese network of fortifications. In 1505, the city senate granted Giovanni Gioeni the concession to use the stones of the monument for Read more [...]

Torre dell’Orologio (Clock Tower) is a medieval tower and, at the same time, a city gate located in Piazza IX Aprile, in Taormina. Due to its location, about halfway between Porta Messina and Porta Catania, along Corso Umberto, the tower is also known as Torre di Mezzo (Middle Tower) or Porta di Mezzo (Middle Gate). The tower actually separates the medieval part of the town from the ancient Greco-Roman part of Taormina.   SHORT HISTORY Torre di Mezzo was built in the 12th century on Greco-Roman foundations. In 1676, the tower was destroyed by the French troops of Louis XIV, the Sun King. Three years later, in 1679, the tower was rebuilt, and the clock was installed. From that moment on, the tower became known as Torre dell’Orologio. The bells of the tower ring on two occasions – on the election day of the town’s mayor, and on July 9, when the patron saint of Taormina, San Pancrazio, is celebrated.   HOW TO GET THERE Torre dell’Orologio is located about 450 meters away from Porta Messina and about 350 meters from Porta Catania. Because the historical center of Taormina is entirely pedestrian, you can reach the tower only on foot.

Porta San Giorgio, also known as Porta Trento, is a monumental gate in Verona, located in the northern part of the city, on the western bank of the Adige River. The name of the gate derives from nearby church of San Giorgio in Braida.   SHORT HISTORY A first gate erected on this spot was commissioned by Cangrande I della Scala and built between 1321 and 1324 after a project by the architect Calzaro. In the 16th century, during the Venetian occupation, the gate was rebuilt as part of the reinforcement of the fortifications of Verona. The work began in 1525 and was completed one year later, in 1526, on a project traditionally attributed to Giovanni Maria Falconetto. However, the side facing the city remained unfinished and was only completed in 1840 by the Austro-Hungarians, under the direction of the Imperial Royal Office of Fortifications.   ARCHITECTURE The facade of the gate facing the countryside, covered with polished white stone, resembling a triumphal arch, was built in Renaissance style. The composition is in Doric style, adorned with shields and commemorative plaques of the Venetian era. The 19th-century facade of the gate, facing the city, is covered with volcanic tuff, and Read more [...]

Built in Roman times, Ponte Pietra (Stone Bridge) is the oldest bridge on the Adige River, in Verona.   SHORT HISTORY A first wooden bridge was built on this place during the construction of Via Postumia, in 148 BC. Subsequently, the wooden bridge was replaced by the stone one. In the following centuries, the bridge was damaged many times, mainly due to the flooding of the Adige River, in particular in 1007, in 1153, in 1232 and again in 1239. In 1298, the Lord of Verona Alberto della Scala had the tower on the western bank of the river restored and the adjacent arch rebuilt, while in 1368, his great-grandson, Cansignorio della Scala, built an aqueduct on the same bridge that supplied water to several houses in the historic center of the city. During the same time, the bridge was equipped with a second tower on the eastern bank of the river. In 1508, the City Council asked the architect Fra’ Giocondo to supervise the reconstruction of the Roman bridge, but the work began only in 1520, after the death of the architect, and was finished one year later. After a few centuries of relative tranquility, in 1801, the tower Read more [...]

Teatro Romano is a roman amphitheater located in Trieste, at the foot of the San Giusto Hill, on the edge of the old city.   SHORT HISTORY At the time of its construction, dated to the end of the 1st century BC, the theater was located outside the city walls. Back then, the sea reached up to this area, and the theater was practically on its shore. At the beginning of the 2nd century AD, the theater was expanded, probably at the behest of Quinto Petronio Modesto, procurator of the emperor Trajan, mentioned in several inscriptions. Over the centuries, the theater was hidden by the structures that rose around it. Considered lost, it was rediscovered in 1814 by the architect Pietro Nobile, but only in 1938 was it brought to light, during the demolition of a part of the old city. The statues and inscriptions found in the excavations are kept at the Tergestino Lapidarium, in the Castle of San Giusto. Nowadays, the amphitheater is still occasionally used for outdoor summer shows.   ARCHITECTURE According to the Greek custom, the amphitheater takes advantage of the natural slope of the hill. The seating area is divided into four main sections by Read more [...]

