Verona

:This page is about the city in Italy; for other uses, see Verona (disambiguation).

Monuments

Because of the value and importance of its many historical buildings, Verona has been named a UNESCO world heritage site.

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Roman monuments

Verona is famous for its Roman amphitheatre, the Arena, completed around 30 AD, which is the third largest in Italy, after Rome's Coliseum and the arena at Capua.It measures 139 meters long and 110 meters wide, and could seat some 25,000 spectators in its 44 tiers of marble seats. The ludi (shows and gladiator games) performed within its walls were so famous that they attracted spectators from far beyond the city. The current two-story façade is actually the internal support for the tiers; only a fragment of the original outer perimeter wall in white and pink limestone from Valpolicella, with three stories remains.The interior is very impressive and is virtually intact, and has remained in use even today for public events, fairs, theatre, bullfighting, and espcially opera.

Related Topics:
Roman - Amphitheatre - Arena - Coliseum - Capua - Ludi - Gladiator - Façade - Limestone - Valpolicella - Opera

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There is also a variety of other Roman monuments to be found in the town, such as the Roman theatre. This theatre was built in the 1st century BC, but through the ages had fallen in disuse and had been built upon to provide housing. In the 18th century Andrea Monga, a wealthy Veronese, bought all the houses that in time had been built over the theatre, demolished them, and saved the monument.

Related Topics:
Theatre - 1st century BC - 18th century

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The Arco dei Gavi (Gavi Arch), dedicated to the important Roman family of the Gavii, was built in the 1st century AD, and is famous for having the name of the builder (architect Lucius Vitruvius Cordone) engraved on it, a really rare case in the architecture of the epoque. It originally it straddled the main Roman road into the city, now the Corso Cavour. It had been demolished by the French troops in 1805 and was rebuilt in 1932.

Related Topics:
Gavii - 1st century - Architect - Lucius Vitruvius Cordone - Roman road - French - 1805 - 1932

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Nearby is the Porta dei Borseri, an archway is at the end of Corsa Porta Bosari. This is the façade of a 3rd century gate in the original Roman city walls. The inscription is dated 245 AD and gives the city name as Colonia Verona Augusta. The road passing through the gate is the original Via Sacra of the Roman city. Today, it is lined with several Renaissance palazzo.

Related Topics:
Via Sacra - Renaissance - Palazzo

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Porta dei Leoni is the 1st century BC ruin of what was once part of the Roman city gate. A substantial portion is still standing as part of the wall of a medieval building. The street itself is an open archaeological site, and the remains of the original Roman street and gateway foundations can be seen a few feet below the present street level.

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Medieval monuments

The Basilica of San Zeno Maggiore .http://www.chieseverona.it/sanzeno.htmis considered one of the great achievements of Romanesque architecture. The present structure is the 3rd on this site, built from 1123-1135, over the 4th century shrine to Verona's patron saint, St Zeno. The splendid façade dominates the large square, and is flanked with a beautiful 72 meter tall bell tower, which is mentioned by Dante in Canto 18 of Purgatory in the Divine Comedy. The weathered Veronese stone gives a warm golden glow and the restrained lines of the pillars, columns, cornices and the gallery with its double windows give the façade an air of harmonious elegance. The huge Rose Window is decorated as a Wheel of Fortune. The lintels above the portal have carvings of the months of the year. Each side of the doorway is embellished with 18 bas-relief panels of biblical scenes, and the inner bronze door has panels have 48 primitive but forceful depictions from the life of St Zeno. The meaning of some of the scenes is now unknown, but the extraordinarily vivid, barbaric energy of the figures is a superb blend of traditional and Ottonian influences. The interior of the church is divided into a Lower Church, occupying about 2/3 of the structure, and the Upper Church, occupying the remainder. The walls are covered with 12th and 14th century frescos and the ceiling of the nave is a magnificent example of a shi's keel ceiling. The vaulted crypt contains the tomb of St Zeno (d.380), the first Bishop of Verona as well as the tombs of several other saints. North of the church is a pleasant cloister. The church also houses the tomb of King Pippin of Italy (777-810).

Related Topics:
San Zeno - Romanesque - Façade - Dante - Divine Comedy - Rose Window - Wheel of Fortune - Bas-relief - Bronze - Ottonian - Fresco - Nave - Crypt - Bishop - Pippin

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The small Romanesque Basilica of San Lorenzo is one of the most beautiful and important in the city. Its dates from around 1177, but is built on the site of a Paleochristian church, some fragments of which remain. The church is built of alternating tracks of brick and stone, and has two cylindrical towers, housing spiral staircases to the wome's galleries. Inside, the atmosphere is rather severe, but is still quiet and peaceful. The striped bands of stone and brick and the graceful arches complement the setting.

Related Topics:
Romanesque - Paleochristian - Brick

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St Maria Antica is a tiny Romanesque church was the parish church of the Scaligeri clan. Founded in the 7th century, the interior is very beautiful. The structure is of alternating bands of brick and stone. The square belfry has Gothic mullioned windows, and inset glass crosses in the roof admit light. Only large enough to hold a couple dozen people at most for mass, when the Scaligeri chose this to be their funerary chapel, the only place for their massive tombs was outside. Hovering in mid-air above the entrance to the church is the Tomb of Cangrand I "Big Dog" (d.1329). The base of the fancy sarcophagus forms the porch. Above is a Gothic canopy with a pyramid-shaped roof. The statue of the dead warlord is on top; however, the whole assembly is topped with a statue of Cangrand on horseback, in armor, sword in hand, with a manic smile and his outrageous dog-head helmet. Towering over the fence are the spire topped tombs of Mastino II ?The Mastiff? (d.1351) and Cansignorio ?Noble Dog? (d.1375), with splendidly wrought Gothic pinnacles bristling like lances, and similar detailed carvings, statues, winged helmets and wrought-iron fences with the Scaligeri ladder emblems. In all of Europe, there is nothing like these spiky, flamboyant, monuments. Simplertombs near the church wall contain other members of the Scaligeri clan, including Mastino (d.1277) who founded the dynasty, Bartolomeo (d.1304) and Giovanni (d.1359).

Related Topics:
Romanesque - Scaligeri - Gothic - Sarcophagus

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St Anastasia is a huge and lofty church built from 1290-1481 by the Dominicans to hold the massive congregations attracted by their rousing fundamentalist sermons. The Gothic portal has faded 15th century frescoes and carved scenes from the life of St Peter Martyr, but the façade is unfinished. Inside is one of the most outstanding examples of Gothic architecture in northern Italy. However, its proportions and various elements of the design are still decidedly Romanesque. Of note are the 2 holy water stoups inside are upheld by comical and realistic beggars.

Related Topics:
Dominicans - Gothic - Fresco - St Peter Martyr - Façade - Romanesque - Holy water

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