Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sights
1
Piazza Maggiore & Around
Flanked by the world's fifth-largest basilica and a series of impressive Renaissance
palazzi
, all roads lead to pivotal Piazza Maggiore.
Fontana del Nettuno
FOUNTAIN
(Neptune's Fountain; Piazza del Nettuno)
Adjacent to Piazza Maggiore, Piazza del Nettuno owes
its name to this explicit bronze statue sculpted by Giambologna in 1566. Beneath the
muscled sea god, four cherubs represent the winds, and four buxom sirens, water spouting
from every nipple, symbolise the four known continents of the pre-Oceania world.
Museo della Storia
di Bologna
( 051 1993 6370; Via Castiglione 8; admission €10; 10am-7pm Tue-Sun)
Walk in a historical
neophyte and walk out an A-grade honours student in Bologna's golden past. This magni-
ficent new interactive museum skillfully encased in the regal Palazzo Pepoli is - in a word
- an 'education'.
Using a 3D film, a mock-up of an old Roman canal, and supermodern presentations of
ancient relics, the innovative displays start in a futuristic open-plan lobby and progress
through 34 chronologically themed rooms that make Bologna's 2500-year history at once
engaging and epic. There are many hidden nuggets (who knew Charles V was crowned
Holy Roman Emperor in the city?). The only glaring omission is much talk of Mussolini,
who was born 'down the road' in Forli.
MUSEUM
Palazzo Comunale
ART GALLERY
(Piazza Maggiore; art galleries 9am-6.30pm Tue-Fri, 10am-6.30pm Sat & Sun)
The palace
that forms the western flank of Piazza Maggiore has been home to Bologna city council
since 1336. A salad of architectural styles, it owes much of its current look to makeovers
in the 15th and 16th centuries.
