tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40396286439511502052024-02-20T02:00:48.660+00:00Best of PaduaTIPS AND ADVICE FOR VISITORS TO THIS LOVELY ITALIAN CITY AND THE VENETO REGIONUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-56869496322195115862024-01-16T20:17:00.001+00:002024-01-17T00:12:31.695+00:00Erasmo of Narni <h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Statue of condottiero still watches over Padua</span></h3><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnF6HaWa6EHARR9tnLMiOCRJwqcnxHGeduMWULRoECRLvwzceneOmToR_Lnig-Jfl3zqqFLOdjVInP-VcrgRp0qikErRt6MSDDatX8nO-nn6zLnrLfAdUQ6WI0mAt-Yuxx-8bH6J735In7d22HqAdKvvet7kpi-ShjHI77tE-JnQLrIAQRlmMsBNAIAyA/s429/Gattamelata,_Erasmo_de_Narni_(vista_inferior).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The statue captures Erasmo's fighting spirit" border="0" data-original-height="429" data-original-width="224" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnF6HaWa6EHARR9tnLMiOCRJwqcnxHGeduMWULRoECRLvwzceneOmToR_Lnig-Jfl3zqqFLOdjVInP-VcrgRp0qikErRt6MSDDatX8nO-nn6zLnrLfAdUQ6WI0mAt-Yuxx-8bH6J735In7d22HqAdKvvet7kpi-ShjHI77tE-JnQLrIAQRlmMsBNAIAyA/w167-h320/Gattamelata,_Erasmo_de_Narni_(vista_inferior).JPG" title="The statue captures Erasmo's fighting spirit" width="167" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The statue captures<br />Erasmo's fighting spirit</td></tr></tbody></table>One of the most famous <i>condottieri </i>of the Renaissance, Erasmo da Narni, who had a distinguished career as a military leader, died on this day in 1443 in Padua. Known as <i>Gattamelata, </i>which meant the honey-eyed cat, Erasmo has been immortalised by Donatello’s bronze equestrian statue of him in Piazza del Santo. </b></div></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Erasmo had ruled over Padua from 1437, having risen to the rank of General Commander of the Armies of the Republic of Venice. He continued to serve the Venetians in a military capacity until being taken ill in 1440. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Donatello’s </b>bronze equestrian statue of <i>Gattamelata</i> is to the left of the Basilica di Sant’Antonio in Padua as you approach the church from the direction of Via del Santo. The statue was completed in 1453 and is believed to be the earliest Renaissance equestrian statue that still survives. It became a precedent for many later sculptures honouring military heroes. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The soldier and his horse are both portrayed in life size by Donatello, instead of being larger than life as with previous, classical equestrian statues. Donatello had been commissioned by the family to create a monument in memory of the great Commander of the Armies of the Venetian Republic and the statue is mounted on a pedestal that resembles a sepulchre. <i>Gattamelata</i> appears in the style of a Roman emperor astride his horse. His head is uncovered and the expression on his face shows his wonderful fighting spirit. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Born in <b>Narni</b> in Umbria, Erasmo went from a humble household into a military life, serving in turn the rulers of the Papal States, Rome, Florence, and Venice.
With his friend, Brandolino Brandolini, he worked for the Assisi lord, Cecchino Broglia, and later, serving under another <i>condottiero,</i> Braccio da Montone, lord of Perugia, he played his part in the conquests of Todi, Terni, Narni, Rieti, and Spoleto and helped win the battle of Viterbo against Muzio Attendolo Sforza in 1419. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsXaBxaf3RnBnRv2nCy1H32eJwJaHOg4eloT4VECmuoNmdp9zzGSpa0sSNmUTbtF8mE23S5PYIcEO39qq0npLFLuCrJFPRcNkWiWDFbkXvjYXXPT-dkJPn6MHr-MmrjxsPPgIJNHLk7IdZa4N8FU9NJUsla0bwIX25hjQM9bN-Sl0ypQtvgT6BPpGzVw/s800/800px-Donatello,_Monumento_equestre_al_Gattamelata_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Donatello's statue standing guard over the magnificent Basilica di Sant'Antonio" border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfsXaBxaf3RnBnRv2nCy1H32eJwJaHOg4eloT4VECmuoNmdp9zzGSpa0sSNmUTbtF8mE23S5PYIcEO39qq0npLFLuCrJFPRcNkWiWDFbkXvjYXXPT-dkJPn6MHr-MmrjxsPPgIJNHLk7IdZa4N8FU9NJUsla0bwIX25hjQM9bN-Sl0ypQtvgT6BPpGzVw/w320-h240/800px-Donatello,_Monumento_equestre_al_Gattamelata_06.jpg" title="Donatello's statue standing guard over the magnificent Basilica di Sant'Antonio" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Donatello's statue standing guard over the<br />magnificent Basilica di Sant'Antonio </td></tr></tbody></table>During the War of L’Aquila, Braccio’s army was defeated and the <i>condottiero</i> himself was killed, so Erasmo led the remaining troops into the service of Florence. Later, Pope Martin V hired Erasmo to recapture the lands he had lost in the battles against Braccio da Montone.
Erasmo was also hired by the Republic of Venice to fight against Filippo Mario Visconti of Milan. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">In the conflict, he came up against another <i>condottiero</i>, Niccolò Piccinino, who defeated him in a battle in 1434 in which Erasmo was wounded.
After defending Brescia and Verona against the Visconti army successfully, Erasmo was granted the title of General Commander of the Armies of the Republic of Venice. He was made ruler of Padua in 1437. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The following year, the Venetians lost Legnago, Soave and Verona, which led to criticism of Erasmo, but with the help of Francesco Sforza, he was able to re-enter Verona in 1439.
In 1440, while mustering a flotilla on Lake Garda, Erasmo suffered a cerebral haemorrhage. He never fully recovered from this illness and was unable to lead any further military campaigns. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Erasmo died in 1443 and was buried in the <b>Basilica of Sant’Antonio</b> in Padua. Donatello’s statue of <i>Gattamelata</i> was later placed outside the front entrance of the church as a tribute to him.
Erasmo’s daughter, Polissena Romagnola, married Tiberto Brandolini, the son of his old friend and military comrade, Brandolino, and they had two sons, Sigismondo and Leonello. Sigismondo, Erasmo’s grandson, was later considered good enough to marry into an important family in Piacenza. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Narni, where Erasmo was born, is a hill town in the region of Umbria that is close to the exact geographical centre of Italy and there is a stone in the town marking the precise spot. Erasmo’s birthplace is in <b>Via Gattamelata</b>, which has since been named after him, and there is now a plaque on the outside of the house. You can reach the birthplace from Via Garibaldi, or from the end of Vicolo degli Orti.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-35034964730485234722023-10-08T16:43:00.001+01:002023-10-08T21:09:16.757+01:00 Church of Santa Sofia in Padua<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Romanesque architectural gem had ancient origins</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEini03_une66d4wY4xltxnoVNarLLseIuBoiMrfOTuotIjrQsaYLKjWYmSXDoeCZd6jbS5cV04HOUlENI0_Cjz2LSMA3I6tpNsI4-X5kZha49zU_OomB161nlfFFa4mYZ-9jVw_eSrBUXG_DfjqFcFdQLKoxBPaOmY0qJQRVdIZagbr2zkmKsdxHj_F5Zc/s3024/IMG_1079.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The church of Santa Sofia is the oldest in Padua, dating back to the early 12th century" border="0" data-original-height="2756" data-original-width="3024" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEini03_une66d4wY4xltxnoVNarLLseIuBoiMrfOTuotIjrQsaYLKjWYmSXDoeCZd6jbS5cV04HOUlENI0_Cjz2LSMA3I6tpNsI4-X5kZha49zU_OomB161nlfFFa4mYZ-9jVw_eSrBUXG_DfjqFcFdQLKoxBPaOmY0qJQRVdIZagbr2zkmKsdxHj_F5Zc/w320-h292/IMG_1079.jpg" title="The church of Santa Sofia is the oldest in Padua, dating back to the early 12th century" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The church of Santa Sofia is the oldest in <br />Padua, dating back to the early 12th century</td></tr></tbody></table>The oldest church in Padua is the simple but beautiful
Santa Sofia in Via Altinate, a building which is thought to date back to the 11th
century.</b><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Santa Sofia is well worth visiting to see an altarpiece
painted by <b>Andrea Mantegna</b> when he was just 17, and the font, brought in from
another church, in which the two sons of <b>Galileo</b> were baptised.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Built on the site of a Roman temple, Santa Sofia
managed to survive 14th century modifications to make it comply with Council of
Trent reforms, and the disruption caused by the invasion of Italy by Napoleon’s
troops. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The church was carefully restored in the 1950s and today
it still retains many of its ancient architectural features and frescoes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It is believed that the Romanesque stone and brick façade
of Santa Sofia was built on ground that was then considered holy between about 1106
and 1127, but the church’s semi-circular apse may have been built earlier. A
document has been discovered, dated 1127, that was written to urge completion
of the building work in process.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Some of the artefacts found on the site date from between
the second and the fourth centuries. And, Santa Sofia’s crypt has been judged,
using scientific methods, to have been built within about 50 years of the crypt
of <b>St Mark’s Church i</b>n Venice. This existed before the 11th century church was
built around it to house the remains of St Mark.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBlZhyQ0M9ANB0IPkevfSj4TELLTDkBMlm9QFj5jOQIhkwfQ3PgMCGpTq5ArMhblHZZfFhUc0ySke9WhX-6_m8L3aNZMoIqLUTqeZEcc7H1t0rqQnWvylO_eCqN1t6WVAxo-cc7ZijfKf7OgHBNpeY2QzwekWKvFowYGO6zGX4K8zn2oLq6cF_ic3uRVQ/s1024/1024px-Padoue_-_Eglise_Sainte-Sophie_-_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The church was carefully restored in the 1950s to preserve the orginal features" border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBlZhyQ0M9ANB0IPkevfSj4TELLTDkBMlm9QFj5jOQIhkwfQ3PgMCGpTq5ArMhblHZZfFhUc0ySke9WhX-6_m8L3aNZMoIqLUTqeZEcc7H1t0rqQnWvylO_eCqN1t6WVAxo-cc7ZijfKf7OgHBNpeY2QzwekWKvFowYGO6zGX4K8zn2oLq6cF_ic3uRVQ/w320-h180/1024px-Padoue_-_Eglise_Sainte-Sophie_-_10.jpg" title="The church was carefully restored in the 1950s to preserve the orginal features" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The church was carefully restored in the<br />1950s to preserve the orginal features</td></tr></tbody></table>Andrea Mantegna’s altarpiece in Santa Sofia, depicting
the Madonna and Child in conversation with saints, was painted in about 1450. It
was the artist’s first independent work and when he signed it, he gave his age
as 17.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Santa Sofia has at times housed Augustinian and Benedictine
nuns, but the nuns were expelled from the building during the Napoleonic occupation
of the city.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Not to be missed near the entrance to the church of Santa
Sofia, is a basin for holy water, which was brought from the <b>Church of Santa Caterina
d’Alessandria</b> in Padua. It is believed this basin was used as a font for the baptism
of the sons of Galileo. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-20141862235055311092023-02-01T17:32:00.004+00:002023-02-01T21:30:12.615+00:00Why Padua University graduate Vittorino da Feltre gave free education to poor children<p><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhnMoTFHj_QT6Hzq3297hzT_1Z9hMtjugj75A1cr7_FUvl7TPdGvD4rdVEsSSjczhKMgFZqOGJmVmeDw6oOVMz4fFdDsDnsXRZQe85Mknlk7qFT-5ueW6TjaTNMBGfbC2_i6haKxPWlTbHQeFxefPFrxegGCsVIoFQDSdXVZnWzK2BANOQKfep1GJF/s836/Giusto_di_gand_e_pedro_berruguete,_vittorino_da_feltre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Vittorino da Feltre both studied and taught at Padua University" border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="527" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhnMoTFHj_QT6Hzq3297hzT_1Z9hMtjugj75A1cr7_FUvl7TPdGvD4rdVEsSSjczhKMgFZqOGJmVmeDw6oOVMz4fFdDsDnsXRZQe85Mknlk7qFT-5ueW6TjaTNMBGfbC2_i6haKxPWlTbHQeFxefPFrxegGCsVIoFQDSdXVZnWzK2BANOQKfep1GJF/w202-h320/Giusto_di_gand_e_pedro_berruguete,_vittorino_da_feltre.jpg" title="Vittorino da Feltre both studied and taught at Padua University" width="202" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vittorino da Feltre both studied<br />and taught at Padua University</td></tr></tbody></table>Vittorino da
Feltre, a scholar who was considered to have been the greatest humanist
educator of the Renaissance, owed his success partly to the education he had
received at the University of Padua.</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Da Feltre,
who was originally named Vittore dei Ramboldini when he was born in <b>Feltre</b> in the
republic of Venice in 1378, went to study and then taught at the <b>University of
Padua</b>. He later chose to settle in Padua and he became a successful teacher,
welcoming pupils into his own home and varying his fee according to the