Porta Liviana, also known as Porta di Pontecorvo, is a city gate in Padua, located in Piazzale Pontecorvo. Part of the 16th century walls (Mura Cinquecentesche), the gate now appears detached, and therefore presents itself as an isolated monument. Originally, the walls were linked to the sides of the gate, where today two semicircular niches can be seen.   SHORT HISTORY OF PORTA LIVIANA The walls, also known as the Venetian Walls (Mura Veneziane), were built by the Venetian Republic during the first decades of the 16th century, as a project of the captain Bartolomeo d’Alviano. The walls were protected on its west flank by a canal known as Fossa Bastioni. The construction of Porta Liviana was begun immediately after the Siege of Padua from 1509, in the context of the War of the League of Cambrai. It was the first gate to be completed in 1517, and was probably based on a design by the Lugano architect Sebastiano Mariani. The gate was dedicated to Bartolomeo d’Alviano, who died on October 7, 1515.   ARCHITECTURE OF PORTA LIVIANA The gate is actually a cube of 16 meters on each side, with the arches of the passage underlined, on the two Read more [...]

The Temple of Victory (Tempio della Vittoria), known also as the Memorial to Fallen Milanese Soldiers (Sacrario dei Caduti Milanesi), is a monument in Milan, located in Largo Agostino Gemelli, near the apse area of the Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio.   SHORT HISTORY The monument, dedicated to the memory of the Milanese soldiers who fell during the First World War, was built on a project by the architect Giovanni Muzio, with the collaboration of Alberto Alpago Novello, Tomaso Buzzi, Ottavio Cabiati and Gio Ponti, between 1927 and 1930. According to tradition, the memorial is located on a site where, in ancient times, there was the cemetery of the martyrs of the early Christian era, to which martyred soldiers of the First World War relate. The monument was inaugurated on November 4, 1928, with a great ceremony, in which the Prince Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Aosta and commander of the Italian Third Army during the First World War, read the text of the Victory Bulletin to the huge crowd present, composed mainly of veterans from 1918. Severely damaged during the heavy bombings of Milan from 1943, the monument was rebuilt after the war. It was expanded in 1973 with the large memorial Read more [...]

The Columns of San Lorenzo (Colonne di San Lorenzo) is a late Roman monument in Milan, located in front of the Basilica of San Lorenzo Maggiore, near the Medieval Ticinese Gate (Porta Ticinese Medievale). The Columns have a particular emotional meaning for the Milanese, testifying the history of the ancient Mediolanum, capital of the Western Roman Empire between the 3rd and the 5th century.   SHORT HISTORY The Columns of San Lorenzo were brought here in the 4th century, to form an atrium in front of the ancient basilica. The columns came from various Roman buildings dating back to the 2nd or 3rd century, probably from a pagan temple located in the area of today’s Piazza Santa Maria Beltrade. Until 1935, in the current square located between the Columns and the Basilica of San Lorenzo, there were old buildings, which were demolished to give greater coherence and monumentality to the church. The new square was subsequently occupied by tram tracks, which in the 1990s were moved beyond the Columns. In 1937, the bronze statue of the Emperor Constantine was placed in the square, a modern copy of the antique original preserved in Rome.   ARCHITECTURE The Columns of San Lorenzo Read more [...]

