We tour of the
Renaissance city of
Ferrara, including the 14thC
Estense Castle with its moat, drawbridges, marble balconies and sumptuous apartments, and the
Schifanoia Palace with its fabulous 15thC frescoes. We also see the cathedral façade with its sculpted images described as an Illustrated
Bible.
Ferrara, which grew up around a ford over the
River Po, has a rich cultural heritage with renowned artists, writers, musicians and scientists all leaving their mark
. In the 15th and
16th centuries Ferrara became an intellectual and artistic centre that attracted the greatest minds of the
Italian Renaissance. One of Ferrara's most famous university graduates is
Nicolaus Copernicus (
1503).
The town has broad streets and numerous palaces dating from the
14th and
15th century when it hosted the court of the
House of Este.
The town is still surrounded by more than 5 miles of ancient walls, mainly built in the 15th and 16th centuries.
Together with those of
Lucca, they are the best preserved Renaissance walls in
Italy.
The origin of Ferrara is uncertain. It was probably settled by the inhabitants of the lagoons at the mouth of the
Po River. Ferrara first appears in a document of 753
AD.
The House of
Este settled in Ferrara in the
12th century and for four centuries Ferrara was the uninterrupted seat of the d'Este court. During the reign of
Ercole d'Este I, one of the most significant patrons of the arts in late 15th and early
16th century Italy, Ferrara grew into a cultural centre, renowned for music as well as for visual arts.
Alfonso I, son of Ercole, was also an important patron. His preference for instrumental music resulted in Ferrara becoming an important centre of composition for the lute. Alfonso married the notorious
Lucrezia Borgia.
The architecture of Ferrara benefited from the genius of
Biagio Rossetti who, in 1484, was asked by Ercole I to redesign the plan of the city. The resulting
Addizione Erculea is one of the most important
and beautiful examples of renaissance city planning and contributed to the selection of Ferrara as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
REGIONAL SIGHTS
The most iconic building of the town is the ancient ducal fortress
Castello Estense. Sited in the very center of the town, it's a brick building surrounded by a moat, with four massive bastions. It was built starting in 1385 and partly restored in 1554 with the addition of pavilions on the top of the towers. The fortress, with its drawbridges and unusual battlements, also houses marble balconies and sumptuous apartments.
The ancient
City Hall, renovated in the
18th century, was the earlier residence of the
Este family. The former
Cathedral of Saint George was begun in 1135 when the
Romanesque lower part of the main façade and the side façades were completed. The upper part of the main façade, with arcades of pointed arches and the elaborate relief sculptures depicting the
Last Judgement, date from the
13th century. The campanile, in the
Renaissance style, dates from 1451-1493, but the last story was added at the end of the 16th century. The interior was restored in the
Baroque style in 1712.
Ferrara has many early Renaissance palaces. Among the finest palaces is
Palazzo dei Diamanti, named after the diamond points into which the façade's stone blocks are cut. The palazzo houses the
National Picture Gallery with a large collection of the school of Ferrara. The
Casa Romei is the best preserved Renaissance building in Ferrara. It was the residence of
Giovanni Romei, related to Este family by marriage. It did not fall into decay because it was inherited by the nuns of the
Corpus Domini order who lived there without making any changes to its structure. Much of the
decoration in the inner rooms has been saved. The
Corpus Domini Monastery contains tombs of the House of Este.
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Music by
Flush Audio - https://soundcloud.com/flushaudio
- published: 02 Oct 2014
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