Palazzo del Podesta, also known as Palazzo del Governo (Government Palace) or Palazzo di Cangrande, is a medieval palace in Verona, located in Piazza dei Signori, between Loggia del Consiglio and Palazzo di Cansignorio. SHORT HISTORY Palazzo del Podesta was comissioned by the Scaligeri in the second half of the 13th century for Alberto I della Scala, who came to power in 1277. In 1311, his son, Cangrande I della Scala, took up residence in the palace. During the lordship of Cangrande I, many illustrious men found hospitality in the palace, including prominent personalities such as the poet Dante Alighieri and the painter Giotto di Bondone. Dante, exiled from Florence, stayed for a long time in the palace. In fact, Piazza dei Signori is also called by the locals Piazza Dante, and in the center of the square we can find the statue of the poet. With the fall of the Scala dynasty, the palace became, during the Venetian occupation, the seat of important magistrates. The palace also hosted the offices of the podesta (chief magistrate), from which took its name. Remodeled several times over the centuries, the palace was restored to its medieval appearance in the 1920s by Read more [...]
Tag: Antonio Avena in Verona
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Arco dei Gavi
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 [...]