Arco dei Gavi is a monument in Verona, located just outside the walls of the ancient Roman city. The arch was built in the 1st century to celebrate the gens Gavia, an important Roman family of Verona.   SHORT HISTORY The arch was commissioned by the Gavia family to the architect Lucius Vitruvius Cerdo, and built in the last years of the reign of Augustus or in the first years of the reign of Tiberius, around the middle of the 1st century. Erected along Via Postumia as an isolated monument, it was later stripped of the decorative elements and incorporated into the new municipal walls built in the 12th century. Around that time, the arch changed its function and was used as a city gate, being called the Gate of San Zeno (Porta di San Zeno). During the Scaligeri domination, the arch became part of the defensive system of Castelvecchio, built in the second half of the 14th century. During the Venetian domination, which financed the construction of the Venetian walls, the structure lost its defensive function. In 1550, the Venetian Republic ceded the area around the building to private individuals. The new owner decided to free the monument by Read more [...]

Porta San Zeno is a monumental gate in Verona, located in Piazza Bacanal, about 270 meters from the impressive Basilica of San Zeno Maggiore.   SHORT HISTORY The gate was designed by the Veronese architect Michele Sanmicheli in 1541, upon returning from his journey in the eastern Mediterranean. Two inscriptions on the front and back of the gate, both dated 1542, suggest that its construction was extremely short, ending in less than a year. The gate was one of the two main entry points to the city, along with Porta San Giorgio, for the visitors who came from the Brenner Pass, a mountain pass through the Alps which forms the border between Italy and Austria.   ARCHITECTURE The gate is inserted in the wall delimited to the north by the Bastion of San Procolo and to the south by the Bastion of San Zeno, and is located near the latter. Porta San Zeno has a square plan, with two floors, a large central vaulted entrance and a pavilion roof. The side walkway and the guardroom are located laterally, while other rooms can be found on the upper floor. In the past, the gate was equipped with wooden drawbridges, which were Read more [...]

The Temple of Apollo (Tempio di Apollo) is one of the most important ancient monuments of Syracuse, located in Largo XXV Luglio, on the island of Ortygia.   SHORT HISTORY The temple can be dated to the beginning of the 6th century BC, being considered the oldest Doric temple in Sicily. Over time, the temple underwent several transformations. In the first half of the first millennium of our era, it was a Byzantine church, of which the frontal staircase and parts of a central portal are still preserved, and then it became an Islamic mosque. Subsequently, the Norman Church of the Savior was built on its place, which was later incorporated into a 16th-century Spanish barracks, while some architectural elements remained visible. These successive transformations seriously damaged the building, which was rediscovered around 1860 inside the Spanish barracks, and was brought to light thanks to the excavations carried out by Paolo Orsi between 1938 and 1942.   ARCHITECTURE The temple has a lenght of 55.36 meters and a width of 21.47 meters. It is one of the first Greek temples made of stone, marking the transition from the ancient wooden structures. The building has a hexastyle front and a continuous Read more [...]

Portale di San Giorgio (Portal of Saint George) is a monument in Ragusa, located in Ragusa Ibla – the ancient center of the city, a few meters away from the Hyblean Garden and the Church of San Vincenzo Ferreri. The Portal is part of the ancient Church of San Giorgio, now demolished.   SHORT HISTORY During the second half of the 11th century, Geoffrey, the second eldest son of Roger I of Sicily and the Count of Ragusa, took care of the ancient Church of San Giorgio, expanding it. The Portal of Saint George was built during the first half of the 13th century in Catalan Gothic style, as part of the church. Starting with 1308, the church passed under the patronage of the noble Chiaramonte family, and later, after 1382, under the patronage of the Cabrera family, which began extensive reconstruction works on the building. In the 16th century, the Church of San Giorgio was rebuilt, but suffered some damage during the earthquake of 1542. During the 17th century, Pope Urban VIII proclaimed St. George patron saint of the town, and the church became the most important church in Ragusa. The earthquake of 1693 seriously damaged the church and, Read more [...]

