Vicenza
Vicenza (population 107,223) is the capital of the province of Vicenza in the Veneto region, northern Italy at the northern base of the Monti Berici, straddling the Bacchiglione. Vicenza is approximately 60 km west of Venice and 200 km east of Milan. The city has an active and lively industrial sector, which is especially famous for jewelry and clothing factories. The Gold Exposition is world-famous and it takes place in Vicenza three times per year (January, June, September).
Province: 2,722 sq. km, 2001 pop. 794,317, 121 communes.
History
Vicenza (Roman "Vicetia") an ancient Roman Alaric then Attila laid it waste, and later Vicenza became the seat of one of the dozens of Lombard dukes, then in the 8th century of a Frankish count. The independent commune with an oligarchic republican political structure was conquered in 1311 by the Scaligeri lords of Verona, who fortified it against the Visconti of Milan. Vicenza gave itself to the protection of Venice in 1405.
Vicenza is on UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites.
Arts
The late Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio (1518-1580) was a native of Vicenza, as was also his contemporary, Vincenzo Scamozzi (1552-1616). Vicenza is home to several buildings of Palladio . Of notable interest is the summer house called Villa Capra "La Rotunda" which is located just outside the downtown area and the public building Basilica Palladiana of which Palladio himself said that it might stand comparison with any similar work of antiquity, centrally located in Vicenza's Piazza dei Signori, and the Teatro Olimpico. Palladio also designed several palazzi for families in the city, most notably the Palazzo Chiericati and the Palazzo Barbarano. All these buildings date from ca 1560 - 1590.
Popular dishes
- Baccala' alla Vicentina
- Risi e Bisi
- Polenta e Osei
Watch for the free concerts in April and May- ask at the Tourist Office near Teatro Olimpico. In Venice you'll pay up to 20 euros for the same privilege.
