"Non Vi Fu Personna Che Non Ne Restasse Comossa" (No one was left unmoved..)

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Vicenza is the city of Andrea Palladio, an architect who had a whole style of design named after him, and influenced Thomas Jefferson among others. He began life as a stonemason, whose talents were recognized by an intellectual nobleman. He is considered to have perfected existing values of harmony and proportion in his designs. He created over 40 palaces, villas, and public and religious buildings. His designs have been badly copied throughout the world, but the originals are still breath-taking...

We took the train to Vicenza, and spent the afternoon walking around and gazing at magnificent buildings. We visited the famous Teatro Olympico and took a bus out to see La Rotonda, a Palladio villa in the countryside, and walked past another villa "ai Nani" that we decided not visit (another 10 euros each...) La Rotonda was designed as an entertainment venue, rather than a residence.

The Teatro is the oldest indoor theater in Europe, opening in 1585, after Palladio's death in 1580. The first play produced was "Oedipus Rex". The quote in the blog title is from a review of an early performance...

The city is full of tourists and beautiful buildings, and high-end shops....everywhere you look, there is something remarkable to see....

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Photos

La Rotonda
Owned privately, and pricey (10 euros each) to get in, but it was worth the visit...

Inside the Teatro
The "streets" were added to the sets after Palladio died

Paintings on the ceiling in the palazzo that houses the Vicenza Museum
Hard to imagine dining with that many reproductive organs (man and beast) over one's head....

Roman excavations in the basement of the museum
I asked the docent/guard about these and he was so excited we were interested, that he took us into the new excavation area to show us more!

Bicycles everywhere in Vicenza
Lots of bike lanes and all ages ride...

Comments

[george]

Pallidio
Excellent. Saw a tv show on Palladio recently. G