Chiosco della Musica (Music Kiosk) is a beautiful monument in Rapallo, built in Art Nouveau style and dedicated to the most important Italian and foreign composers in history.   SHORT HISTORY At the beginning of the 20th century, the Italian immigrants of Rapallo in Latin America, desired the kiosk as a gift to the town they came from. The monument, 10 meters in diameter and 9 meters in height, with 12 columns supporting the dome, was designed by the architect Luigi Devoto and inaugurated on November 3, 1929. Inside the dome, work of the painter Giovanni Grifo, are depicted the following composers: Giuseppe Verdi, Gioachino Rossini, Vincenzo Bellini, Arrigo Boito, Ludwig van Beethoven, Daniel Auber, Giacomo Meyerbeer, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Hector Berlioz and Christoph Willibald Gluck on the stalls; Johann Sebastian Bach, Gaspare Spontini, Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Domenico Cimarosa, Georges Bizet, Amilcare Ponchielli, Charles Gounod, Gaetano Donizetti, Claudio Monteverdi, Georg Friedrich Handel, Franz Joseph Haydn and Giacomo Puccini in the medallions of the arches. Between the winter of 2009 and the spring of 2011, restoration work were carried out on the structure. The roof and the balustrades were renovated and the pictorial decorations were refreshed. On Read more [...]

There are at least two things in Polignano a Mare which remind of the great Italian singer Domenico Modugno. The first is the seafront which bears his name, located in the northwestern part of the city, and the second is the statue dedicated to him, in the immediate vicinity.   DOMENICO MODUGNO Domenico Modugno was born in Polignano a Mare, on January 9, 1928. When he was little, his father taught him to play the guitar and accordion. He wrote his first song at the age of 15. Later, he became a leading figure in theater, television, radio and cinematography. Domenico Modugno won the San Remo Music Festival – the most popular Italian song contest, four times. He starred in 45 films and recorded 230 songs. His most famous song, Nel Blu Dipinto di Blu, universally known as Volare, was released in 1958 and became one of the best-known songs in the world, translated into more than 20 languages. On August 26, 1993, Domenico Modugno held in Polignano a Mare the last major concert of his career, attended by 70,000 people. One year later, he died of heart attack on the island of Lampedusa.   STATUE OF DOMENICO MODUGNO The Read more [...]

On the island of Torcello, in the square in front of the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, there is an ancient stone chair named Attila’s Throne. One legend has it that, during the Huns invasion of Italy, their King Attila, known as the Scourge of God, arrived on Torcello, where the inhabitants of the nearby Roman city of Altino found refuge, and used the throne. In reality, Attila never set his foot on the island. Another legend says that if you sit on the throne, you will certainly return to Torcello sooner or later, but our suspicion is that it has nothing to do with the stone… If it happens to come back to Torcello at some point, you will do it just because this wild island remained in your heart.   SHORT HISTORY Though it is named Attila’s Throne, the chair has nothing to do with the King of the Huns. The stone chair dates back to the 5th century, when the first settlers arrived on the island. The throne probably served as the seat of the Bishop of Torcello or that of the governor of the island.   HOW TO GET THERE You can get to Torcello by Read more [...]

The Spire of Sant’Oronzo is a column dedicated to Saint Orontius of Lecce, placed in the heart of Ostuni, between the main square of the city, Piazza della Libertà, and the small but beautiful square Piazza Sant’Oronzo. Saint Orontius, a Christian martyr, is venerated by the Roman Catholic Church, being considered the first Bishop of Lecce. Each year, a three-day festival is held in Ostuni between August 25 and 27, in his honor.   SHORT HISTORY The Spire of Sant’Oronzo was built in 1771 by the architect Giuseppe Greco. The column is an ex-voto strongly desired by the faithful to thank the Saint, who protected the city from the plague and the famine in the 18th century.   ARCHITECTURE The spire is about 20 meters in height and was built in Baroque style. The testimony of perennial devotion to the protector of the city is quoted in Latin on epigraphic plates, supported by angels and placed on the first order of the column, on each of the four faces. The next order is crowned by a beautiful balustrade, with four statues on its corners: San Biagio, Sant’Antonio da Padova, Sant’Irene and San Gregorio Armeno, all minor patrons of the city. Read more [...]

