Piazza Maggiore (Bologna)
The Piazza Maggiore is the main square of Bologna . It is surrounded by the most important buildings of the medieval city center. The oldest is the 13th century Palazzo del Podestà , which closes the square to the north. It is dominated by the Torre dell'Arengo , to which the Palazzo Re Enzo was added.
history
The square was created in the 13th century as a marketplace, and some buildings were acquired and demolished by the community.
It was not until the 15th century that the piazza was given its current floor plan, while in the 16th century the entire area was redesigned by Cardinal Karl Borromeo on the orders of the Pope : the adjacent Piazza Nettuno was enriched with the Neptune Fountain by Giambologna and the Palazzo dell'Archiginnasio .
description
The square is bordered to the west by the Palazzo d'Accursio ( Palazzo Comunale ), a majestic building from the 14th century that now serves as the town hall . The Museo Morandi is also in the same building, with the Neptune Fountain in front of it.
On the southern side, opposite the Palazzo del Podestà, towers the unfinished facade of the Basilica of San Petronio , an example of Italian Gothic , which began towards the end of the 14th century and was not finished until three centuries later.
On the eastern side is the Palazzo dei Banchi , actually a simple facade built between 1565 and 1568 on the model of Giacomo Barozzi to replace the more modest buildings that previously stood there, albeit taking into account the old streets that are there crossed. The extended part of the archway at Palazzo dei Banchi is the archway of Archiginnasio, the medieval seat of the University of Bologna and one of the richest libraries in Italy and Europe.
In 1860 the Piazza Maggiore was dedicated to King Victor Emanuel II , which was called that until 1945, when the monument was moved by the king on horseback to the Giardini Margherita , where it is still located today.
building
The buildings around Piazza Maggiore are:
- the Palazzo dei Notai , built between 1384 and 1422
- the Palazzo d'Accursio ( Palazzo Comunale ), built in 1290 and renovated after a fire (1425) by the architect Fioravante Fioravanti : in the building are the city art collections of Bologna and the Museo Morandi .
- the Palazzo del Podestà , built in 1201, and largely renovated by the Bentivoglio rulers between 1472 and 1484 .
- the Palazzo dei Banchi from 1412, in which bank and exchange clerks worked, was built in 1568 according to the instructions of Vignola , together with its famous arcade, which the Bolognese call Pavaglione .
- The Basilica of San Petronio was built in 1390 according to the instructions of Antonio di Vincenzo and remained unfinished.
Coordinates: 44 ° 29 ′ 38 " N , 11 ° 20 ′ 34" E