financial situation of the pupil’s family. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He himself
had come from a good family that had become impoverished and his own early
education had been a struggle. This contributed to making him a strong and
decisive character and made him leave his home in Feltre when he was 18 to go
to Padua. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He supported
himself financially while studying grammar and Latin at the university under
<b>Gasparino da Barzizza</b>, the greatest Latin scholar of the age, by teaching
grammar to children. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">After
receiving his degree of doctor of arts in Latin composition and logic, he began
the study of mathematics. By 1415, Da Feltre was teaching both grammar and mathematics in Padua. He took students to live in his house and closely supervised
their activities. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He was
promoted to <b>Chair of Rhetoric</b> in Padua in 1422 and became one of the most popular
teachers at the university.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhihX_XaWr6jycnPo0czmpsfsBLq7HA5-zi26T2aor-uNOffFni1IrbEpgXPi8ZR03odi0b1S8TKxpi87zDNMbnHbY0bJGJL-CzlPQzAfYjp7S84JQVKUR0vkIUCbhMUnyuhIMdeTfK1SIWShLmqCdRPZ1HEKjzZQMp_wbIIvlOj_hlQ9DRV6oaZonz/s1600/palazzo%20bo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Palazzo Bo, part of the University of Padua, where Da Feltre taught" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1258" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhihX_XaWr6jycnPo0czmpsfsBLq7HA5-zi26T2aor-uNOffFni1IrbEpgXPi8ZR03odi0b1S8TKxpi87zDNMbnHbY0bJGJL-CzlPQzAfYjp7S84JQVKUR0vkIUCbhMUnyuhIMdeTfK1SIWShLmqCdRPZ1HEKjzZQMp_wbIIvlOj_hlQ9DRV6oaZonz/w225-h286/palazzo%20bo.jpg" title="Palazzo Bo, part of the University of Padua, where Da Feltre taught" width="225" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Palazzo Bo, part of the University of<br />Padua, where Da Feltre taught</td></tr></tbody></table>In 1423, he was
asked to become tutor to the children of the powerful <b>Gonzaga family,</b> who ruled
over Mantua. He agreed to do this providing he could set up his own school away
from the Gonzaga court and its political influence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He also enrolled
other children to be taught at the school along with the Gonzaga children, both
noble and poor children, who were selected because of their ability. The poor
children did not have to pay for their education and were taught on an equal
footing with the children from wealthy families. He also educated girls and did
not consider the female pupils to be inferior to the male pupils.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Latin and
Greek language and literature were at the centre of the curriculum of the
school. The children were also taught arithmetic, geometry and music and did
games and physical exercise, following the Greek ideal of development of the
body as well as of the mind. The school was close to a lake and surrounded by
beautiful countryside, which also contributed to the wellbeing of the pupils.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcaLkI7iQO89riD90GJ60nODG_ufQqGlI_aoL_cohoJJjCHty0O7mCMFGlsvaHM7Xk8TcbIomKDjR8AEtjqqvKdpfPjPYiuLq5Ev2AdJdYu_t1wGGcxDvhzv2gWJcldWyYaAT9T1cjQDiRQBa1iLuX3raGj_fVONmjZWNkQmk20cbQkSg36WN3ZHWi/s313/220px-Federico_da_Montefeltro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Federico da Montefeltro was among Da Feltre's pupils" border="0" data-original-height="313" data-original-width="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcaLkI7iQO89riD90GJ60nODG_ufQqGlI_aoL_cohoJJjCHty0O7mCMFGlsvaHM7Xk8TcbIomKDjR8AEtjqqvKdpfPjPYiuLq5Ev2AdJdYu_t1wGGcxDvhzv2gWJcldWyYaAT9T1cjQDiRQBa1iLuX3raGj_fVONmjZWNkQmk20cbQkSg36WN3ZHWi/s16000/220px-Federico_da_Montefeltro.jpg" title="Federico da Montefeltro was among Da Feltre's pupils" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Federico da Montefeltro was<br />among Da Feltre's pupils</td></tr></tbody></table>Da Feltre saw
education as a pathway to living a Christian life and made his pupils feel
loved and cared for in terms of their health and characters. He adapted his
teaching methods to their individual abilities and needs and never used
corporal punishment. Among his students were <b>Federico da Montefeltro,</b> who
became Duke of Urbino, and <b>Gregorio Correr,</b> who became Patriarch of Venice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">One of the
first modern educators to develop during the Renaissance, da Feltre’s teaching
methods were therefore innovative and many other schools in Europe were to adopt
his educational model.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">During his
career, Da Feltre not only educated future Italian rulers and professional men but
also taught Latin and Greek scholars who came to him from the east. This paved
the way for the translation of the Greek manuscripts that were to inspire the
Renaissance in Europe.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">After Da Feltre’s
death at the age of 68 in Mantua, Iacopo da San Cassiano, a humanist and
mathematician who had been one of his pupils, took over the running of the
school and inherited his library. Da Feltre was laid to rest in the Chiesa di
Santo Spirito in Mantua. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-51878864111965694342023-01-01T13:20:00.004+00:002023-01-01T18:18:36.827+00:00 Capodanno in Padua<p><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjksm3AU-fJiqFGGO5KHndkNy0nFNBAs1tmHyweiaE0xlOmOIprURfC_8vfUoqnrNJt7Ilb3K4DWuOUSlJOiNvOi8Ym-gBWFVUtOGyKUrP-pIKV4f9skCa-KVfszfv5AehsOQ1bRbExyWWpo6o3FcULs2atF7y5qEugCXa4jEn1PQdhVE4-Dq0AhL7K/s853/DSC06228.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Palazzo della Ragione in Padua, which is known locally as "il Salone"" border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="853" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjksm3AU-fJiqFGGO5KHndkNy0nFNBAs1tmHyweiaE0xlOmOIprURfC_8vfUoqnrNJt7Ilb3K4DWuOUSlJOiNvOi8Ym-gBWFVUtOGyKUrP-pIKV4f9skCa-KVfszfv5AehsOQ1bRbExyWWpo6o3FcULs2atF7y5qEugCXa4jEn1PQdhVE4-Dq0AhL7K/w320-h240/DSC06228.JPG" title="The Palazzo della Ragione in Padua, which is known locally as "il Salone"" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Palazzo della Ragione in Padua, which is<br />known locally as "il Salone"</td></tr></tbody></table>New
Year’s Day is called Capodanno in Italy, which literally means ‘head of the
year.’ </span><span style="font-family: arial;">After
a late start following the New Year’s Eve festivities, many families will enjoy
another traditional feast together, either at home or in a restaurant.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;">Both
visitors to Padua and residents may attend church services before sitting down
to a festive meal and toasting the new year again with a glass of good prosecco.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Piazza
delle Erbe</b>, <b>Piazza della Frutta</b> e <b>Piazza dei Signori </b>in the centre of the city
are places where locals and visitors gather to enjoy un aperitivo or meal together,
or to visit the market ‘under il Salone’, with its excellent food shops selling
Padovan specialities.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Buon
Anno e Tanti Auguri per 2023 da Best of Padua!</b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b> </b></span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-33579387823374356642022-03-17T11:16:00.006+00:002022-03-17T11:16:53.812+00:00The statue of the playwright known as Ruzzante<h3 style="text-align: left;">Sculpture stands outside Teatro Verdi</h3><p><b></b></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlvBfvr5fWtaM_bDs4AL_8Dnlatij--N8yaLQOsJaZcaS3LNk7ZmxqVp33ykiWXHBZUwPQLslqCvk6WVB7XqSFk1_6chh9dJE54kTDjXyhis4QOT_zIv7sgOqXH7f8iLrBHS3O9GhUpbvs0-gKu1_ztr3jkBote2q9FBbVceg2oZNR4SnFR9LYDYeJ=s989" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The statue of Angelo Beolco stands opposite the Teatro Verdi" border="0" data-original-height="989" data-original-width="741" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjlvBfvr5fWtaM_bDs4AL_8Dnlatij--N8yaLQOsJaZcaS3LNk7ZmxqVp33ykiWXHBZUwPQLslqCvk6WVB7XqSFk1_6chh9dJE54kTDjXyhis4QOT_zIv7sgOqXH7f8iLrBHS3O9GhUpbvs0-gKu1_ztr3jkBote2q9FBbVceg2oZNR4SnFR9LYDYeJ=w240-h320" title="The statue of Angelo Beolco stands opposite the Teatro Verdi" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The statue of Angelo Beolco stands<br />opposite the Teatro Verdi<br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">(photo by DracoRoboter via Wikimedia Commons)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><b>Visitors to Padua’s Teatro Verdi off Padua’s Corso Milano will notice on a plinth opposite the entrance in Piazzetta Terrani a statue of a man dressed in a simple tunic, cape and hat.</b><p></p><p>It commemorates one of the most powerful Italian dramatists of the 16th century, Angelo Beolco - also known as Ruzzante or Ruzante - who was born in Padua and died in the city on 17 March 1542.</p><p>Beolco was famous for his rustic comedies, which were written mostly in the Paduan dialect of the Venetian language.</p><p>Many of his plays featured a peasant called Ruzzante and they painted a vivid picture of life in the Paduan countryside during the 16th century.</p><p>Beolco was born in Padua in 1496 and was the illegitimate son of a doctor. His mother was possibly a maid in the household where he was brought up by his father. He received a good education and after his father’s death became manager of the family estate. In 1529, he also became manager of a farm owned by a nobleman, Alvise Cornaro, who had retired to live in the Paduan countryside. Cornaro later became Beolco’s friend and protector.</p><p>Beolco met and associated with Paduan intellectuals of the time, such as the poet Pietro Bembo and the scholar and dramatist Sperone Speroni, which led to him developing an interest in the theatre.</p><p>His first attempts at acting and writing plays may have been delivering impromptu sketches at wedding parties.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh3ZAWzmFZDtjNPPE9piQnGPO0X3FsaPd6rPFUvfN46J0g7DdUqMxMVHBq9LqZd1krHTEsk5h4TCJnHbbyJcTJTqNdKe73eJyASL_FuLUBUmLrsIZYWVriLgVHWpgpzehqSQrnQJAleqGbmhv_p_mB5sR7poJHOYn3KjDW3ZOJ-S60Gxdq0ra92ti5A=s944" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Angelo Beolco was born in Padua in 1496 and spent much of his life there" border="0" data-original-height="944" data-original-width="772" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh3ZAWzmFZDtjNPPE9piQnGPO0X3FsaPd6rPFUvfN46J0g7DdUqMxMVHBq9LqZd1krHTEsk5h4TCJnHbbyJcTJTqNdKe73eJyASL_FuLUBUmLrsIZYWVriLgVHWpgpzehqSQrnQJAleqGbmhv_p_mB5sR7poJHOYn3KjDW3ZOJ-S60Gxdq0ra92ti5A=w262-h320" title="Angelo Beolco was born in Padua in 1496 and spent much of his life there" width="262" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Angelo Beolco was born in Padua in<br />1496 and spent much of his life there</td></tr></tbody></table>It is established that in 1520 he was already known as Ruzzante and that he played a role in a play put on at a palace in Venice. It was after this that he put together his own theatrical troupe. His first plays were staged in Ferrara between 1529 and 1532 and then later in Padua at the residence of his friend, Cornaro.<p></p><p>In Beolco’s first printed play, La pastoral, which was categorised as a rural comedy, Arcadian shepherds tell of their frustrated love affairs, while, in contrast, the peasants Ruzzante and Zilio deliver rustic verses in dialect, spiced with vulgarities and obscenities, beginning with Ruzzante’s first line in the play.</p><p>Much of the play’s comical effect comes from the contrast between the two languages, which provides the opportunity for misunderstandings and plays on words.</p><p>In his later plays and monologues, Beolco shifts more to the Venetian language, while maintaining his social satire.</p><p>Beolco’s plays were sometimes considered unfit for educated audiences because of the lascivious themes and vulgar language and this occasionally led to performances being cancelled.</p><p>In one of his best-known pieces, Il parlamento de Ruzante, the character tells of his return from the Venetian war front only to find that he has lost his wife, land and honour. The speech begins with Ruzzante’s favourite expletive.</p><p>Linguistic studies have concluded that Ruzzante’s speech was not an accurate record of Paduan dialect of the day, but to some extent, a theatrical dialect created by Beolco.