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Old Bridge - Photo (c)
renatela
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Pavia
This ancient, interesting city is just right for a one-day trip
outside Milan. The old city center can easily be covered on foot:
walking along the streets and squares, you can see the architectural
sights from centuries and centuries of history. From the Roman Era to
the Middle Ages, from the Visconti and Sforza eras to the Renaissance,
from Neoclassicism to Liberty style.
I recommend you end your trip by seeing the wonderful
Certosa di
Pavia, that is 5 km outside the city, which was built around 1396 on
the wishes of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Duke of Milan.
Pavia was the capital of the Longobards, it summarizes, with
its architecture, the historical periods of its history; the Visconti
Castle and the university buildings, the Cathedral and the church of St.
Peter in Ciel d'Oro, the church of St. Michael, where the Longobard kings
were once crowned and just outside, the miracle of marble of the
Certosa, the authentic jewel of the Renaissance arts.
Pavia: an itinerary to visit the city
PAVIA, the ancient Roman city of Ticinum, later the
capital of the Longobards (571-774) and the Carolingians. At one point, it
overshadowed Milan in importance, then fell into decay.
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What remains is a
fascinating turreted city, medieval in aspect. Coming from Milan and the Certosa di Pavia, crossing Piazza Dante, we come immediately to San Pietro
in Ciel d'Oro, a magnificent Romanesque church of sandstone and brick, so
called (a ciel d'oro n means "golden sky") because of its ceiling which was
one time gilded; in it are buried St.Augustine (in a magnificent marble Tomb
of 1360), Severmus Boethius and King Liutprand.
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From here we pass on to the Castello Visconteo, a handsome
square building with towers, crenellated walls and lovely courtyard: at
present, it houses a number of collections.
Turning down Corso Cairoli, we
come to the Gothic church of S. Francesco (13° century) and from here to the
University, one of the oldest in Italy. Beside the University rise three
medieval towers; together with the two in Via Porto these are the only ones
left intact of the hundred or more which once gave Pavia its peculiar
aspect.
Note also the famous Renaissance Colleges by Ghislieri,
Borromeo, Castiglioni etc. From the University take Via Roma to the Painting
Gallery in the Palazzo Malaspina in Piazza Petrarca: it contains an
important group of works by Antonello do Messina, Giovanni Bellini,
Correggio, Cima da Conegliano, Vivarlni, Foppa and others.
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Castello Visconteo - Photo (c)
Tamurello
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Taking Via Venti Settembre and passing by the Lombard-Gothic church of S.
Maria del Carmine, we reach the Renaissance Cathedral. Following Strada
Nuova and Corso Garibaldi, we come upon the jewel of Pavia, the flawless
church of San Michele, which is one of the most important creations of all
Romanesque architecture.
Pavia: how to get there
Pavia is on the
Trenitalia
train line from Milan to Genoa, it takes half an hour to go from Milan
to Pavia, and the trains run very frequently. There is a bus service to Linate Airport and the nearby Certosa di Pavia as well as cities and
towns in Lombardy. The train and bus stations are in the west part of
town and linked to the historic center by Corso Cavour. It is easy to
walk in Pavia's compact center but there is local bus service, too.
Pavia is a good destination for a one day trip from Milan when the
weather is good, as in wintertime there is frequently heavy fog that
prevents the enjoyment of the place.
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Castello Visconteo - Photo (c) Giorgio Gonnella (*)
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Don’t miss
- the large fortified Castello Visconteo (built in 1360 by
Galeazzo II Visconti).
- The
Broletto
- The
Duomo, the Cathedral, founded in 1488 and completed only in
1898, when the façade and the dome were completed according to the
original design. The central dome has an octagonal plan, and stand
at 97 m high, weighing some 20,000 tons. This dome is the third for
size in Italy, after St. Peter's Basilica and Santa Maria del Fiore
in Florence. Next to the Duomo were the Civic Tower (existing
at least from 1330 and enlarged in 1583 by Pellegrino Tibaldi): its
fall on March 17, 1989 was the final motivating force that started
the efforts to save the Leaning Tower of Pisa from a similar fate.
- The covered bridge of the Ticino River.
- The
Certosa di Pavia (see the dedicated page)
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(*) Photo from
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia available under the terms of the
GNU Free Documentation License. (See
Copyrights for details.)
Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.
(c) 1997-2008 E. Massetti
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