Padova

You will admire:

• University: founded in 1222 after the exodus of professors and students from nearby Bologna, the University of Padova grew steadily in size and importance until by the sixteenth century it had established itself as Italy's leading university. It was during this century also that Copernicus studied and Galileo taught there. The first permanent anatomic theatre in Europe was built at this time, and at that time it meant the entire world, as were the first university-owned botanic gardens. During this period also, more foreign students attended Padua University than any other in Italy;
• Scrovegni Chapel: Padova possess the most complete and well-preserved series of frescoes by Giotto in the Scrovegni Chapel, and these should be visited by anyone interested in this painter, the greatest European artist of the Middle Ages.
• St. Antony church: the construction of the church of the Santo - one of the most Christian highly frequented in all Christen-Dom - was begun immediately after the death of Saint Antony, on 13th June 1231. The church is difficult to define stylistically, being a mixture of the Romanesque, Gothic, Eastern and even Arabic styles which already seemed to foreshadow the cosmopolitan character of the cult which the Saint gave rise to. The visitor will be struck by the abundance of artistic treasures which the church holds, and even more so by the affluence of his pilgrims who flock there all year round at all hours of the day. In front of the church stands Donatello's statue of the mercenary commander Gattamelata, an outstanding masterpiece of the Renaissance, and to the right are the Oratory of San Giorgio and the Scuola of Sant'Antonio, the latter of which contains a series of pictures dedicated to the cult of Sant'Antonio, including three early Titians.
• Prato della Valle: the city will never cease to surprise its visitors: many of its streets suggest a gray and monotonous townscape, despite the graceful tone of its arcades. All of a sudden it opens up onto the most incredible squares and monuments. This is the case of Prato della Valle, with the size of which no other square in the Veneto region can compare. During the times of antiquity this square was the site of a Roman circus. It was originally outside the city walls and the first Christian martyrs were buried beside it, including Santa Giustina to whom the large church in it is dedicated.

In the province of Padua

• Luvigliano: it houses the Villa Vescovi which was built in the sixteenth century by the two men to mention with regard to Padova, Alvise Cornaro and Falconetto. This villa is the first of a long series which, through the contribution of Palladio and other architects, has distinguished the Veneto as a region rich with heritage of buildings scattered throughout its hills and countryside;
• Arquà: Francesco Petrarca used to stay on holiday in this village, which has managed to preserve its medieval character better than anywhere else here, and he is now buried in a shady square next to the church;
• Praglia: the Benedictine monks founded a monastery, a Renaissance masterpiece by Tullio Lombardo. These good monks have set up a center for the restauration of old books which has become one of the most renowned in the country;
• Este: clearly identifiable by Roman times, it has previously been an important paleoveneto center. The museum there is the largest of the province on account of its abundance of paleovenetian exhibits. Este proudly displays its towers in the romantic garden-like scenary which climbs up the hill. Its oldest church, San Martino, is of Romanesque design, although the most important place of worship is its cathedral, called Santa Tecla.
• Monselice: Towards the middle of the thirteenth century, Ezzelino da Romano - who tyrannized a large part of Veneto in his role as Imperial Vicar - built a residence for himself at Monselice. This is still standing and is called Ca' Marcello, deriving from the name which the succession of Venetians into whose possession it came gave it. The palazzo is an exquisite example of civic architecture of those times, and despite the fact that it is mainly designed and rigged out for defensive purposes, it has the air of a princely palace: a foretaste of that was to be the spirit of civic architecture in times to come.

The Walled Towns: there are many walled towns in the Veneto region, however, it is the towns of Montagnana and Cittadella, in Paduan territory, which the Veneto region presents as its prime examples with the greatest and most justified pride in their medieval boundaries

• Montagnana: the rectangular walls of Montagnana are in perfect condition. The town has not expanded tumultuously, obstructing its medieval outline, as has happened elsewhere. Buildings have been allowed to be constructed at only respectable distance from the walls, and a lawn has been planted in this intervening space, its green contrasting with the red brick of the walls and towers. Montagnana can be entered by any of three gates, two of which are particularly majestic, those facing Padua and Legnano. They were all built according to the military criteria of those times, giving the defending parties several opportunities to ward off attack, although, in fact, they were never put to use. Inside the walls of Montagnana stretches one of the most beautiful squares of the Veneto, on which the cathedral, built at the end of the fifteenth century, stands.
• Cittadella: the walls of Cittadella, on the other hand, are circular, higher than those of Montagnana, and they are broken up by four gates, each of these giving rise to a road, all of which then cross at the center of the town. The walls are made of layers of bricks which alternate with layers of pebbles coming from the river Brenta. It is still possible to make out the Carraresi coat-of-arms on one of the defence towers of the gates - the tower of Malta, which was rendered notorious by the political prisoners thrown down from there to die by Ezzelino. Among the range of interesting things to see in Cittadella is the small nineteenth century theatre built by Bauto, with a facade by Iappelli. Before reaching the town, coming from the direction of Padova, is the Romanesque church of San Giacomo, and not far from the town, towards the Brenta, is the church of Santa Lucia, small and rural but also completely covered in frescoes by Iacopo Bassano.