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEia60sS4WeZyQYUfRTP0SM1vFWTuGZPqQnnrsKNqlEHEaKILLUxzY3eIrxoIJYkkjS_SJUnzNZOkUEoBT_raHiuykb2a90BZZoYyPZGybgD8Ih8XBEsjXuTRvMOOVUfZRXfILeplL7eMYha1irmfhqTTgKPJznUcYlVKd_J7QP0eIewLPYWPTmdZtzi=s320" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Teatro Verdi, built in the 18th century, is named after the composer Giuseppe Verdi" border="0" data-original-height="242" data-original-width="320" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEia60sS4WeZyQYUfRTP0SM1vFWTuGZPqQnnrsKNqlEHEaKILLUxzY3eIrxoIJYkkjS_SJUnzNZOkUEoBT_raHiuykb2a90BZZoYyPZGybgD8Ih8XBEsjXuTRvMOOVUfZRXfILeplL7eMYha1irmfhqTTgKPJznUcYlVKd_J7QP0eIewLPYWPTmdZtzi=w320-h242" title="The Teatro Verdi, built in the 18th century, is named after the composer Giuseppe Verdi" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Teatro Verdi, built in the 18th century, is<br />named after the composer Giuseppe Verdi</td></tr></tbody></table>Dario Fo - Italy’s celebrated 20th century playwright - put Ruzzante on the same level as the French playwright, Molière, claiming that Beolco is the true father of the Venetian comic theatre (Commedia dell’Arte) and said that he was the most significant influence on his own work.</p><p>Beolco (Ruzzante) wrote at least 11 plays and monologues, but died in Padua when he was in his late forties, while preparing to stage a play by his friend, Speroni, for the Accademia degli Infiammati. Despite his theatrical success, Beolco was very poor for most of his life. Speroni once remarked that, while Beolco had an unsurpassed understanding of comedy, he was unable to perceive his own tragedy.</p><p>The statue outside the Teatro Verdi is the work of the 20th century sculptor Amleto Sartori - also from Padua - who was most famous for creating the theatrical masks used when Commedia dell’Arte enjoyed a brief revival in the mid-20th century.</p><p>To find the <b><a href="https://www.bestofpadua.co.uk/2020/05/teatro-verdi-padua.html" target="_blank">Teatro Verdi</a></b> and see the Ruzzante statue, taking the Piazza dei Signori in the centre as the starting point, walk north along Via Dante Alighieri from the Torre dell’Orologio and turn left into Corso Milano. Piazza Terrani and the theatre are about 150 yards (137m) along on the left.</p><p>The beautiful 18th century theatre now presents operas, musicals, plays, ballets and concerts organised by the Teatro Stabile del Veneto.</p><p><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-53437326292440573792022-01-18T22:53:00.000+00:002022-01-18T22:53:00.584+00:00Padua’s Roman Arena<h3 style="text-align: left;">See what remains of the city of Patavium</h3><p><b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiZzbE9ujkbQlrVBua9QA7UJ6LdWGEX78NPQCnuu1_EIf39Cf_Rp3Hcght_2j4f8Dy15Q7lt1q60jrAaatKtpKWYhKOOrxjX4zvfoQOc2qchRh2pwe6ZoF41g2SAXh9a3bh9OgKkHk8fdYkPHBzoxeRq-z30WK_b6_P4PLTY53tIygYnPCcyq6DkNfg=s773" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Some remains of the Roman amphiteatre are still visible in the Giardino dell'Arena" border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="773" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiZzbE9ujkbQlrVBua9QA7UJ6LdWGEX78NPQCnuu1_EIf39Cf_Rp3Hcght_2j4f8Dy15Q7lt1q60jrAaatKtpKWYhKOOrxjX4zvfoQOc2qchRh2pwe6ZoF41g2SAXh9a3bh9OgKkHk8fdYkPHBzoxeRq-z30WK_b6_P4PLTY53tIygYnPCcyq6DkNfg=w320-h240" title="Some remains of the Roman amphiteatre are still visible in the Giardino dell'Arena" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some remains of the Roman amphiteatre are<br />still visible in the Giardino dell'Arena</td></tr></tbody></table>Padua is believed to be one of the oldest cities in northern Italy. It was founded in about 1183 BC by the Trojan prince, Antenor.</b></p><p>The Roman writer, Livy, records an attempted invasion of the city by the Spartans in 302 BC. Later attempts at invasions were made unsuccessfully by the Etruscans and Gauls. The city formed an alliance with Rome against their common enemies and it became a Roman municipium in about 49BC. By the end of the first century BC, Padua was the wealthiest city in Italy, apart from Rome.</p><p>The Roman name for Padua was <b>Patavium.</b> There isn’t much of Roman Patavium left now, but to get some idea of what it would have looked like, it is worth stopping off to see the remains of the Roman Amphitheatre, or Arena as it was known, which is in Padua’s <b>Giardino dell’Arena,</b> a beautiful public park.</p><p>If you leave the railway station, or bus station, and walk towards the city centre along the <b>Corso del Popolo</b> and <b>Corso Garibaldi, </b>you will pass the Giardino dell’Arena on the left-hand side where you will see the remains of one of the original elliptical walls of the Arena. It was probably built during the time of the <b>Emperor Claudius,</b> between about 60 and 70 AD.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjo-_J3LhJScH7fCEle4Nt5NphWDXKQIpAUNUcwU2JGa-FacQrOUGr3gbkAiej1QVCF8BcuCpuoSNSwO0ofdzBtyRBSyvr5a7pdzVVcvkdTd0L5LWE6n9-I2o-WeiFth0CzhWKFRPjSq3rcDKJlK2VMk5h2mafc7j5YOIcFeMaLlvlrVli1FdSUpCG7=s2742" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Scrovegni family built a chapel in gardens, decorated by Giotto" border="0" data-original-height="2742" data-original-width="2307" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjo-_J3LhJScH7fCEle4Nt5NphWDXKQIpAUNUcwU2JGa-FacQrOUGr3gbkAiej1QVCF8BcuCpuoSNSwO0ofdzBtyRBSyvr5a7pdzVVcvkdTd0L5LWE6n9-I2o-WeiFth0CzhWKFRPjSq3rcDKJlK2VMk5h2mafc7j5YOIcFeMaLlvlrVli1FdSUpCG7=w269-h320" title="The Scrovegni family built a chapel in gardens, decorated by Giotto" width="269" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Scrovegni family built a chapel in<br />gardens, decorated by Giotto</td></tr></tbody></table>An archaeological project to uncover the remains of the Arena began in 1881 and the area was cleared of weeds and a wall was demolished to provide a better view of what was still standing.</p><p>The main entrance would have been near the present-day Piazza Eremitani and on the opposite side would have been the <i>porta libitensis,</i> the door of the dead, through which the bodies of the dead gladiators would have been taken.</p><p>Within the elliptical wall, which originally had 80 arches, would have been a circle supported by a barrel vault on which the steps of the auditorium were arranged. Its style and dimensions are believed to have been similar to those of the Roman Arena in Verona.</p><p>In the 14th century the site was acquired by the <b>Scrovegni</b> family who had a chapel built on it in their name. They commissioned the artist, <b>Giotto, </b>to decorate it with his wonderful frescoes depicting events in the life of the Virgin May and Christ. Today these frescoes are considered to be some of the greatest works of art in the world.</p><p>The Arena is open for visitors to look round it every day from 7.00 am, but the site closes earlier in the winter than in the summer.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-65785423426525803482021-11-05T10:35:00.001+00:002021-11-05T10:35:09.498+00:00The colourful life of Padua archaeologist Giovanni Battista Belzoni <h3 style="text-align: left;">The Great Belzoni’s powerful physique helped him remove Egyptian treasures</h3><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsf_RuM5PqpTtxRCQRKZxNjP_9eLNlYoL7pP38c6VghyvJiMuT0Nw733ozAj38muMt0hecyKhWYNEAzW_MR73RTDfqweFu_vynOJjNr6_sLSHcyv-ps6XoM3v_aF7gKqiC5eqzNXPz-_I/s1027/800px-G._Belzoni_Esq.r_%2528BM_1860%252C1013.3%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Giovanni Battista Belzoni during his time as an archaeologist in Egypt" border="0" data-original-height="1027" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsf_RuM5PqpTtxRCQRKZxNjP_9eLNlYoL7pP38c6VghyvJiMuT0Nw733ozAj38muMt0hecyKhWYNEAzW_MR73RTDfqweFu_vynOJjNr6_sLSHcyv-ps6XoM3v_aF7gKqiC5eqzNXPz-_I/w249-h320/800px-G._Belzoni_Esq.r_%2528BM_1860%252C1013.3%2529.jpg" title="Giovanni Battista Belzoni during his time as an archaeologist in Egypt" width="249" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Giovanni Battista Belzoni during his<br />time as an archaeologist in Egypt</td></tr></tbody></table>Among the many notable Italians to hail from Padua is the explorer and pioneer archaeologist of Egyptian antiquities, <b>Giovanni Battista Belzoni,</b> who was born in the city on 5 November, 1778, when it was part of the Republic of Venice.</p><p>Belzoni became famous for his height and strength and his discovery and removal to England of the seven-ton bust of Ramesses II.</p><p>Born into a poor family, at the age of 16 he went to find work in Rome and studied hydraulics. He was planning to take monastic vows but in 1798 French troops occupied the city and he moved to the Batavian Republic, now the Netherlands, where he earned his living as a barber.</p><p>He moved to England in 1803, allegedly to escape going to prison. He was six feet seven inches tall and had a powerful physique. For a while he earned his living as a circus strong man under the name The Great Belzoni.</p><p>He also exhibited his models of hydraulic engines and went to Cairo in 1815 to offer hydraulic engines for use in irrigation to Muhammad Ali Pasha, the founder of modern Egypt.</p><p>But two years later he embarked on another new career, excavating Egyptian tombs and temples for their treasures. It was said he damaged other less valuable objects in the process, which was later frowned upon.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lkqSz4DUZ4iBJHZT5_09jNvFvbNjo_hHGfKBhqnSaw8Iz6VzB0fkGJ6wlU46GSiReO0qMBqMSdg1y0jLQd81yfYnw_K2XRKxCBCQ7BtO1mLP6-KfoiMSQtoKidbmWD5IGFg098eqxzA/s526/Belzoni_memnon_halage_1816.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="It took 17 days for 130 men to tow the bust of Ramesses II to a boat bound for England" border="0" data-original-height="342" data-original-width="526" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lkqSz4DUZ4iBJHZT5_09jNvFvbNjo_hHGfKBhqnSaw8Iz6VzB0fkGJ6wlU46GSiReO0qMBqMSdg1y0jLQd81yfYnw_K2XRKxCBCQ7BtO1mLP6-KfoiMSQtoKidbmWD5IGFg098eqxzA/w320-h208/Belzoni_memnon_halage_1816.jpg" title="It took 17 days for 130 men to tow the bust of Ramesses II to a boat bound for England" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It took 17 days for 130 men to tow the bust of<br /> Ramesses II to a boat bound for England</td></tr></tbody></table>At Thebes he obtained the colossal sculpture of the head of <b>Ramesses II</b> for the British Museum. It took him 17 days and he had to use 130 men to help him tow it the river where it was loaded on to a boat bound for England. In the nearby Valley of the Tombs of Kings, he discovered the tomb of Seti I and removed the aragonite sarcophagus for the Sir John Soane Museum in London. This became known as Belzoni’s Tomb.</p><p>While he was in the process of removing an obelisk from the Nile island of Philae, it was taken from him at gunpoint by men working for the French.</p><p>He explored an island in the Nile, known as Elephantine, and the temple of Edfu. He also cleared the entrance to the great temple of Ramasses II at Abu Simbel. He was the first to penetrate the pyramid of Khafre at Giza and he identified the ruins of the city of Berenice on the Red Sea.</p><p>Belzoni returned to England in 1819 and published an account of his adventure – <i>Narratives of the Operations and Recent Discoveries Within the Pyramids, Temples, Tombs and Excavations in Egypt and Nubia.</i> It was a two-volume work published in 1820.</p><p>The explorer and archaeologist died in 1823 at the age of 45 in Gwato, now called Ughoton, in Nigeria on his way to Timbuktu. In 1825 Belzoni’s widow exhibited his drawings and models of the Royal tombs of Thebes in London and Paris.</p><p>There is a road named after Belzoni - the Via Giambattista Belzoni - to the east of Padua's city centre.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></p><p><br /></p><p> </p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-31255787881107549312021-05-04T21:09:00.002+01:002021-05-05T00:26:54.245+01:00Padua’s Ghetto<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Fascinating area preserves Jewish heritage in the city</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV_5lJn0N03qn1nyZ8eBouDDOjTwdAhsVNmOavqfzOFaToSIHaiTqmYhRtxpgpfIJlhVo8cCHS88FQVHTeYTJTcC7Hrx9DE5xWyMlnRzrXuZhu_T8sO6BZBYfe9B36pQkFpcbPNGi5VuA/s1024/ghetto+padua.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="A narrow, cobbled street in the Ghetto area of Padua" border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="683" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV_5lJn0N03qn1nyZ8eBouDDOjTwdAhsVNmOavqfzOFaToSIHaiTqmYhRtxpgpfIJlhVo8cCHS88FQVHTeYTJTcC7Hrx9DE5xWyMlnRzrXuZhu_T8sO6BZBYfe9B36pQkFpcbPNGi5VuA/w213-h320/ghetto+padua.jpg" title="A narrow, cobbled street in the Ghetto area of Padua" width="213" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A narrow, cobbled street in<br />the Ghetto area of Padua</td></tr></tbody></table>A small district known as the Ghetto, situated within
Padua’s historic centre, still has many shops where craftsmen follow the
traditional occupations of Jewish residents in the city.</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Jews are recorded as living in Padua as far back as
the 13th century. The city was one of the great centres of medieval Judaism,
with a celebrated rabbinical academy where students from all over Europe came
to study.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Students were also attracted to Padua by its very old
medical school, which was the only one to accept Jews.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In 1548 the Venetian authorities decided to require all
Jews to reside in an area near <b>Piazza delle Erbe</b> that was called the Ghetto.