Cubula, also known as Piccola Cuba (Small Cuba) is an Arab-Norman edifice in Palermo, located within the immense hunting resort of King William II of Sicily, Genoardo.   SHORT HISTORY Genoardo (from the Arabic Jannat al-arḍ, meaning Paradise on Earth), was a large royal park crowded with trees of all species, but especially with citrus and magnolia, in which were found numerous kiosks, residences, fountains and ponds. Of these, worth mentioning are the Cuba Sottana, or Palazzo della Cuba, a structure that still exists, and Cuba Soprana, a Norman tower incorporated during the 18th century in the beautiful palace Villa Napoli. Cubula was built in 1184 by Fatimid architects. The kiosk was probably in the middle of a lake that extended to Cuba Soprana. Because of its particular location, surrounded by greenery, Cubula was often used as a resting place by the Norman sovereign and his guests.   ARCHITECTURE Cubula has a square plan with pointed arches on each side, decorated with rusticated bands and surmounted by a hemispherical dome in the typical red color of Arab-Norman style. The small building uses motifs found on other edifices in Palermo, such as the Basilica La Magione and the Church of the Read more [...]

Porta Felice is one of the monumental gates of Palermo, located near the sea, at the beginning of the Via Vittorio Emanuele, one of the main axes of the city.   SHORT HISTORY The gate takes its name from Donna Felice Orsini, wife of the Spanish Viceroy Marcantonio Colonna, who, in 1582, decided to give a monumental entrance to the Cassaro, the most ancient street in Palermo, the current Via Vittorio Emanuele. After the death of Colonna, the construction of the gate, consisting of two imposing pylons designed by the architect Mariano Smiriglio, resumed under the mandate of the Viceroy Lorenzo Suárez de Figueroa y Córdoba, Duke of Feria. The works were completed in 1637, during the viceroyalty of Luigi Guglielmo I Moncada, Duke of Montalto. During the Second World War, the right pillar was almost entirely destroyed, but a careful restoration brought the monument back to its former glory, though losing some of the original decorative elements.   ARCHITECTURE The internal facade overlooking the city was built in Renaissance style, while the facade overlooking the sea, completed by the architects Pietro Novelli, Mariano Smiriglio and Vincenzo Tedeschi, was realised with coatings and sculptures in grey marble typical of Baroque Read more [...]

The Forum of Trajan, also known as Forum Ulpium, is the largest and most monumental of the Imperial Forums of Rome, and the last in chronological order.   SHORT HISTORY Built by the emperor Trajan with the spoils of war from the conquest of Dacia, and inaugurated in 112, the forum was arranged parallel to the Forum of Caesar and perpendicular to that of Augustus. The building of the new monumental complex, commissioned by Trajan himself, required extensive excavation work, involving the elimination of the saddle that connected the Capitoline and Quirinale Hills, and closed the valley of the Fori Imperiali towards Campo Marzio. At the same time, the Mercati di Traiano (Trajan’s Markets) were built, a complex of buildings with mainly administrative functions, linked to the activities that took place in the forum. The project of the new complex is attributed to Apollodorus of Damascus, who accompanied Trajan in his military campaigns in Dacia.   ARCHITECTURE The complex, which measures 300 meters in length and 185 meters in width, includes the Trajan’s Markets, the Basilica Ulpia, a porticoed courtyard with the Trajan’s Column and the Ulpian Library. All the buildings of the Forum were covered with marbles and stuccos, Read more [...]

