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About
Palazzo Tezzano is a Baroque palace in Catania, located in Piazza Stesicoro, near the Roman Amphitheater of Catania and the Church of San Biagio.
SHORT HISTORY
Palazzo Tezzano was built starting with 1709 on a project by the architect Alonzo di Benedetto, at the behest of the count and physician Niccolò Tezzano. Later, the count donated the palace to the city of Catania, and the building was transformed into a hospital between 1720 and 1727.
In 1837, due to the economic difficulties of the hospital, a part of the palace was rented by the Bourbon Intendency Office, to house its archive. A few years later, around 1844, some sections of the General Prosecutor’s Office and the Criminal Chancellery were also installed in the palace.
The hospital was transferred between 1878 and 1880 in a building adjacent to the Church of San Nicolò l’Arena, and changed its name to Vittorio Emanuele II Hospital. After the transfer of the hospital, Palazzo Tezzano remained the seat of the Court until the construction of the new headquarters in Piazza Giovanni Verga, completed and inaugurated in 1953.
The palace currently houses the Ceramographic Archive of the University of Catania, consisting of thousands of reproductions of Attic vases from all over Europe.
ARCHITECTURE
The imposing building is quadrangular in shape, with an internal courtyard. It is accessed from Piazza Stesicoro through a large portal, located in the center of the main facade, dominated by a balcony above, surmounted by a clock tower.
The facade is symmetrical and is divided by false columns in light stone which contrast with the basalt gray tone of the plastering.
HOW TO GET THERE
Palazzo Tezzano is located about 1.4 kilometers away from the Catania Centrale railway station. The closest bus stop is Stesicoro Sicilia, located a few meters away, on the bus Line 504M.
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