However, Jewish students were still allowed to graduate from Padua’s
prestigious university.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">From 1609 all four streets leading to the Ghetto were
closed at a certain hour of the evening and guarded gates isolated the district
during the night. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Ghetto was officially abolished in 1797 after Napoleon’s
proclamation of the equality of all citizens.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">By the 19th century there were three synagogues in the
district, reflecting the number of Jewish people then living in Padua.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimp2g_X6wwDZ42AGKejvaqJOT3uJJLDHhuW36hkkBjp8xEND1iH3SycqDQDAJzu7zQM9Me9iPYfK4447vgNtITmnxezvlGQ4CV0IS4LDvPm8kmt-3Wrh8LCc4DdRc-nsZ_UhjfgZKt0rg/s634/IMG_1399+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Piazza delle Erbe, close to the area of Padua where Jewish residents were required to live" border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="634" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimp2g_X6wwDZ42AGKejvaqJOT3uJJLDHhuW36hkkBjp8xEND1iH3SycqDQDAJzu7zQM9Me9iPYfK4447vgNtITmnxezvlGQ4CV0IS4LDvPm8kmt-3Wrh8LCc4DdRc-nsZ_UhjfgZKt0rg/w320-h220/IMG_1399+%25282%2529.JPG" title="Piazza delle Erbe, close to the area of Padua where Jewish residents were required to live" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piazza delle Erbe, close to the area of Padua<br />where Jewish residents were required to live</td></tr></tbody></table>The number of Jewish residents was greatly reduced in
the 20th century and today there is only one synagogue still open for worship, at
number 9 <b>Via San Martino e Solferino</b>, where the offices of the Jewish community
are also located. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This synagogue was originally built in 1548 but has
been restructured several times. One of the four original gates to the Ghetto,
crowned with the lion of Saint Mark, stands nearby.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Full equality for Jewish citizens was achieved in 1866
when Padua was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The former Ghetto has kept much of its original
appearance, with the tall narrow houses in Via Arco evoking how the Ghetto must
have looked in the past.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Jewish Heritage Museum at 26 <b>Via delle Piazze</b>, just
off Piazza delle Erbe, has precious objects on display that were taken from the two
former synagogues no longer in existence, some of them dating back to the 15th
century.</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-82302084048385320052021-03-11T06:00:00.004+00:002021-03-11T06:00:01.946+00:00Church of the Eremitani frescoes<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The day a
major work of art was ruined by bombs</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0iAReGygV6vEQR9Hj3Zi7Y9-Q8k7WWRew8goawXp5uX62Fq1fiTnE6SYL0V2xrX5mUWp7vTOw6NZ81y7HrAx7xwakYc5_5mwIE3TRKBSNhM1iudN8hV6hk6SB0Qge2dFA-m9u_jWpfJE/s605/320px-Ovetari%252C_storie_di_san_giacomo_o.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Mantegna's Stories of St James was one of the works destroyed" border="0" data-original-height="605" data-original-width="320" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0iAReGygV6vEQR9Hj3Zi7Y9-Q8k7WWRew8goawXp5uX62Fq1fiTnE6SYL0V2xrX5mUWp7vTOw6NZ81y7HrAx7xwakYc5_5mwIE3TRKBSNhM1iudN8hV6hk6SB0Qge2dFA-m9u_jWpfJE/w208-h394/320px-Ovetari%252C_storie_di_san_giacomo_o.jpg" title="Mantegna's Stories of St James was one of the works destroyed" width="208" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mantegna's <i>Stories of St James</i><br />was one of the works destroyed </td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Padua was
badly bombed by the Allies on this day in 1944 and the Church of the Eremitani
was directly hit, causing devastating damage to the 15th century frescoes
painted by Andrea Mantegna in one of the side chapels.</b></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It was
one of the worst losses suffered by Italy’s cultural heritage during World War
II as Mantegna’s frescoes were considered a major work of art.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Mantegna,
who was born in Isola di Cartura near<b> Vicenza</b> in 1431, was commissioned to
paint a cycle of frescoes in the Ovetari Chapel, one of the side chapels,
depicting scenes from the lives of Saint James and Saint Christopher. The
commission marked the beginning of his artistic career when he started work at
the age of 17 in 1448. He was in his mid 20s by the time he had finished the
cycle in 1457.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Tragically,
the German invading army had established their headquarters in Padua next to
the <b>Church of the Eremitani</b>, which was why the chapel and the wonderful
frescoes were so badly damaged.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">They were
reduced to more than 88,000 separate pieces and were found mixed in with plaster
and bricks on the ground.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">A
detailed photographic survey of the work had been made previously and it was
therefore possible later to reconstruct the artist’s work and recompose part of
the cycle depicting the Martyrdom of Saint James. Other frescoes by Mantegna
had been removed before the war to protect them from damp and they have also
now been reinstated.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In other
chapels, 14th century frescoes by Guarentio and Giusto de’ Menabuoi
miraculously survived.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8584gVsQErbEeKcmsoMr7UbKnZHlp9IK7PAlGhKLQnx9UipAXHNfdTQPuIwMtpUi3u6VLry5ajAl4wkQFzh_OQiVK8xjWhfmQb6x4oglRI97QfNkXkTbAqKD6AC8KZFDiAYIwgDmNh9E/s800/%2528Padua%2529_Chiesa_degli_Eremitani_-_Facade.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Church of the Eremitani found itself nextdoor to a German army headquarters" border="0" data-original-height="683" data-original-width="800" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8584gVsQErbEeKcmsoMr7UbKnZHlp9IK7PAlGhKLQnx9UipAXHNfdTQPuIwMtpUi3u6VLry5ajAl4wkQFzh_OQiVK8xjWhfmQb6x4oglRI97QfNkXkTbAqKD6AC8KZFDiAYIwgDmNh9E/w320-h273/%2528Padua%2529_Chiesa_degli_Eremitani_-_Facade.jpg" title="The Church of the Eremitani found itself nextdoor to a German army headquarters" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Church of the Eremitani found itself<br />next door to a German army headquarters</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">La Chiesa
degli Eremitani, or The Church of the Hermits, is a former Augustinian
Gothic-style church close to the <b>Cappella Scrovegni</b> in Piazza Eremitani in the
centre of Padua.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
church was built for Augustinian friars between 1260 and 1276 and dedicated to
the Saints Philip and James.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
friars remained in the church and adjoining monastery until 1806 when Padua was
under Napoleonic rule and the order was suppressed. The church was reopened for
services in 1808 and became a parish church in 1817.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
church has a single nave with plain walls decorated with ochre and red bricks
and has a vaulted wooden ceiling. It houses the ornate tombs of two lords of
Padua, Jacopo II da Carrara and Ubertino da Carrara, designed by Andriolo de
Santi.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The 15th
century side portal is also known as the Door of the Months because of the four
panels by the sculptor Nicolo Baroncelli depicting allegories of the months.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The Musei
Civici agli Eremitani (Civic Museum) of Padua is now housed in the former
Augustinian monastery to the left of the church.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Picture credit: Church of the Eremitani by <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Archaeodontosaurus" target="_blank">Didier Descouens</a> via Wikimedia Commons)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-73675113673930084442021-02-13T23:36:00.001+00:002021-02-13T23:36:32.908+00:00Jacopo Bassano's Padua masterpiece <h3 style="text-align: left;">The Basilica di Santa Giustina holds one of painter's greatest works</h3><p><b>Jacopo Bassano, who died on 14 February 1592, painted altarpieces for many churches in Padua, Treviso, and Belluno.</b></p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTD3rIolnBaWOA8uDXZF8cxzPh998OTMRfla5xc9kT7VrcT3vq1fXJs9AM_17rOR1F2FrW-uGxBu4haTl0ArTWMRdmmvwQqnn4pWT15Edtxgnl8zbuwcDAEKbtE02Ak69rhgqfXLOjHmY/s700/Jacopo_Bassano_-_St_Justina_of_Padua_Enthroned_with_St_Sebastian_St_Anthony_Abbot_and_St_Roch_c15_-_%2528MeisterDrucke-414411%2529+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Bassano's painting of Santa Giustina was executed in about 1560" border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="474" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTD3rIolnBaWOA8uDXZF8cxzPh998OTMRfla5xc9kT7VrcT3vq1fXJs9AM_17rOR1F2FrW-uGxBu4haTl0ArTWMRdmmvwQqnn4pWT15Edtxgnl8zbuwcDAEKbtE02Ak69rhgqfXLOjHmY/w217-h320/Jacopo_Bassano_-_St_Justina_of_Padua_Enthroned_with_St_Sebastian_St_Anthony_Abbot_and_St_Roch_c15_-_%2528MeisterDrucke-414411%2529+%25281%2529.jpg" title="Bassano's painting of Santa Giustina was executed in about 1560" width="217" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bassano's painting of Santa Giustina<br />was executed in about 1560</td></tr></tbody></table>Visitors to the Basilica di Santa Giustina, the large church in the southeastern corner of Prato della Valle in Padua, can see Bassano's <i>Santa Giustina enthroned with the saints Sebastian, Antonio Abate and Rocco,</i> which was painted by him in around 1560 with the help of his son, Francesco.</p><p>It is considered one of his best works and also one of the most original examples of the Venetian Mannerist culture. </p><p>Bassano was born in about 1510 in <b>Bassano del Grappa,</b> a town about 50km (31 miles) north of Padua, and is said to have been christened Jacopo dal Ponte, although his statue in the town names him as Giacomo da Ponte. His father, Francesco il Vecchio, was already a successful painter in the town and had established a workshop that produced mostly religious works.</p><p>Jacopo became an apprentice in his father’s workshop while still a young boy. He made his way to Venice when he was about 20, where he studied under Bonifazio de Pitati, who was also known as Bonifazio Veronese.</p><p>While in Venice, he met famous artists, such as <b>Titian</b> and <b>il Pordenone,</b> and his work from this period shows Titian’s influence and demonstrates his lifelong appreciation of the great artist’s work. Jacopo Bassano’s earliest paintings also show his love of the brilliant colours used by Titian.</p><p>Bassano’s <i>Supper at Emmaus</i> (1538), originally commissioned for a church, uses rich luminous colours that distinguish the figures from their background. Unusually, he places Christ towards the back of the scene, allowing the figures around him to play a more significant part. He dresses them in 16th century clothes rather than in robes in the classical Roman tradition. He includes food on the table and there are a dog and a cat in the picture, showing he has drawn on contemporary life for his inspiration rather than just sticking to the stylistic conventions of his age.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrrg1E6n9UO3f585PwT1ohiItjSIFskoYoVhg6-oScC-FeB4oo18sAFC0IuoQY-uhiJGcPswSR4oQGJfkc52AuPSIVgigQatXf2wX3vPtbg626SYCMuwXwB9k0-NEo-XBhCv400f62ORY/s2048/Padova+2012+Laura+camera+069.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Basilica di Santa Giustina is a former abbey adjoining the wide Prato della Valle piazza" border="0" data-original-height="1475" data-original-width="2048" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrrg1E6n9UO3f585PwT1ohiItjSIFskoYoVhg6-oScC-FeB4oo18sAFC0IuoQY-uhiJGcPswSR4oQGJfkc52AuPSIVgigQatXf2wX3vPtbg626SYCMuwXwB9k0-NEo-XBhCv400f62ORY/w320-h230/Padova+2012+Laura+camera+069.JPG" title="The Basilica di Santa Giustina is a former abbey adjoining the wide Prato della Valle piazza" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Basilica di Santa Giustina is a former abbey<br />adjoining the wide Prato della Valle piazza</td></tr></tbody></table>After his father’s death in 1539, Jacopo Bassano returned to Bassano del Grappa and took over the running of the family workshop. He married a local woman, Elisabetta Merzari, in 1546.</p><p>His painting of <i>The Last Supper</i> in 1542 shows the influence on his work of Mannerism and indicates that he had seen the paintings of <b>Durer</b> and <b>Raphael</b> because his figures seem alive, with muscles and sinews, in the style of the two great artists.</p><p>After about 1550 he started experimenting with light and he was one of the first painters to paint a ‘nocturne’, a scene taking place at night time, which was to make his paintings even more highly valued. He also tended to place his subjects in a natural landscape with carefully painted trees and flowers.</p><p>His four sons, Leandro Bassano, Francesco Bassano the Younger, Giovanni Battista da Ponte and Girolamo da Ponte, all worked in his workshop and followed him closely in style and subject matter.</p><p><b>The Basilica of Santa Giustina, </b>which is the ninth largest Christian church in the world, is at the corner of Prato della Valle where it is joined by Via Avazzano and Via Ferrari. </p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV9mHxaQnDLD8fXnjmaT9wmw1fhmRyjOfT6j3XnXjo2NwAA86pwm5XP8pbnXgbPhpCEk4v6a9e-nYHYZXNK1iJ3JJd0w9gPAEEzv99LiJkSxOq5IuMeHyscl1anUTe5dyxMQyjbSNkpio/s500/Jacopo_da_Ponte_012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="A portrait of Jacopo Bassano by his son, Girolamo da Ponte" border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="449" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV9mHxaQnDLD8fXnjmaT9wmw1fhmRyjOfT6j3XnXjo2NwAA86pwm5XP8pbnXgbPhpCEk4v6a9e-nYHYZXNK1iJ3JJd0w9gPAEEzv99LiJkSxOq5IuMeHyscl1anUTe5dyxMQyjbSNkpio/w248-h276/Jacopo_da_Ponte_012.jpg" title="A portrait of Jacopo Bassano by his son, Girolamo da Ponte" width="248" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A portrait of Jacopo Bassano by his<br />son, Girolamo da Ponte</td></tr></tbody></table>The church contains the remains of Santa Giustina, a devout young woman who was martyred in 304, and is also home to the tomb containing the body of St Luke the Evangelist, who was credited with writing the Gospel according to St Luke. Next door to the basilica there is a Benedictine monastery with frescoed cloisters and a famous library that can be visited by arrangement.</p><p>After Jacopo’s death in 1592, his sons produced numerous works in his style, making it difficult for art historians to establish which pictures were created by Jacopo Bassano himself and which were the work of his sons.</p><p>His work is considered unique because it incorporated diverse artistic influences. He is believed to have learnt from Durer, Parmigianino, Tintoretto and Raphael, even though he lived permanently in Bassano del Grappa, mainly by seeing their prints, of which he became an avid collector.</p><p><b>Bassano del Grappa,</b> where Jacopo Bassano was born and died, and from which he got his professional name, lies at the foot of Monte Grappa in the province of Vicenza and is an easy day trip to make from Padua. The town is famous for inventing grappa, a spirit made from the grape skins and stalks left over from wine production, which is popular with Italians as an after dinner drink to aid digestion. A famous sight in the town is the Ponte degli Alpini, a bridge designed by Andrea Palladio.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-35242211008547429682021-01-22T21:35:00.001+00:002021-01-22T21:53:37.136+00:00 Visit Este<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The small
town that inspired the poet Shelley</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The
historic town of Este in the province of Padua, with its varied and interesting
architecture, is an excellent choice for a day trip from Padua as it takes
under an hour by train and about 40 minutes by car.</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">You can
walk into the centre of the town from the station in a few minutes, arriving in
<b>Piazza Maggiore</b>, Este’s main square, in time for a drink before lunch.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUfXBBxzgpWGj1ctCnQP8c4Cu3yls7tu2o5oBwPrw1IbW3-6GN-JrIL2_-Uq-BfGxgrDMno4S6rqOBDRx7vGmYewt8a5NZY8Xab_SduX3R0U1QpnXfw8-YS4OWfDtUwODXEgr1siKMGLE/s2048/Castle+and+gardens.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUfXBBxzgpWGj1ctCnQP8c4Cu3yls7tu2o5oBwPrw1IbW3-6GN-JrIL2_-Uq-BfGxgrDMno4S6rqOBDRx7vGmYewt8a5NZY8Xab_SduX3R0U1QpnXfw8-YS4OWfDtUwODXEgr1siKMGLE/s320/Castle+and+gardens.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The remains of the castle surrounded by gardens</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">Este is a
wonderful example of ‘small town Italy’, with reasonably priced restaurants and
bars, and plenty of things to see. It is unspoilt and relaxing to be there as
it doesn’t get overcrowded with tourists.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">To
understand its 3000 year history, during which it has been ruled by Romans,
Barbarians, important families during the medieval period, the Venetians, the
French and the Austrians, you could not do much better than visit Este’s highly
regarded <b>Museo Nazionale Atestino.</b> Right in the centre of the town, the museum
is housed in<b> Palazzo Mocenigo,</b> a 16th century palace that incorporates part of
the walls of the castle into its façade. There are said to be 65,000 items of
historical significance in the museum’s collection.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Este’s
castle was built in the 11th century by the Este family, who eventually moved
on to Ferrara, where they built another, perhaps more famous, castle.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Este’s
original <b>castle</b> was destroyed in the 14th century and then rebuilt by Ubertino
da Carrara, Lord of Padova. He used it as a defensive outpost against the
ruling families of Verona and Milan.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">After
Este and Padua were taken over by the Venetians, the castle was partially
demolished and a wall and towers are all that remain today of the 14th century
structure. Inside the walls, there is a beautiful garden, which is open to the
public and is a lovely place to sit and rest, particularly when the rose garden
is in full bloom.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7kRT0dq6FzEriOoD_WglmqkF8GLGuGZIelfAn-W9yKrb_qk4GLqjNzzO3aPcUPVCSAGmfKjHEHBsSOfPufjrsjydY1QmXLdWczUL8b9uV6RjXTuGo5ny1haX3TnPMQAo1_heBEix-lWo/s2048/Piazza+Maggiore.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7kRT0dq6FzEriOoD_WglmqkF8GLGuGZIelfAn-W9yKrb_qk4GLqjNzzO3aPcUPVCSAGmfKjHEHBsSOfPufjrsjydY1QmXLdWczUL8b9uV6RjXTuGo5ny1haX3TnPMQAo1_heBEix-lWo/s320/Piazza+Maggiore.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Piazza Maggiore is in the centre of town</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">Este’s
