Padua

Better known as the city of St. Antonio or the economic capital of Veneto, Padua is one of the major Italian art cities. His face is marked by 3000 years of history.

From fishing village became the fourth century. BC the most important center of Veneto, 45 BC Patavium was one of the most prosperous cities of the Roman Empire, of which remain, unfortunately, that the ruins of the amphitheater, some bridge and the powerful testimonies preserved in the Museo Civico of the raid because of the Lombards (602 AD) that razed ground. His recovery was very slow but in the fourteenth century., With the Lordship of Carrara, Padua reaches the apex of its political power. This is also a period of extraordinary economic and cultural fervor that has left an indelible mark on the city: the city walls, the great civil and religious buildings, the foundation of the University, the second of Italy. The art scene is dominated by Giotto in Padua he does, with the decoration of the Scrovegni Chapel, his masterpiece.

In’500, under the government of Venice, Padua is hit by a major renovation, there are new public buildings and majestic churches, teaches at the University, among others, Galileo Galilei.

At the end of’700 Padua passes Austria until the annexation to the Kingdom of Italy (1866). Despite the destruction of the war and some interventions, Padua preserves almost intact its unique urban structure: a maze of narrow streets with arcades and squares monumental, modest homes and imposing buildings. In this compact body contains splendid treasures. Church of the Hermits: built between the second half of the’200 and early’300, has a magnificent wooden ceiling, the work of Fra’Giovanni, and many monumental tombs. The Chapel Ovetari are kept some masterpieces of Andrea Mantegna. The Scrovegni Chapel, facing the ancient Roman Arena, guards, fully maintained, the famous frescoes by Giotto, the most complete sky made by the great Florentine painter (1303/1305). In the nearby Museum you can admire famous works of the’300, including the Crucifix by Giotto and the Angels of the Armed Guariento. The Old Town, characterized by the three famous squares, fruit, herbs and Signon, is dominated on the one hand, the Palazzo della Ragione, built in 1218 by the City and whose walls are entirely frescoed with astrological and religious subjects, secondly, from the Duomo and Baptistery. In the latter are preserved splendid frescoes by the Florentine painter Giusto de’Menabuoi, including the famous Paradise. Not far away is the famous Coffee Pedrocchi, neo-classical building of Joseph Japelli (1831), a famous meeting place for writers of the last century. Basilica of St. Anthony: it was started immediately after the death of the Holy (1231) and completed at the beginning of the next century, is a grand Romanesque-Gothic style building which houses the remains of St. Antonio. Among the innumerable works of art held within it emerge Altichiero and frescoes by Giusto de’Menabuoi, the altar and the crucifix by Donatello, while outside, in front, stands the bronze equestrian statue of Gattamelata masterpiece Donatello.

Near the Basilica del Santo are other monuments and places of great artistic and cultural interest, including: Prato della Valle, the square of great dramatic effect, where every 3rd Sunday of the month it hosts an antiques market, the Basilica of St. Giustina, an imposing church built in the fourteenth century on existing buildings of worship (the remains of the ancient Christian basilica) and the Botanical Gardens.