Porta Garibaldi (Garibaldi Gate), called also Porta Ferdinandea, in honor of Ferdinand I, King of the Two Sicilies, is a triumphal arch located at the western end of Via Giuseppe Garibaldi, between Piazza Palestro and Piazza Crocifisso, in Catania. Through the gate, it can be seen in the distance, at the other end of Via Garibaldi, the wonderful Cathedral of Sant’Agata.   SHORT HISTORY In ancient times, the gates to a city were very important, from the defense point of view. The gates were, in fact, the last barrier against a possible siege. The walls that surrounded Catania were built starting with 1541, on the initiative of the Viceroy Giovanni Vega. In 1621, there were seven gates, and three more were added later. The first seven gates were built for defensive purposes, while the other three had only an ornamental function. One of the last three gates was Porta Ferdinandea, built in 1768 to celebrate the marriage between Ferdinand I of The Two Sicilies and Maria Carolina of Austria. The gate was designed by the architects Stefano Ittar and Francesco Battaglia. Another name of the gate is Porta del Fortino, which comes from a fort built by the Viceroy Claudio Read more [...]

Temple of Diana (Tempio di Diana) is a megalithic structure found about 150 meters above the sea leavel, on the imposing Rocca, the rocky hill dominating the town of Cefalù.   SHORT HISTORY Some historians claimed that the Temple of Diana is the oldest structure in Sicily, built in the 5th or 4th century B.C. over an existing cistern associated with the worship of water. The incorporated dolmenic cistern is considered of proto-historic origin by many historians. In the 12th century, the structure was used as a chapel, remains of an apse and arched windows being visible in the rear and interior of the temple. The first official archaeological excavations were made by Pirro Marconi in the first half of the 20th century. The excavations allowed to acquire more informations about the age of the building and its role, the conclusion being that the structure was a temple dedicated to the sun.   ARCHITECTURE The temple has a main entrance oriented to the west, from which starts a corridor leading to the rocky cistern characterized by a dolmenic coverage. The front door is not at the center of the building, but near the north-west corner, measuring 2.68 meters in height Read more [...]

In the central square of Assisi, there is an ancient Roman temple from the first century of our era, the Temple of Minerva, which was dedicated to the goddess of wisdom and peace from the pagan age. Today, the temple houses the Church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva.   SHORT HISTORY Around the years 28-25 BC, during the time of emperor Augustus, the Roman Forum of Assisi was structured, various temples were built and the city wall was completed. About the same time, the Temple of Minerva was erected. When the pagan cult ceased, the Temple of Minerva remained abandoned and silent for over a century, until the second half of the 5th century, when the Benedictine monks restored the building and began to use it as a church. With the document of May 24, 1212, the Benedictines granted for rent, for a hundred years, all the rooms of the temple to the city of Assisi. In 1539, Pope Paul III, visiting Assisi, ordered that the Temple of Minerva to be restored and dedicated to Saint Mary. The structure was named Santa Maria sopra Minerva. In 1613, the Bishop of Assisi, Marcello Crescenzi, with the consent of the city council, Read more [...]

The Flaminio Obelisk is one of the thirteen ancient obelisks of Rome, located in the center of Piazza del Popolo.   SHORT HISTORY The obelisk was partially built in 1300 BC, at the time of Pharaoh Seti I, and completed by his son, Ramses II, in the 13th century BC. Then, the obelisk was placed in the Temple of the Sun from Heliopolis, in Egypt. In the year 10 BC, the obelisk was brought by ship to Rome, at the behest of Octavian Augustus, together with the Montecitorio Obelisk, and placed in the Circus Maximus. Augustus decided to keep the original dedication of the monument to the Sun, which for the Romans corresponded to Apollo, the tutelary deity of the emperor. He also added two identical dedications on the north and south sides of the base. Probably demolished during the barbarian invasions, it was found in 1587 together with the Lateran Obelisk, and erected again in 1589, by the will of Pope Sixtus V, in Piazza del Popolo. The works were supervised by Domenico Fontana. In 1823, at the behest of Pope Leo XII, the architect Giuseppe Valadier decorated it with a base with four circular basins and as many Read more [...]