most important church, the <b>Duomo of Santa Tecla</b>, was erected in the 17th
century on the site of an earlier church. It is well worth a visit, if only to
see the large painting by <b>Giambattista Tiepolo</b> depicting Santa Tecla praying
for the deliverance of Este from the plague.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">While in
Este you can also see the<b> Villa Kunkler</b>, which was rented by the English poet,
<b>Lord Byron</b>, in the early years of the nineteenth century. He allowed his fellow
poet and friend, <b>Percy Shelley</b>, to live there with his family between 1817 and
1818. Shelley was so inspired by the natural beauty of his surroundings he
wrote some of his best poetry there, including <i><b>Lines Written Among the Euganean
Hills</b>.</i> Inspired by Este he wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>‘Of old
forests echoing round</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>And the light
and smell divine</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Of all
flowers that breathe and shine:<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>We may
live so happy there,<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>That the
Spirits of the Air<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Envying
us, may even entice<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>To our
healing paradise<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The
polluting multitude:<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>But their
rage would be subdu’d<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>By that
clime divine and calm,<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>And the
winds whose wings rain balm<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the
uplifted soul, and leaves<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Under
which the bright sea heaves;’</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-19444805424614360092021-01-01T15:03:00.005+00:002021-01-01T15:03:48.927+00:00Capodanno in Italy<h3 style="text-align: left;">Toasting the New Year the Italian way</h3><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM0sh0ShziKdZIHdI0qMbJge0eXYdHVDmVdF82izKfq4uVNUegzABB7AjdRmr3zizQA60-3c3k3X8TRB8Lgr7gF4br3G8z47yr7fGWyOhB0TPpl6x3WdbhIGkcZIvv3yWz0BsX0lZDYYw/s1280/buon+anno.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM0sh0ShziKdZIHdI0qMbJge0eXYdHVDmVdF82izKfq4uVNUegzABB7AjdRmr3zizQA60-3c3k3X8TRB8Lgr7gF4br3G8z47yr7fGWyOhB0TPpl6x3WdbhIGkcZIvv3yWz0BsX0lZDYYw/s320/buon+anno.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div><b>New Year’s Day is called Capodanno in Italy, which literally means ‘head of the year’.</b><p></p><p>It is a public holiday and schools, Government offices, post offices and banks are closed.</p><p>After a late start following the New Year’s Eve festivities, many families will enjoy another traditional feast together. This year is obviously different, with the option of booking a restaurant for a big family meal off the agenda because of Covid-19 restrictions.</p><p>It is still possible to attend church services - another tradition before the festive meal - but anyone leaving their home under the current lockdown measures has to fill in a certificate before venturing out with police entitled to check their purpose is legitimate. As well as going to places of worship, Italians can leave their homes only for essential shopping or to seek healthcare.</p><p>Italy is in what has been determined as 'red zone' restrictions, much like those imposed in March last year after the first outbreak of the virus. The measures will be eased for one day on 4 January, allowing non-essential shops to reopen, but are due to be re-imposed on 5 January ahead of another traditional celebration, the <b>Feast of Epiphany.</b></p><p>Rai Uno traditionally broadcasts a New Year’s day concert live. This year it came from <b>Teatro La Fenice,</b> the famous opera house in Venice.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></p><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-35803764848799110262020-12-31T18:32:00.004+00:002020-12-31T18:32:40.190+00:00Festa di San Silvestro - the Feast of Saint Sylvester<h3 style="text-align: left;">Celebrate with a meal of pork and lentils for a prosperous New Year</h3><p><b><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvionRAIDE5Sb4XSB6wsjWfYHuZIAXwbbb8W-3_BYj0wo_6TDDJM887aEnOlsCcSjGrgeD8CsQhtv8pTd8IJn7Y94bJoWSPcb2NQdx-kR4Cz2V4ssRJA6ITy5WRYTDwTd8PrXUrACsnSY/s800/800px-__12_-_ITALY_-_fuochi_d%2527artificio_a_Padova_%2528_fireworks_Padua_%2529_Pr%25C3%25A0_della_Valle_3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="A fireworks display in Prato della Valle is traditionally a big part of Padua's New Year" border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvionRAIDE5Sb4XSB6wsjWfYHuZIAXwbbb8W-3_BYj0wo_6TDDJM887aEnOlsCcSjGrgeD8CsQhtv8pTd8IJn7Y94bJoWSPcb2NQdx-kR4Cz2V4ssRJA6ITy5WRYTDwTd8PrXUrACsnSY/w320-h240/800px-__12_-_ITALY_-_fuochi_d%2527artificio_a_Padova_%2528_fireworks_Padua_%2529_Pr%25C3%25A0_della_Valle_3.jpg" title="A fireworks display in Prato della Valle is traditionally a big part of Padua's New Year" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A fireworks display in Prato della Valle is <br />traditionally a big part of Padua's New Year</td></tr></tbody></table>New Year’s Eve in Italy is known as the Festa di San Silvestro in memory of Pope Sylvester I who died on 31 December in 335 Rome.</b></p><p>It is not a public holiday in Italy but it is usually a festive time everywhere, with firework displays, concerts and parties. This year, however, the celebrations have had to be drastically curtailed because of Covid 19 restrictions.</p><p>A curfew is in place across the whole of Italy from 10pm until 7am, so the gatherings that normally take place in the <i>piazze</i> - the public squares - cannot go ahead.</p><p>The bars and restaurants in Padua are normally busy with residents and visitors enjoying drinks and meals before seeing in the New Year in the city's large oval <i>piazza</i>, <b>Prato della Valle, </b>when the church bells ring out at midnight.</p><p>TV station Rai Uno’s traditional New Year’s Eve variety concert is usually an outdoor affair, with a different town or city each year chosen as the venue, with the audience packed together in front of a stage erected in the main square to watch some of Italy’s favourite performers in an entertainment extravaganza spanning more than three hours, culminating in a New Year countdown at midnight.</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP7wgnuYm9DZRv8gdqZvo6zepwxzFu446YXk3M83NwcTxgFvkbBHuFsXCT634c3_NYUIgT-U88qxiAe-vbOMrb0qwRctqd25ZJLQiwMCv2oMmU-7zG-3RB-Sfew6TtUSlKJ8bp_D8Mhmk/s1024/1024px-L%2527anno_che_verr%25C3%25A0.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Rai Uno's New Year's Eve party, L'anno che verrà, is scaled back this year" border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP7wgnuYm9DZRv8gdqZvo6zepwxzFu446YXk3M83NwcTxgFvkbBHuFsXCT634c3_NYUIgT-U88qxiAe-vbOMrb0qwRctqd25ZJLQiwMCv2oMmU-7zG-3RB-Sfew6TtUSlKJ8bp_D8Mhmk/w320-h180/1024px-L%2527anno_che_verr%25C3%25A0.jpeg" title="Rai Uno's New Year's Eve party, L'anno che verrà, is scaled back this year" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rai Uno's New Year's Eve party, L'anno che <br />verrà, is scaled back this year</td></tr></tbody></table>The show, entitled <b><i>L’anno che verrà - The Coming Year</i></b> - will go ahead as usual, but this time the artists will be confined to a TV studio and Italians will have to be content with watching at home.</p><p>The restrictions ought not to hamper a tradition still followed in some parts of Italy, particularly in the south, of throwing your old things out of the window at midnight to symbolise your readiness to accept the New Year.</p><p>Likewise, families can still enjoy a Capodanno - New Year - feast, even if the numbers round the family table are fewer.</p><p>Popular menu items at New Year include cotechino (Italian sausage), zampone (stuffed pig’s trotter) and lenticchie (lentils).</p><p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabGvwBx7XqHQFWZsjf0gMdUxx7kpRUUMD576Q2uM_o9wNoH0vBLE0PviLRdF-nGTK3cU_jeC_ZEqChzsCNefcWfQu8UPZypBJTwkDJnl-hXQuzO_jbsS82b3KRYzCfCnMZdX7dnA3LQk/s978/speciale-natale-cotechino-e-zampone_0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Cotechino e lenticchie is often part of the New Year's Eve menu in Italy" border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="978" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabGvwBx7XqHQFWZsjf0gMdUxx7kpRUUMD576Q2uM_o9wNoH0vBLE0PviLRdF-nGTK3cU_jeC_ZEqChzsCNefcWfQu8UPZypBJTwkDJnl-hXQuzO_jbsS82b3KRYzCfCnMZdX7dnA3LQk/w320-h160/speciale-natale-cotechino-e-zampone_0.jpg" title="Cotechino e lenticchie is often part of the New Year's Eve menu in Italy" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Cotechino e lenticchie </i>is often part of the <br />New Year's Eve menu in Italy</td></tr></tbody></table>Pork is said to represent the fullness or richness of life, while lentils are supposed to symbolise wealth or money. Many Italians believe the coming year could bring prosperity if these foods are eaten on New Year’s Eve. However, in Sorrento fish is likely to feature on most restaurant menus.</p><p>The President of the Republic delivers an end of year message from the Quirinale in Rome, which is shown on most Italian television channels during the evening. </p><p>Sylvester I was pope from 314 until his death in 335, an important time in the history of the Catholic Church.</p><p>Some of Rome’s great churches, the Basilica of St John Lateran, the Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem and the old St Peter’s Basilica, were founded during his pontificate.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></p><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-46827402056227310872020-12-14T12:47:00.000+00:002020-12-14T12:47:24.525+00:00 Orto Botanico in Padua<h3 style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Botanical
Garden inspired the German writer Goethe<br /></span><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></h3><h3 style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">The
world’s first botanical garden created for educational purposes was opened in
Padua in 1545.</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>Orto
Botanico</b>, which has now been listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, was
devoted to the growth of medicinal plants that could provide natural remedies
for treating illnesses.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfpgTBzmFTNU4HJTHt7uUBkCqM1NGVF6EEZaLNAh_kqkE3TktYEivpsWxfp_t-3nbp_YZLyrJ6pHVHol1hyuji8BJ6gnxitPmdKoQRPysgrChHftAn53g_iI2QS3kqHeCfTrO8UzvcsD0/s800/Botanical+garden+Padua.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="800" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfpgTBzmFTNU4HJTHt7uUBkCqM1NGVF6EEZaLNAh_kqkE3TktYEivpsWxfp_t-3nbp_YZLyrJ6pHVHol1hyuji8BJ6gnxitPmdKoQRPysgrChHftAn53g_iI2QS3kqHeCfTrO8UzvcsD0/s320/Botanical+garden+Padua.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Orto Botanico in Padua was designed<br /> in accordance with Renaiisance ideals</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
garden was designed for <b>Padua University</b> by <b>Bergamo</b> architect <b>Andrea Moroni</b>,
who based it on a detailed architectonic plan in accordance with Renaissance
ideals. It is laid out in the form of a circle enclosing a square, which was
divided into four quadrants, in which the plants were grown.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
oldest and most important plants were grown in the hub of the garden, known as
the <i><b>hortus spahaericus.</b></i><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">These
include a palm (<i>Chamaerops humilis</i>) planted in 1585, which became known as
Goethe’s palm, because the German writer made a careful study of it in 1786 and
drew from it his intuitions about evolution. He later published his ideas in an
essay about the metamorphosis of plants.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
garden also has greenhouses, which were added at the beginning of the 19th
century, and a library, where old scientific documents are preserved.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Padua’s
Orto Botanico is still used for research into rare plants and threatened
species, with a view to reintroducing them to their natural environment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The
garden is in Via Orto Botanico close to <b>Prato della Valle</b>, one of the city’s
main squares, where there is a tram stop. It is open to the public every day,
but has closed temporarily due to the Covid 19 pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-89006120463402846682020-11-30T19:58:00.001+00:002020-11-30T20:55:08.275+00:00 Ippolito Nievo - writer and patriot from Padua<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">Risorgimento novel now seen as an overlooked classic</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;"><b>The writer Ippolito Nievo, a passionate supporter of the move to unify
Italy in the 19th century, was born on this day in 1831 in Padua.</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nievo, whose posthumously published <b><i>Confessions of an Italian</i></b> is now
considered the most important novel about the Risorgimento in Italian
literature, drew inspiration from his participation in Giuseppe Garibaldi’s
<i>Spedizione dei Mille</i> - the Expedition of the Thousand.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeO68ZDRvbIoywkLzt3lVVVgqedp8lnwdsF39BQj03Dyob_DR2qRCMhbCH9tZVqZS0rZyTv3_1KS6n7-YHTKfb3ulfdD6nN9AXYG0-oPiD6Z5ubTs_ElVagXmZsR0g4s_5ROxu39TgJ0Q/s346/Ippolito_nievo+%25282%2529.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="289" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeO68ZDRvbIoywkLzt3lVVVgqedp8lnwdsF39BQj03Dyob_DR2qRCMhbCH9tZVqZS0rZyTv3_1KS6n7-YHTKfb3ulfdD6nN9AXYG0-oPiD6Z5ubTs_ElVagXmZsR0g4s_5ROxu39TgJ0Q/s320/Ippolito_nievo+%25282%2529.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ippolito Nievo fought for a united Italy<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">Nievo was born into comfortable circumstances. His father was a
prominent lawyer and magistrate in </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">Padua </b><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">and his mother the daughter of a
Friulian countess. Their home in Padua was the</span><b style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;"> Palazzo Mocenigo Querini,</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">
a 16th century house overlooking Via Sant’Eufemia, close to the city centre.</span><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">They also had use of his mother’s ancestral home, a castle in Colloredo
di Montalbano, a hamlet just outside the city of Udine in Friuli-Venezia
Giulia, and of the Palazzo Nievo in Mantua.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">From 1832 to 1837, when Nievo was a small child, they lived in a house
adjoining the Palazzo della Giustizia in<b> Soave</b>, about 60km (37 miles) from
Padua, where his father was posted as a judge. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">By the late 1840s, Nievo was becoming increasingly fascinated by the
writings of <b>Carlo Cattaneo </b>and<b> Giuseppe Mazzini</b>, two of the central
philosophical drivers of the Risorgimento.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He is thought to have taken part in a failed uprising in Mantua in 1848,
a year marked by a series of insurrections inspired by Italian nationalists seeking
to overthrow the Austian grip on the north of the country. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He had been inspired by conversations with his maternal grandfather,
Carlo Marin, who had been a prominent official of the Venetian Republic when it
fell to the Austrians in 1797.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nievo refused to follow his father into the law as he felt it would
imply submission to the Austrian government and instead pursued a career in
journalism.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In the 1850s he retreated to Colloredo di Montalbano, where he wrote a
number of novels set in the Friulian countryside, as well as volumes of short
stories and poetry.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6RJCgWxhTUaUxYHHMnu9GbCXDAPlsmbY6i2dpJt5RyhXg3zYGpIizEgMZH8Z8d1WCJMSbY7RrD7rboNbTl1Eidmd1uzCG4LY3gPdoJ726UvLzFPbwduHc3P2ZSITQON0X-1N0yskMEhk/s499/Book+in+English.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="327" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6RJCgWxhTUaUxYHHMnu9GbCXDAPlsmbY6i2dpJt5RyhXg3zYGpIizEgMZH8Z8d1WCJMSbY7RrD7rboNbTl1Eidmd1uzCG4LY3gPdoJ726UvLzFPbwduHc3P2ZSITQON0X-1N0yskMEhk/s320/Book+in+English.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Most important novel<br />about the Risorgimento</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">He began writing his major work, Confessions of an Italian, at some
point in the mid-1850s. The central character is an 83-year-old man, Carlo
Altoviti - thought to be based at least loosely on Carlo Marin - who has
decided to write down the history of his long life, from an unhappy childhood
to romantic entanglements during the siege of Genoa, and fighting in the cause
of revolution in Naples.</span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Carlo’s twin passions are the dream of a unified, free Italy and his
undying love for Pisana, the woman with whom he is obsessed. With characters
ranging from drunken smugglers to saintly nuns and scheming priests, as well as
real figures such as Napoleon and Lord Byron, it is an epic novel that tells the
remarkable and inseparable stories of one man's life and the history of Italy's
unification.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;">N</span></o:p></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">ievo’s political activity intensified in the late 1850s, when he joined
Garibaldi’s <i>Cacciatori delle Alpi,</i> a brigade of volunteers fighting to liberate
Lombardy, and then participated in the Expedition of the Thousand, given the
number 690 in the list of 1,000 patriots.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nievo embarked from Genoa on 5 May, 1860 setting sail for Sicily. After
distinguishing himself in the battle of Calatafimi and in Palermo, he was
promoted to colonel and took on administrative assignments, at the same time
keeping diaries that served as a chronicle of events.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It was in this role that he was tasked with bringing back from Sicily
all the administrative documents and receipts from the expedition’s expenses.
