Category: Emilia-Romagna
Ravenna: Santa Maria in Porto
Ferrara: Palazzo dei Diamanti
Ferrara: Palazzo Schifanoia
Ferrara: Castello Estense
The Castello Estense in the centre of Ferrara is arguably the city’s most famous building. Constructed primarily for defensive purposes towards the end of the fourteenth century, it later became the archetypal Italian Renaissance palace. Nowadays, its outward appearance is still quite impressive, but once inside, the castle feels rather…
Ferrara: Santa Maria in Vado
Ferrara: The Duomo
Ravenna: Dante’s tomb
Dante Alighieri (ca. 1265-1321) is perhaps the most famous Italian poet ever. He is best known for his Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy), which consists of three parts: Hell (or Inferno), Purgatory and Paradise. Although Dante was born and raised in Florence and can be considered one of the most important…
Ravenna: Sant’Apollinare in Classe
Of the eight UNESCO World Heritage sites in Ravenna, the Sant’Apollinare in Classe is the youngest monument. Classe is nowadays a frazione of the municipality of Ravenna, a small suburb located some five kilometres south of the city centre. By chance we visited the Sant’Apollinare in Classe first, even though…
Ravenna: San Vitale
Ravenna: The Arian Baptistery
Ravenna: Sant’Apollinare Nuovo
Ravenna: Mausoleum of Theoderic
When the Ostrogothic king Theoderic died in Ravenna in 526, Italy had been part of his kingdom for over 30 years. Theoderic was anything but the stereotypical barbarian ruler. He was just, cultured, educated and mostly tolerant. Furthermore, he had excellent strategic insight and most of Italy prospered economically under…
Ravenna: The Orthodox Baptistery
Ravenna’s Orthodox Baptistery was built by bishop Ursus just to the north of Ravenna’s cathedral, the Duomo, which was also Ursus’ work. However, it was bishop Neon (ca. 450-473) who rebuilt and redecorated the Baptistery, and the structure is now often named the ‘Neonian Baptistery’ after him. The decorations inside…
Ravenna: The Duomo
The full name of Ravenna’s immense cathedral or Duomo is the cattedrale metropolitana della Risurrezione di Nostro Signore Gesù Cristo. It is dedicated to the resurrection (anastasis) of Jesus Christ. The cathedral was built in the eighteenth century on the footprint of the Late Antique cathedral dating back to the…