Page 24 - Flipbook

Piazza del Duomo, Siracusa.
Massa Marittima Piazza Garibaldi
This walled hill town is in “the other Tuscany,” the slice of the province along the Tyrrhenian Sea
known as the Maremma. A slightly askew triangle, defined by the stairs and facade of the 13th century San Cerbone Cathedral, the piazza is the setting for Lirica in Piazza, a performing arts festival that has been hosted here for the past 28 years. For a few days each August, the small triangle becomes an opera stage, the perfect setting for this public space that is itself an aria.
Siracusa Piazza del Duomo
The Roman philosopher Cicero described the temple that stood on this spot 2,000 years ago as
a beacon, its gilded doors reflecting the sunshine and helping sailors guide their ships. Over the millennia the house of worship was repurposed, destroyed, plundered, rebuilt and redecorated which resulting in a semi-oval public space whose surrounding buildings articulate the styles of nearly every century. Columns of the duomo were taken from the Doric temple of Athena, previously
on this spot. The Palazzo Beneventano del Bosco represents the restrained symmetry of the 16th century. The facade of the cathedral, rebuilt after an earthquake in 1693, is entirely Sicilian Baroque with ornate wrought iron gates and elegant statues. Walk around this piazza and it’s as if you were walking through time.
Bologna Piazza Maggiore
This may be the most underrated piazza in Italy.
Here the stern Italian Gothic brick Basilica
of San Petronio faces off against the grandly arcaded Palazzo del Podestà. The piazza’s long ends are a study in architectural history, with the squinty eyed, pointed windows of the Palazzo d’Accursio and its late medieval sibling, the Palazzo dei Notai, staring down the arches and pilasters of the
Renaissance Palazzo dei Banchi. Stroll through this former seat of money changers and bankers today and you’ll find yourself embraced not by the echoes of tinkling gold coins, but by the aromas emanating from a web of narrow streets housing some of the city’s finest food markets.
22 AUTUMN 2014