He boarded the steamship Ercole along with other members of the military
administration to travel from Palermo to Naples, but during the night between
March 4 and 5, 1861, the steamship ran into difficulties off the coast of Sorrento,
almost within view of the Bay of Naples, and sank. There were no
survivors.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nievo’s life is commemorated in a number of locations, including
Colloredo di Montalbano and Fossalta di Portogruaro, in the Veneto, where the
Castello di Fratta, the scene of Carlo Altoviti’s unhappy childhood, was
thought to be located.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Colloredo di Monte Albano - known locally as Colloredo di Montalbano -
is a small village in Friuli-Venezia Giulia situated about 14km (9 miles)
northwest of Udine. In the 11th century, it was a fief of the Viscounts
of Mels, who had received it from the Counts of Tyrol. In 1420, together with
all of Friuli, the hamlet was acquired by the Republic of Venice. The hamlet was
severely damaged by the Friuli earthquake in 1976, yet the family castle remains
intact.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nievo’s legacy is preserved in his novel, in which the central character
and narrator shares Nievo’s passions. Nievo completed the work in 1858 but it
was not until 1867, six years after his death, that it was published.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">When Nievo’s supporters first found a publisher the book was titled
<i>Confessioni di un ottuagenario</i> (Confessions of an octogenarian), because
Nievo’s intended title was still deemed politically sensitive. It was changed
later to reflect the author’s wishes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Nievo died for the cause he believed in passionately, at the age of
just 29.</span><span face="Helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-34429853978237047132020-11-29T18:51:00.005+00:002020-11-29T22:59:30.799+00:00Andrea Palladio<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The most
admired architect of all time was born in Padua</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b></b></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDttNxeEYuiz0oUUS25BdBylVcfNP8eRfQRsCQSHzGnQZGPFZpTr9TXgURkFk77Nt44mGqFRI1C9jGaLhxy7Kr-UqK7svs0HfZ8BCh9vNMLir9Bo-pLJeXNtdDvGRNSM-qrb8sNo4v41Q/s591/Palladio_filtered.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Palladio became one of the most influential architects in history" border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="438" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDttNxeEYuiz0oUUS25BdBylVcfNP8eRfQRsCQSHzGnQZGPFZpTr9TXgURkFk77Nt44mGqFRI1C9jGaLhxy7Kr-UqK7svs0HfZ8BCh9vNMLir9Bo-pLJeXNtdDvGRNSM-qrb8sNo4v41Q/w237-h320/Palladio_filtered.jpg" title="Palladio became one of the most influential architects in history" width="237" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Palladio became one of the most<br />influential architects in history</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>The
world’s most famous and influential architect, Andrea Palladio, was baptised on 30 November in 1508 at the Oratorio di San Michele in Padua.</b></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It is not known whether he was born on the 30th, or on the previous day.<br /></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Palladio’s
style was to become so popular that architects all over the world designed
villas and public buildings copying his interpretation of classical Roman
architecture.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">For
example, the White House in Washington, the home of the President of the United
States, built between 1792 and 1800, has many echoes of Palladian style.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Palladio
was born <b>Andrea di Pietro della Gondola</b>, either just before, or on the day, of his baptism. He was the son of a miller in Padua.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He found
work as a stone cutter in the workshop of a sculptor initially. but moved to
Vicenza when he was 16, where he joined a guild of stonemasons and
bricklayers. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It was
while working as a stonemason for the poet and scholar <b>Gian Giorgio Trissino</b> that his career
began to gather pace. Trissino not only gave him the name Palladio, after
the Greek goddess of wisdom, Pallas Athene, but encouraged and helped him to
study classical architecture in Rome.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Palladio became fascinated with the work of Marcus
Vitruvius Pollio, architect and engineer of the 1st century BC. It was while in
Rome that he came across the <b>Pantheon</b>, with its huge hemispheric dome inspired
by Vitruvius, which was to influence many of his designs.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsrbnQbMuyH0jMySxcmWkLLWakkCdVRqfMnp5ySEtNMqHwCc7WzwlJd7aP9HtQYLz62vXRGrwmtHV5qvcH0CCylup0DyDRTMAEB-dLQTurtcTRgCcra1kSBsaKsas1d_HqNP44b5iuRCM/s800/800px-VillaCornaro_2007_07_14_back_4.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Villa Cornaro in Piombino Dese" border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsrbnQbMuyH0jMySxcmWkLLWakkCdVRqfMnp5ySEtNMqHwCc7WzwlJd7aP9HtQYLz62vXRGrwmtHV5qvcH0CCylup0DyDRTMAEB-dLQTurtcTRgCcra1kSBsaKsas1d_HqNP44b5iuRCM/w320-h213/800px-VillaCornaro_2007_07_14_back_4.jpg" title="The Villa Cornaro in Piombino Dese" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Villa Cornaro in Piombino Dese <br /></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">Trissino
also introduced Palladio to a number of wealthy and influential families,
including the Barbaro brothers, through whom he ultimately became chief
architect of the Republic of Venice, having already occupied the equivalent
position in Vicenza.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Palladio
received his first commissions in the 1530s and thereafter was in constant
demand, his style inspiring other architects outside Italy, at first in Europe
and later around the world. One factor in the spread of his fame was his
publication in 1570 of his treatise,<b> I Quattro Libri dell'Archittetura</b> (The
Four Books of Architecture), which set out rules others could follow.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Examples
of Palladio's work can be found all over the region where he lived and in
Venice, where he was commissioned to build, among other architectural
masterpieces, the <b>Church of San Giorgio Maggiore, </b>the focal point of the view
across the lagoon from St Mark's Square through the Piazzetta.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He built
a substantial number of villas for wealthy clients across the Veneto region,
some of them lining the Brenta Canal that links the lagoon of Venice with
Padua. Others such as the Villa Capra, otherwise known as La Rotonda, famous
for its symmetrically square design with four six-columned porticoes, can be
found in open countryside near Vicenza.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkbgpJ3pGUiCrkxXc2agr5-iS7pxKzJhUTeH1oMsWwCFmaqr0K5ADqJFAxwzZHgMwWYqNiSMIy7hSk08pbXpvGSH24EWD4r5wQkzPD1mfslpFs8ODMa9fmf4BBFCrAXlF4srIvYtzM9k/s2048/la+rotonda.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="La Rotonda, near Vicenza, is one of Palladio's most famous buildings" border="0" data-original-height="1396" data-original-width="2048" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkbgpJ3pGUiCrkxXc2agr5-iS7pxKzJhUTeH1oMsWwCFmaqr0K5ADqJFAxwzZHgMwWYqNiSMIy7hSk08pbXpvGSH24EWD4r5wQkzPD1mfslpFs8ODMa9fmf4BBFCrAXlF4srIvYtzM9k/w320-h218/la+rotonda.jpg" title="La Rotonda, near Vicenza, is one of Palladio's most famous buildings" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">La Rotonda, near Vicenza, is one of <br />Palladio's most famous buildings</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">Vicenza
itself features many of Palladio's designs, including the fabulous Teatro
Olimpico, in which perspective was used to create the optical illusion of city
streets receding from the stage. He was working on the theatre at the
time of his death, after which the project was finished by his son, Silla, one
of his five children, and Palladio's assistant, Vincenzo Scamozzi.<o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Palladio
designed two beautiful villas in the province of Padua, Villa Cornaro in
Piombino Dese and Villa Pisani in Montagnana.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">One of
his finest works is considered to be Villa Foscari, otherwise known as La
Malcontenta, located next to the Brenta canal at Mira, which is between Padua
and Venice.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Palladio
died in 1580, aged 71. The cause of his death is not clear but some accounts
say he collapsed while inspecting the construction of the Tempietto Barbaro, a
church in Maser, near Treviso.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He was
initially buried in a family vault in the church of Santa Corona in Vicenza,
the city in which he spent most of his life, but was later re-interred at the
civic cemetery, where a chapel was built in his honour.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-8612090551148329122020-11-16T19:27:00.003+00:002020-11-17T17:33:58.576+00:00 Chiesa di San Nicolò<h3 style="text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">Romanesque church still has many original features</span></h3>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;"><b>One of the oldest churches in Padua, the pretty Chiesa di San Nicolò, is
tucked away in a square at the end of Via San Nicolò, a turning off Via Dante
Alighieri.</b></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">An outstanding example of Romanesque architecture, Chiesa di San Nicolò </span></span><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">was first mentioned in a document in 1088 when Bishop Milone donated it
to the Convent of Saint Peter for the use of the monks.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkP26ezj-47hcmKeJ44yAV1SnuP3R1YkalrQgzmRBb-4sQAk4TNl89A8UoYMKLyNPfSCscMbG0pb245-7JwcNjysUlu2o6qXhrEoUM87HVtyX14IOLXrKWO0l4TFElqvwsHNKhx0p_0U4/s3648/Bop+pic.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2736" data-original-width="3648" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkP26ezj-47hcmKeJ44yAV1SnuP3R1YkalrQgzmRBb-4sQAk4TNl89A8UoYMKLyNPfSCscMbG0pb245-7JwcNjysUlu2o6qXhrEoUM87HVtyX14IOLXrKWO0l4TFElqvwsHNKhx0p_0U4/s320/Bop+pic.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chiesa di San Nicolò is about 1000 years old</td></tr></tbody></table><span style="background-color: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228; font-family: arial; ">The church was dedicated to </span><b style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;">Saint Nicolas of Myra</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: arial;"> and later acquired
some of the saint’s relics.</span><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">By the 12th century, San Nicolò was a parish church attended by many of
the noble families in the city.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In the 14th century, the church was extended to the side to add the
chapel of the aristocratic <b>Forzate</b> family. By 1546 Chiesa di San Nicolò
had 11 altars, many owned by the powerful families who worshipped there, and
between 1660 and 1680 some baroque features were added.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The bell tower was rebuilt in the 19th century in Gothic style, but
restoration work carried out in the 20th century meticulously preserved many of
the church’s original features.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Among the art treasures inside Chiesa di San Nicolò is an
altarpiece by <b>Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo </b>depicting the Sacred Family with Saints
Francesca Romana and Eurosia. There are still traces of 14th and 15th century
frescoes and there is a 15th century depiction of San Liberale by <b>Jacopo da
Montagnana</b>, also known as Jacopo Parisato, an artist from Montagnana who was
active in Padua during the 15th century.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span style="color: #1d2228;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></o:p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-48940944730840026782020-08-10T15:19:00.000+01:002020-08-10T15:19:24.878+01:00Francesco Zabarella<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<h3 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cardinal from Padua helped end the western schism</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Cardinal Francesco Zabarella, an expert on canon law whose writings on
the subject were to remain the standard authority for centuries, was born on
this day in 1360 in Padua.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Zabarella studied jurisprudence in Bologna and in Florence, graduating
in 1385. He taught canon law in Florence until 1390 and in Padua until 1410. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He took minor orders and in 1398 was made an archipriest of the
Cathedral of Padua.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP0E8FL4DDbiimp0k5fiWuzSNULFgjKGd8RZG526pRpUe5hQc1UnHlNbcwaR-61PlwM9ijCO5mCiPeiWECQ63RH5xZQZmlnCsDsyEYs2VNhq8D-EVEev-_XLW_qHKrgKoJCwGCSWkVwMQ/s1600/Zabarella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="942" data-original-width="690" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP0E8FL4DDbiimp0k5fiWuzSNULFgjKGd8RZG526pRpUe5hQc1UnHlNbcwaR-61PlwM9ijCO5mCiPeiWECQ63RH5xZQZmlnCsDsyEYs2VNhq8D-EVEev-_XLW_qHKrgKoJCwGCSWkVwMQ/s320/Zabarella.jpg" width="234" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Zabarella also carried out diplomatic missions on behalf of Padua. In 1404 he
was one of two ambassadors sent to visit King Charles VI of France to ask for
his assistance against Venice, which was preparing to annex Padua. But when
Padua became part of the Venetian Republic in 1406, Zabarella became a loyal supporter
of Venice. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1409 he took part in the Council of Pisa as councillor of the
Venetian legate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The antipope John XXIII appointed him Bishop of Florence and cardinal
deacon of Santi Cosma and Damiano in Rome in 1411. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There were two antipopes at the time as a result of the western schism,
which had begun in 1378 when the French cardinals, claiming that the election
of Pope Urban VI was invalid, had elected antipope Clement VII as a rival to
the Roman pope. This had eventually led to two competing lines of antipopes,
the Avignon line and the Pisan line, which had elected antipope Alexander V,
John XXIII’s predecessor.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although Zabarella never received major orders he was an active promoter
of ecclesiastical reform. When the Council of Rome failed to end the schism,
Zabarella was sent as one of John XXIII’s legates to Emperor Sigismund at Como
to reach an understanding over the time and place for holding a new council.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIqfAa5BrksBjV-gg3dOINHntxBr5OWkc8naz8VDAjWadiG2icmFyQB0pPIxFWYupAEUVr4i5enzuEMHVHpNhP-aqdsVok2bvNSiSJc8MgJNTqfNIwOMmYzP9P0-lv7P2P-gdxGvok5Oo/s1600/Tomb_of_Cardinal_Francesco_Zabarella+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1141" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIqfAa5BrksBjV-gg3dOINHntxBr5OWkc8naz8VDAjWadiG2icmFyQB0pPIxFWYupAEUVr4i5enzuEMHVHpNhP-aqdsVok2bvNSiSJc8MgJNTqfNIwOMmYzP9P0-lv7P2P-gdxGvok5Oo/s320/Tomb_of_Cardinal_Francesco_Zabarella+%25281%2529.jpg" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cardinal Zabarella's tomb in the Duomo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He helped to bring about the opening of the Council of Constance in 1414
in Germany.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the interest of church unity he persuaded John XXIII to resign in
