PADOVA
(situated ca. 70 minute by car fron here) is called "La
Dotta" that means "The Learned". If we
can call it this , however, it is only because of the
university, for Padova has many other institutions besides.
There is the church of Sant'Antonio, which brings multitudes
of pilgrims, as well as the "Palazzo della Ragione",
the largest civic building of the Italian Middle Age.
Padova was very active in trading and commerce of craft
products - in fact, during roman times it was one of the
richest cities of the Empire, the remains of the amphitheatre
and the arches of several bridges testifying to those
times.
You will admire: - University:
founded in 1222 after the exodus of professors and students
from nearby Bologna, the University of Padova grew steadily
in size and importance until by the sixteenth century
it had established itself as Italy's leading university.
It was during this century also that Copernicus studied
and Galileo taught there. The first permanent anatomic
theatre in Europe was built at this time, and at that
time it meant the entire world, as were the first university-owned
botanic gardens. During this period also, more foreign
students attended Padua University than any other in Italy; - Scrovegni Chapel: Padova possess
the most complete and well-preserved series of frescoes
by Giotto in the Scrovegni Chapel, and these should be
visited by anyone interested in this painter, the greatest
European artist of the Middle Ages. -
St. Antony church: the construction of the
church of the Santo - one of the most Christian highly
frequented in all Christen-Dom - was begun immediately
after the death of Saint Antony, on 13th June 1231. The
church is difficult to define stylistically, being a mixture
of the Romanesque, Gothic, Eastern and even Arabic styles
which already seemed to foreshadow the cosmopolitan character
of the cult which the Saint gave rise to. The visitor
will be struck by the abundance of artistic treasures
which the church holds, and even more so by the affluence
of his pilgrims who flock there all year round at all
hours of the day. In front of the church stands Donatello's
statue of the mercenary commander Gattamelata, an outstanding
masterpiece of the Renaissance, and to the right are the
Oratory of San Giorgio and the Scuola of Sant'Antonio,
the latter of which contains a series of pictures dedicated
to the cult of Sant'Antonio, including three early Titians.
- Prato della Valle: the
city will never cease to surprise its visitors: many of
its streets suggest a gray and monotonous townscape, despite
the graceful tone of its arcades. All of a sudden it opens
up onto the most incredible squares and monuments. This
is the case of Prato della Valle, with the size of which
no other square in the Veneto region can compare. During
the times of antiquity this square was the site of a Roman
circus. It was originally outside the city walls and the
first Christian martyrs were buried beside it, including
Santa Giustina to whom the large church in it is dedicated.
In the province of Padova:
Luvigliano: it
houses the Villa Vescovi which was built in the sixteenth
century by the two men to mention with regard to Padova,
Alvise Cornaro and Falconetto. This villa is the first
of a long series which, through the contribution of Palladio
and other architects, has distinguished the Veneto as
a region rich with heritage of buildings scattered throughout
its hills and countryside; Arquà:
Francesco Petrarca used to stay on holiday in this village,
which has managed to preserve its medieval character better
than anywhere else here, and he is now buried in a shady
square next to the church; Praglia:
the Benedictine monks founded a monastery, a Renaissance
masterpiece by Tullio Lombardo. These good monks have
set up a center for the restauration of old books which
has become one of the most renowned in the country; Este: clearly identifiable by Roman times,
it has previously been an important paleoveneto center.
The museum there is the largest of the province on account
of its abundance of paleovenetian exhibits. Este proudly
displays its towers in the romantic garden-like scenary
which climbs up the hill. Its oldest church, San Martino,
is of Romanesque design, although the most important place
of worship is its cathedral, called Santa Tecla. Monselice: Towards the middle of the
thirteenth century, Ezzelino da Romano - who tyrannized
a large part of Veneto in his role as Imperial Vicar -
built a residence for himself at Monselice. This is still
standing and is called Ca' Marcello, deriving from the
name which the succession of Venetians into whose possession
it came gave it. The palazzo is an exquisite example of
civic architecture of those times, and despite the fact
that it is mainly designed and rigged out for defensive
purposes, it has the air of a princely palace: a foretaste
of that was to be the spirit of civic architecture in
times to come.
THE WALLED TOWNS:
there are many walled towns in the Veneto region, however,
it is the towns of Montagnana and Cittadella, in Paduan
territory, which the Veneto region presents as its prime
examples with the greatest and most justified pride in
their medieval boundaries.
Montagnana the
rectangular walls of Montagnana are in perfect condition.
The town has not expanded tumultuously, obstructing its
medieval outline, as has happened elsewhere. Buildings
have been allowed to be constructed at only respectable
distance from the walls, and a lawn has been planted in
this intervening space, its green contrasting with the
red brick of the walls and towers. Montagnana can be entered
by any of three gates, two of which are particularly majestic,
those facing Padua and Legnano. They were all built according
to the military criteria of those times, giving the defending
parties several opportunities to ward off attack, although,
in fact, they were never put to use. Inside the walls
of Montagnana stretches one of the most beautiful squares
of the Veneto, on which the cathedral, built at the end
of the fifteenth century, stands.
CITTADELLA
the walls of Cittadella, on the other hand, are circular,
higher than those of Montagnana, and they are broken up
by four gates, each of these giving rise to a road, all
of which then cross at the center of the town. The walls
are made of layers of bricks which alternate with layers
of pebbles coming from the river Brenta. It is still possible
to make out the Carraresi coat-of-arms on one of the defence
towers of the gates - the tower of Malta, which was rendered
notorious by the political prisoners thrown down from
there to die by Ezzelino. Among the range of interesting
things to see in Cittadella is the small nineteenth century
theatre built by Bauto, with a facade by Iappelli. Before
reaching the town, coming from the direction of Padova,
is the Romanesque church of San Giacomo, and not far from
the town, towards the Brenta, is the church of Santa Lucia,
small and rural but also completely covered in frescoes
by Iacopo Bassano.