The Arch of Constantine is a triumphal arch with three archways, located in Rome, near the Colosseum. The arch was commissioned by the Roman Senate to commemorate the victory of Constantine the Great against Maxentius in the Battle of Ponte Milvo in 312.   SHORT HISTORY It seems that the monument was originally built during the time of Hadrian, Roman emperor between 117 and 138, and subsequently remodeled in the Constantinian era, with the displacement of the columns, the remaking of the attic, the insertion of the Trajan frieze on the inner walls of the central archway, and the execution of the reliefs and decorations specific to the time of Constantine. The arch was inaugurated in 315, on the occasion of the decennial of Constantine’s reign. In 1530, Lorenzino de’ Medici was expelled from Rome for cutting the heads of the sculptures on the arch, which were partially restored in the 18th century. In 1960, during the Games of the XVII Olympiad, the Arch of Constantine was the spectacular finish line for the marathon event won barefoot by the Ethiopian Abebe Bikila.   ARCHITECTURE The Arch of Constantine is 21 meters high, 25.9 meters wide and 7.4 meters deep. The Read more [...]

The National Monument to Victor Emmanuel II (Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II), commonly known as Vittoriano or Altare della Patria (Altar of the Fatherland), is a large monument located in Piazza Venezia, in Rome. The monument, which can be seen from almost every point in the city, is dedicated to Victor Emmanuel II of Savoy, the first king of the unified Kingdom of Italy, and to the idea of Risorgimento, the process of national unity and liberation from foreign domination.   SHORT HISTORY After the death of Victor Emmanuel II on January 9, 1878, there were several initiatives to build a permanent monument to celebrate the king. On September 23, 1880, it was launched an international competition for the project of the monument, in which 311 competitors took part. The competition was won by the French architect Henri-Paul Nénot, but his project was later abandoned. After a second and a third competition, it was chosen in 1884 the project of the young architect Giuseppe Sacconi. After the death of Giuseppe Sacconi, which took place in 1905, the works continued under the direction of Gaetano Koch, Manfredo Manfredi and Pio Piacentini. The construction of the equestrian statue of Victor Emmanuel Read more [...]

Teatro di Marcello is an ancient theater in Rome, built at the behest of Julius Caesar in the southern area of Campo Marzio, between the Tiber River and the Campidoglio.   SHORT HISTORY Julius Caesar desired a theater to rival the one built in Campo Marzio by Pompey. For this purpose, a large area was expropriated, and many buildings were demolished. At the death of Caesar, only the foundations were laid, and the work was resumed by Augustus, who raised a building larger than originally planned. The first use of the building for performances dates back to the year 17 BC. In 13 BC, the theater was officially inaugurated, and dedicated to Marcus Claudius Marcellus, the nephew of Augustus. A first restoration of the theater took place under Vespasian, in the first century AD, and other restorations were made under Severus Alexander, in the third century. In medieval times, the area was gradually occupied by small buildings and the Theater of Marcellus was transformed into a fortified castle.   ARCHITECTURE The original height of the building was approximately 32.60 meters, while its diameter was about 111 meters, and it could hold up to 20,000 spectators. The travertine facade has three Read more [...]

The Trajan’s Column is an ancient monument built to celebrate the conquest of Dacia by the emperor Trajan. Nearly 2000 years after its construction, the column is almost intact, and it’s the best preserved element of the Trajan’s Forum, the largest Imperial Forum of Rome.   SHORT HISTORY The column, probably built under the supervision of the architect Apollodorus of Damascus, was inaugurated on May 12, 113 AD, and describes the wars with Dacia held between 101 and 106. In 1162, a document of the medieval Senate established the column as a public property and forbade its damage. During the 16th century, some private buildings in the vicinity of the column were demolished, to create a space around it, and the monument can be admired from afar. In 1588, under Pope Sixtus V, the column was renovated by Domenico Fontana. On that occasion, the bronze statue of St. Peter was placed at the top of the column and a fence was erected.   ARCHITECTURE The column is 29.78 meters in height, or 39.86 meters if you include the pedestal and the statue on top, has a 3.83 meters in diameter, and is made from 20 Carrara marble blocks, each weighing Read more [...]