1415 but also opposed the Avignon antipope, Benedict XIII.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eventually the Roman pope, Gregory XII, resigned and the Council of
Constance formally deposed the Avignon line and the Pisan line.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Suffering poor health, Zabarella went to take the waters at a spa near Constance
to try to recover. His last days were spent in pressing for the Council of
Constance to elect a new pope as soon as possible. He died in Constance in
September 1417 and was later buried in Padua Cathedral. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By November, Pope Martin V, who had been born in the papal states near
Rome, had been elected by the Council of Constance, effectively ending the
western schism.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Zabarella’s most important works were: De schismate sui temporis, which
dealt with ways and means of ending the schism, written between 1403 and 1408;
Lectura super Clementinis, written in 1402; Commentaria in quinque libros
Decretalium, written between 1396 and 1404.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitabMaGm8EA1CV4G9S53fWlyeE_Sg0zpnWh_NF2Sykz1bXq2XzRBZRXKFFGBv-XfCRVHe3VxOB0-gTsvSU-vfdazft3QKPcg78PlOq7pjnheJwZRx3vdMBCQK4NHbVpITtxx-SVVe71es/s1600/Duomo+and+battistero+Padua.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="187" data-original-width="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitabMaGm8EA1CV4G9S53fWlyeE_Sg0zpnWh_NF2Sykz1bXq2XzRBZRXKFFGBv-XfCRVHe3VxOB0-gTsvSU-vfdazft3QKPcg78PlOq7pjnheJwZRx3vdMBCQK4NHbVpITtxx-SVVe71es/s1600/Duomo+and+battistero+Padua.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Padua's Duomo and Battistero</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Francesco Zabarella was laid to rest in the Basilica Cattedrale di Santa
Maria Assunta, referred to in Padua as the Duomo. The present Duomo is the
third structure to have been built on the site. The first was erected in 313
and destroyed by an earthquake in the 12th century. The church was then rebuilt
in Romanesque style and visitors to the Baptistery next door can see how the
Duomo would have looked in the 14th century, Zabarella’s era, as it appears in
the frescoes executed at that time by Giusto dè Menaboui.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The present building
dates back to the 16th century and was finally consecrated in 1754, with its
façade left unfinished.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-17172784011412649942020-08-01T18:02:00.001+01:002020-08-01T18:02:30.758+01:00Paolo De Poli <div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<h3 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Painter devoted his life to ancient art of enamelling</span></h3>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>One of Italy’s most admired 20th century artists, Paolo De Poli, who
became fascinated with the technique of enamelling, was born on this day in
1905 in Padua.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At first De Poli experimented with enamelling small, decorative objects
but after he mastered his craft he moved on to creating large panels for the
interiors of ships, hotels and public buildings.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG80X5yvZFT-2EBl4ENB0BaiFh2-0s2skyWtq3ClSqu0v1UKs2RK7D2ryG4qFtDIm7kBFQAjYC9iS7q_1-DabLalDQKv_OcHQv0PgYQx14JszkNvrZsPS7_x8Ob-p_cS1LDRA3GDHk9-0/s1600/Paolo_De_Poli_in_studio-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="793" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG80X5yvZFT-2EBl4ENB0BaiFh2-0s2skyWtq3ClSqu0v1UKs2RK7D2ryG4qFtDIm7kBFQAjYC9iS7q_1-DabLalDQKv_OcHQv0PgYQx14JszkNvrZsPS7_x8Ob-p_cS1LDRA3GDHk9-0/s320/Paolo_De_Poli_in_studio-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paolo De Poli</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">De Poli trained in drawing and embossing on metal at the art school
Pietro Selvatico of Padua and then studied oil painting in Verona. He embarked
on a career as a portrait and landscape painter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1926 he participated in the XVth Biennale di
Venezia with the oil painting, Still Life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While travelling in the 1930s, he visited art museums and archaeological
sites and became interested in the traditional art of working with vitreous
enamel.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From 1933 onwards, he devoted himself to creating enamel works on metal,
experimenting with refined objects of many shapes in brilliant colours. He
continued to improve his technique, reaching the highest level of skill.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the 1940s, he collaborated with Milanese architect Gio Ponti in the
production of furniture and decorative panels. This led to him producing animal
statuettes in sculptural forms and he also produced beautiful vases, bowls,
trays, plates, cups, plaques and door handles in enamel on copper.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He also accepted commissions for panels to decorate the homes of
collectors in Italy and abroad.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gio Ponti wrote about him: ‘If we can speak of an Italian art of enamel,
it is thanks to De Poli, to the road he opened up and followed faithfully, to
the example of his orthodox technique, to his sureness of touch, to the esteem
and admiration he has won. And we should be grateful to him for this also.’<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The main building of Padua University has works by De Poli</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">De Poli also dedicated himself to executing altarpieces and cycles of
panels on the theme of the Stations of the Cross. These are preserved in
churches in Padua, Abano Terme, Treviso and Bergamo.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His creations have been displayed at many international exhibitions and
art fairs as expressions of Italian style. Many of his works in enamel on
copper are now in the permanent collections of the important museums of
decorative art and design.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">De Poli was actively involved in the defence of the Italian cultural
heritage and the promotion of arts and crafts during his career.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From 1960 to 1973 he served as a member of the board of directors of the
Milan Triennale.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1970 De Poli was awarded the title of Cavaliere del Lavoro. He died
in Padua in 1996, aged 91.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His personal archive of designs, prototypes, photographs and
correspondence has been entrusted to the Archivio Progetti of IUAV University
of Venice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Visitors to Padua can see examples of his work in buildings in the city. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two of De Poli’s panels, depicting Podestà Rusca and Vescovo Giordano,
are in <b>Palazzo Bò</b>, the main building of Padua University in Via 8 Febbraio. To
find Palazzo Bò, leave Piazza Cavour, passing Caffe Pedrocchi on your right and
walk down Via 8 Febbraio. The university building is on the left hand side of
the street at its corner with Via San Francesco.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">De Poli’s statuette, Toro (Bull), completed in 1966, is in Padua’s <b>Musei
Civici</b>, a complex of museums and historic sites centred round the former
convent of the Eremitani in Piazza Eremitani.</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-80275421400824322102020-07-19T06:00:00.000+01:002020-07-19T06:00:05.623+01:00Petrarch – Renaissance poet<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">
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<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">Death of writer who inspired the modern Italian language</span></h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQcnnScdkSPzc-prPYhXrvui-sLVKv5IuUCG25T1ZV5pMxGdBjzzYLxgk4hNNcrri61D3IA3FEH2NlyyN2NRKQnoR5_HWIDOOXck-qjB1hS3wx-FG9XliJrM7sAxd0gDyA_PGNRblbyqM/s1600/Francesco_Petrarca00+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The poet Petrarch was born Francesco Petrarca on July 19, 1374" border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQcnnScdkSPzc-prPYhXrvui-sLVKv5IuUCG25T1ZV5pMxGdBjzzYLxgk4hNNcrri61D3IA3FEH2NlyyN2NRKQnoR5_HWIDOOXck-qjB1hS3wx-FG9XliJrM7sAxd0gDyA_PGNRblbyqM/s1600/Francesco_Petrarca00+%25282%2529.jpg" title="The poet Petrarch was born Francesco Petrarca on July 19, 1374" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The poet Petrarch was born Francesco <br />Petrarca on July 19, 1374</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Renaissance scholar and poet<b> Francesco Petrarca</b> died on this day in 1374 at Arquà near Padua.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Petrarca, known in English as <b>Petrarch, </b>is considered to be an important figure in the history of Italian literature.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He is often credited with initiating the 14th century Renaissance, after his rediscovery of Cicero’s letters, and also with being the founder of Humanism.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the 16th century, the Italian poet, <b>Pietro Bembo, </b>created the model for the modern Italian language based on Petrarch’s works.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Petrarch was born in Arezzo in Tuscany in 1304. His father was a friend of the poet Dante Alighieri, but he insisted Petrarch studied law.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The poet was far more interested in writing and reading Latin literature and considered the time he studied law as wasted years.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Petrarch’s first major work, Africa, about the Roman general, Scipio Africanus, turned him into a celebrity. In 1341 he became the first poet laureate since ancient times and his sonnets were admired and imitated throughout Europe.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5xxvN3p5QiZG_-QQLp7AjLy7fH2Xua8JGTBG2pofYouMne201kvi7aawOyl4fWUT98fdnxIX-aYVl_124vWM3g393kpDJVCkXfEbKSDW7sc7VRJTCtgTBkNauwHbfHhLhIzIBXr3yMmc/s1600/800px-Arqua_panorama.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The town of Arquà Petrarca, near Padua, where the poet Petrarch was born, and which took his name" border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5xxvN3p5QiZG_-QQLp7AjLy7fH2Xua8JGTBG2pofYouMne201kvi7aawOyl4fWUT98fdnxIX-aYVl_124vWM3g393kpDJVCkXfEbKSDW7sc7VRJTCtgTBkNauwHbfHhLhIzIBXr3yMmc/s320/800px-Arqua_panorama.jpg" title="The town of Arquà Petrarca, near Padua, where the poet Petrarch was born, and which took his name" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The town of Arquà Petrarca, near Padua, where the poet<br />Petrarch was born, and which took his name</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Petrarch travelled widely throughout Italy and Europe during his life and once climbed Mount Ventoux near Vaucluse in France just for pleasure, writing about the experience afterwards.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Towards the end of his life he moved with his daughter, Francesca, and her family, to live in the small town of Arquà in the <b>Euganean Hills</b> to the south west of Padua. He died there on 19 July 1374, the day before his 70th birthday.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Arquà, in the province of Padua, where Petrarch spent his last few years, is considered to be one of the most beautiful, small towns in Italy and it has won awards for tourism and hospitality. In 1870 the town became known as <b>Arquà Petrarca</b> and the house where the poet lived is now a museum dedicated to him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk/" target="_blank">Home</a></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-24336709970924772562020-05-26T15:59:00.003+01:002022-03-17T11:14:19.694+00:00Teatro Verdi Padua<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Famous singers have graced stage of elegant theatre</span><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> </span></h3>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b>Padua has a beautiful 18th century theatre named after the composer
Giuseppe Verdi, which is in Piazza Terrani off Corso Milano in the centre of the city, close to
Piazza dei Signori.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Teatro Verdi presents operas, musicals, plays, ballets and concerts
organised by the Teatro Stabile del Veneto.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimje-LY0r1QRToy1XHbDx_6Cc538ALKo6i1zJFCcvVC0j7rq-IuLrvTxetjlpfMiZ74ss9OQ4dKNeeZ4APOHcfpVyWmKgfckavc9AmAnQ-Dw-AzjJsSmFD5Xenc-LdmMybW2nloHQbxs/s1600/Teatro+Verdi+edited.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1210" data-original-width="1600" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgimje-LY0r1QRToy1XHbDx_6Cc538ALKo6i1zJFCcvVC0j7rq-IuLrvTxetjlpfMiZ74ss9OQ4dKNeeZ4APOHcfpVyWmKgfckavc9AmAnQ-Dw-AzjJsSmFD5Xenc-LdmMybW2nloHQbxs/s320/Teatro+Verdi+edited.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Teatro Verdi is in Corso Milano in the centre of Padua</td></tr>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The theatre was originally named Teatro Nuovo after it was built in
1751. </span><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The architect, Giovanni Gloria, had been commissioned to design the theatre
by a group of important citizens of Padua, who wanted something similar to the
Teatro degli Obizzi, which had been built in the city in 1652 and was used to put on operas
during the first half of the 18th century.</span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Among the celebrated singers who appeared at Teatro Nuovo were castrati
singers </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gaetano G</b><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b>uadagni</b> and <b>Gaspare Pacchierotti</b>, soprano <b>Giuditta Pasta</b> and
contralto <b>Giuseppina Grassini</b></span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">In 1846 the theatre was restored inside by Giuseppe Japelli and in 1884,
when the theatre was dedicated to Giuseppe Verdi, the interior was changed
again by architect Achille Sfondrini with Giacomo Casa decorating the ceiling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">During World War I the ceiling was badly damaged by bombing and had to
be redone by Giuliano Tommasi.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">In 1920, when Teatro Verdi was able to reopen, the King of Italy,
<b>Vittorio Emanuele III</b>, attended the opening ceremony.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">During World War II the number of productions had to be limited and
after the war the theatre became the property of the local authority.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">For more information about future productions, visit
www.teatrostabileveneto.it/the-teatro-verdi/</span><span face="Segoe UI, sans-serif" style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><a href="http://www.bestofpadua.co.uk">Home</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-68153287990137203052020-02-26T00:47:00.000+00:002020-02-26T00:53:10.023+00:00Porta Altinate Padua<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>One of Padua’s only two remaining medieval gates, Porta Altinate,
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtoPQ37XT5zuYBpJqaBtW699O_p7n-tQBTggFG9JhK9ohfkGZDIDflczPC-ItHdQofC78TgID3eQrB5wmwWIi-4MCLOCuIEAPBU_bDf6zANnPVKC-KMx_3lhCipZ3APZ2xaJ8bgYR2tdM/s1600/porta+altinate+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1101" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtoPQ37XT5zuYBpJqaBtW699O_p7n-tQBTggFG9JhK9ohfkGZDIDflczPC-ItHdQofC78TgID3eQrB5wmwWIi-4MCLOCuIEAPBU_bDf6zANnPVKC-KMx_3lhCipZ3APZ2xaJ8bgYR2tdM/s320/porta+altinate+1.jpg" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 13th century Porta Altinate</td></tr>
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</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Padua’s tram stops on <b>Riviera dei Ponti Romani</b> and when passengers get
off they can quickly walk through Porta Altinate to reach the two main squares,
Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza della Frutta.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Porta Altinate</b> was one of the gates in the walls built around Padua in
the 13th century to protect the city from hostile attacks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The walls were constructed on the orders of the comune of Padua and
there are still a few remnants of them left in parts of the city.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 1256, Porta Altinate was stormed and destroyed by troops fighting to
overthrow the notorious tyrant Ezzelino III da Romano. It was the day the hated
ruler finally lost his power over the city. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The gate was rebuilt in 1286 and the event is recorded in an inscription
by the historian, <b>Conte Carlo Leoni</b>, on a memorial stone under the archway.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Porta Altinate’s lookout tower has since been reduced in height and the
gate now stands between modern buildings.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Looking at it from <b>Piazza Garibaldi</b>, the gate would once have been
reflected in the waters of a canal behind it, but this was filled in to create
the section of road called Riviera dei Ponti Romani, which was named in honour
of the Roman bridges which now lie below the surface of the road.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiszu2BkLm3Y6w7A-Fs6d_1KVq_rxiqIqNs2fVVmGBxqRcsWhhd3Yu66JKyhQVMuy4AA7AvjCNwV0rLkzd1sJCrZ1LJSwg2e6UYRNyIXrk9IxrJakFlp4YtjVtdbQ6msl8DY6LDppPM8_M/s1600/porta+altinate+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1308" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiszu2BkLm3Y6w7A-Fs6d_1KVq_rxiqIqNs2fVVmGBxqRcsWhhd3Yu66JKyhQVMuy4AA7AvjCNwV0rLkzd1sJCrZ1LJSwg2e6UYRNyIXrk9IxrJakFlp4YtjVtdbQ6msl8DY6LDppPM8_M/s320/porta+altinate+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monument to Alvise Pisani</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Inside the archway is a monument in baroque style to Alvise Pisani, who
was captain of Padua from 1686 to 1687 and then became Doge of the Republic of
Venice. The monument was the work of artists studying in Padua at the time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But the intricately carved stonework is probably missed by many of the
pedestrians and cyclists who are in a hurry to pass through the gate each day
on their way into Padua.</span><span style="font-family: "segoe ui" , sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-17211360115935686582019-09-09T12:56:00.000+01:002019-09-09T12:56:54.820+01:00The Baptistery in Padua<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white;">
<br /></div>
<h3 style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dazzling fresco cycle has survived nearly 700 years</span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Standing next to the Duomo in Piazza Duomo, Padua’s Baptistery
(Battistero) is a superb example of Romanesque architecture.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The original building was constructed in the 12th century but it was
modified in about 1370 to become a memorial chapel for Francesco il Vecchio di
Carrara and his wife, Fina Buzzacarini.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLjjNlw9RF_D4porIY5l6cA2CotD0VFkMbGl25k13hrZZzw32A3foV_bmibZQ8fQac12Skrgzo1vuo9oFujrDwdQgRxVSgRzO1Z1td0gwqP5GWYvZL0tCdswCmoX0IkoeUblMdyayp0c/s1600/Battistero.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1563" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLjjNlw9RF_D4porIY5l6cA2CotD0VFkMbGl25k13hrZZzw32A3foV_bmibZQ8fQac12Skrgzo1vuo9oFujrDwdQgRxVSgRzO1Z1td0gwqP5GWYvZL0tCdswCmoX0IkoeUblMdyayp0c/s320/Battistero.jpg" width="312" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 14th century Baptistery is to the right of the Duomo</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The couple invited the artist <b>Giusto de’ Menabuoi</b> to fresco the interior
with pictures representing stories from the Bible.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">De’ Menabuoi, who was originally from Florence, worked on the interior
of the Baptistery between 1376 and 1378. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His frescos are remarkable for the brilliance of the colours he used and
the details from the Bible he brings to life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To understand the cycle of pictures you should ideally stand near the
old entrance to the Baptistery, which was sealed up when the building was
modified. Traces of it can be seen in the structure of arches.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The cycle begins in the cupola with Paradise and finishes in the apse
with the Apocalypse. There are 37 episodes from Genesis that lead on in sequence
to the 43 scenes from the last book of the New Testament.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the centre of the apse, on a small marble altar, is a <b>Polyptych</b>, also
by De’ Menabuoi, featuring the Madonna and Child, with a picture of the Baptism
of Christ above it, while on either side are panels depicting the stories of
the Saints.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the panel showing Christ healing the sick, look out for a figure in a
red headdress, which is believed to be a portrait of the poet Petrarch, who
died shortly before the frescos were painted.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Venetian soldiers damaged the Cararra family’s grand burial monuments in
1405 and daubed green paint on the emblems of Francesco il Vecchio, but
restoration work was carried out on the Baptistery in the 20th century.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Visitors to the Baptistery can see how the <b>Duomo</b> would have looked in
the 14th century, before its 16th century makeover, as it appears in De’
Menabuoi’s frescos.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Baptistery is open from 10 am to 6 pm every day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-18634526836164062632019-04-23T11:36:00.000+01:002019-04-23T11:36:23.726+01:00 Gaspara Stampa<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<h3 style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Great Italian female poet was born in Padua</span></h3>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b>Gaspara Stampa, the greatest female poet of the Italian Renaissance,
died on this day in 1554 in Venice at the age of 31.</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She is regarded by many as the greatest Italian female poet of any age,
despite having had such a brief life.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gaspara was born in Padua and lived in the city until she was eight
years old. Her father, Bartolomeo, had been a jewellery and gold merchant, but
after he died, Gaspara’s mother, Cecilia, took her three children to live in
Venice.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjqC2TuNMIKjUy4GZ9BMwKUX-GauoTS8bTI-VUpMs6Or3HLITXR7a4uFzTReRtRWAMEyv36OIOEjM2GrOGru6KpnIMN8bO6sy7fffpgL2l2qOSQQZgYD8h7TQXT_VyO4ngZtrUu0Wua8/s1600/Pedrocchi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1516" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAjqC2TuNMIKjUy4GZ9BMwKUX-GauoTS8bTI-VUpMs6Or3HLITXR7a4uFzTReRtRWAMEyv36OIOEjM2GrOGru6KpnIMN8bO6sy7fffpgL2l2qOSQQZgYD8h7TQXT_VyO4ngZtrUu0Wua8/s320/Pedrocchi.jpg" width="303" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Caffe Pedrocchi in the centre of Padua<br /> is now a meeting place for writers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Along with her sister, Cassandra, and brother, Baldassare, Gaspara was
educated in literature, music, history and painting. She excelled at singing
and playing the lute and her home became a cultural hub as it was visited by
many Venetian writers, painters and musicians.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gaspara dedicated most of her poems to Count Collatino di Collalto of
Treviso , with whom she had an affair. </span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">When he broke off the relationship she was devastated and suffered from
depression, but she wrote some of her most beautiful poems at this time,
creating for herself a lasting literary reputation.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Only three of her poems were published during her lifetime, although many
were circulated among her literary friends in Venice.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gaspara went to live in Florence for some time because of poor health,
hoping that the milder climate might help her. But on her return to Venice in
1554 she became ill with a fever and died after 15 days on 23 April. The parish
register recorded the cause of her death as ‘fever and colic’, although the theory has also been put forward that it
could have been a suicide.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first edition of Gaspara Stampa’s poetry, Rime di Madonna Gaspara
Stampa, was published in Venice six months after her death.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Gaspara’s 311 poems are considered to be the most important collection
of female poetry of the 16th century. They were edited by Gaspara’s sister,
Cassandra, and the edition was dedicated to the Florentine poet and writer,
Giovanni della Casa.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The German poet, Rainer Maria Rilke, refers to Gaspara Stampa in the
first of his Duino Elegies, which were written while he was staying at Duino
Castle on the Adriatic coast near Trieste . The Duino Elegies are now
considered to be his greatest work.</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4039628643951150205.post-25044047616880935152019-03-28T11:43:00.001+00:002019-03-28T12:09:52.051+00:00Bassano del Grappa<h3>
Take a day trip to this gem of the northern Veneto</h3>
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilmTgo54TqExP8mZeOSpa5RvxWAMouRmeYy2ykyZ-UjbLTK7wehyphenhyphen-FK4oEgY6htkIXlDIatJnVsOC6S64WaT83R63NRTQWsCTTmJAWrLmAi7Fg3bJ0pITBsAShU7NRweLzKVVt-HuBkUo/s1600/ponte+degli+alpini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Ponte Vecchio - or Ponte degli Alpini - was originally built by Andrea Palladio in 1568" border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="607" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilmTgo54TqExP8mZeOSpa5RvxWAMouRmeYy2ykyZ-UjbLTK7wehyphenhyphen-FK4oEgY6htkIXlDIatJnVsOC6S64WaT83R63NRTQWsCTTmJAWrLmAi7Fg3bJ0pITBsAShU7NRweLzKVVt-HuBkUo/s320/ponte+degli+alpini.jpg" title="The Ponte Vecchio - or Ponte degli Alpini - was originally built by Andrea Palladio in 1568" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Ponte Vecchio - or Ponte degli Alpini - was originally<br />
built by Andrea Palladio in 1568</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>To travel to Bassano del Grappa, which is to the north of Padua, takes about an hour by car or by train, but this elegant town in the province of Vicenza is well worth seeing.</b><br />
<br />
Bassano is in the foothills of the Alps and there are stunning mountain views from many of its street corners.<br />
<br />
The town’s most famous landmark is the covered wooden bridge designed by <b>Andrea Palladio</b> in 1568 that still spans the Brenta River. It was badly damaged at the end of World War II by the retreating German army and lovingly rebuilt and restored by the town’s <b>Alpini</b>, a contingent of Italy’s prestigious alpine troops.<br />
<br />
Bassano has become famous for producing the eponymous alcoholic drink, <b>Grappa,</b> which is enjoyed by Italians as a digestivo or liqueur. The drink derives its name from the <i>graspa</i>, or remnants, of the grapes that are left over after wine making, while the town is named after Monte Grappa, a mountain of the Venetian Prealps.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnZVY9pYm8sTJFJNDdIiaERHN7u9AR85Z5lWVxA7aUGd_RhDYkidx4kplUvqRLRG6hK4RqgrDHz_hCn_8onD549Ti5ECaLclkwukeWVMDxMglipiQ-F3f_yNaewbIOB0edqoHXA8EDvMs/s1600/torre+civica.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The huge Torre Civica towers over Piazza Garibaldi, one of Bassano's central squares" border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnZVY9pYm8sTJFJNDdIiaERHN7u9AR85Z5lWVxA7aUGd_RhDYkidx4kplUvqRLRG6hK4RqgrDHz_hCn_8onD549Ti5ECaLclkwukeWVMDxMglipiQ-F3f_yNaewbIOB0edqoHXA8EDvMs/s320/torre+civica.jpg" title="The huge Torre Civica towers over Piazza Garibaldi, one of Bassano's central squares" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The huge Torre Civica towers over Piazza<br />
Garibaldi, one of Bassano's central squares</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
There are bars and shops where you can taste the different varieties of Grappa, or buy some as a souvenir to take home, including several on either side of the Ponte Vecchio, or Ponte degli Alpini, as the wooden bridge has also become known.<br />
<br />
The Museo degli Alpini, at the end of the bridge nearest the historic centre of the town, was founded with just a few items in 1948 after the first post-war national assembly of the Alpini, but it has grown over the years, as objects from both world wars have been donated.<br />
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Once you have crossed the bridge you will soon see the <b>Torre Civica</b>, 43m (141ft) tall, which was once a lookout tower inside the 12th century walls, but now serves as a clock tower.<br />
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In <b>Piazza Garibaldi,</b> one of the biggest squares, is the 14th century Church of San Francesco, which has a tranquil cloister housing the <b>Museo Civica</b>, the town’s museum. The museum has the biggest collection of works by local artist <b>Jacopo dal Ponte</b>, who was also known as Jacopo Bassano.<br />
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In the adjoining square, <b>Piazza Libertà,</b> there is a 17th century sculpture of San Bassiano, the town’s patron saint, and a market is held there every Thursday.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Viale dei Martiri serves as a poignant<br />
memorial to 31 partisans executed there in 1944</td></tr>
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In the highest part of the city you can visit the remains of the 12th century <b>Castello Ezzelino</b>. Within its walls is the town’s Duomo - the Cathedral of Santa Maria in Colle - which dates back to the 11th century.<br />
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Nearby, the beautiful, peaceful <b>Viale dei Martiri</b> has lovely mountain views and provides a poignant memorial to 31 young partisans who were executed there by the Germans in September 1944.<br />
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Many were hung from the trees that line the road and today each tree bears the name of the soldier who was murdered there and many display a photograph of the young victim. The road, formerly, Viale XX Settembre, was renamed in their honour.<br />
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Should you wish to stay longer in Bassano del Grappa, the pleasant <b><a href="https://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=5986&awinaffid=226563&clickref=&p=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tripadvisor.co.uk%2FHotel_Review-g194685-d1590779-Reviews-Hotel_Victoria-Bassano_Del_Grappa_Province_of_Vicenza_Veneto.html" target="_blank">Hotel Victoria</a></b> is recommended. Situated in Viale Armando Diaz, just a short walk from the historic centre, the Victoria has friendly, welcoming staff and all the facilities you would expect from a traditional Italian hotel.<br />
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