HISTORIC TOWN CENTRES
Description
The province of Belluno and the East Tyrol boast delightful capital cities, vastly different in terms of architecture and history. Let’s take a wander through the streets of both these little gems. The centre of the city of Belluno[1] has risen up around eight squares. The most important of these is generally considered to be Piazza dei Martiri, where visitors can stroll along the
listón walkway opposite the beautiful public gardens and admire the Renaissance style of the porticoes and buildings around its almost elliptical outline.
Also known as Piazza Campedèl, the square lay outside of the city walls in Roman and Mediaeval times, and fairs and parades were held there. Most of the buildings around it date back to the 17th century, with others ranging from the 15th to 18th centuries. Under the porticoes is the entrance to the Church of San Rocco, which contains fine works by Besarel, Luigi Cima and an Assunzione attributed to Cesare Vecellio. Moving down from Piazza dei Martiri, you come firstly to Piazza Castello and then to Piazza Duomo, where you can admire the Cathedral, with a bell-tower by Juvarra, as well as Palazzo dei Rettori, the Auditorium-Vescovado Vecchio and Palazzo Piloni.
Next to Piazza Duomo you will find Piazza Mercato, also known as Piazza delle Erbe, with porticoes on all four sides, surrounded by Casa Miari, Palazzo del Monte di Pietà (the Pawnbroker’s) and the Loggia dei Ghibellini.
From here you can walk on to Piazza Santa Maria dei Battuti or, in the opposite direction, to Porta Dojona, passing by another little square (Piazza Mazzini) on the right. As soon as you walk through Porta Dojona you will find the Teatro Comunale theatre, which looks onto Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II. If you turn right you will come to Piazza Santo Stefano with the Church of Santo Stefano and the Convent of the Servite Order, while on the left you will find Piazza dei Martiri once more.
Lienz [2] is the charming little capital of the East Tyrol. The very symbol of Lienz is the Town Hall, the Liebburg, built by the Barons Wolkenstein-Rodenegg in what is today the main square, opposite the Floriani Fountain. At the bottom end of the square is the little Church of St. Anton, and if you continue along Kärntnerstraße you will find the Baroque Spitalskirche Church. As you stroll along the Beda Weber Gasse, you can see the oldest little painted chapel in the whole of the Tyrol (which dates back to the 15th century), the Church of Saint Michael and the Parish Church of St Andra, the oldest in the city, which contains the tomb of the last Count of Gorizia (Leonhard). Returning towards the centre over the ancient Pfarrbrucke bridge, you will find the Convent of the Dominican Order, and along the Egger Lienz – Platz, the monastery and the church of the Franciscan Order. You can continue your walk along the Murchargasse to Johannesplatz, where there used to be a church dedicated to St Johannes; destroyed by numerous fires, it was never rebuilt, and in its place you will find the Column of the Virgin Mary. [I.A.]
by the way
As you stroll through the streets of
Lienz, you might well like to take a visit to the unusual
Phonographic Museum of the East Tyrol, which tells the story of the reproduction of music with specific installations created for the purpose. Visitors are sure to be charmed by the chance to fi nd 250 years of music concentrated in one single museum. In Piazza Duomo, in
Belluno, the
Civic Museum is well worth a visit. Visitors can see archaeological fi ndings from the Prehistoric and Paleo-Venetian Periods and from the High Middle Ages, as well as an art gallery with works from the 14th to the 19th centuries, rooms dedicated to wood sculpture, a collection of plaques and small bronzes, ex-voto paintings and fascinating, original collections of decorative art such as the collections of porcelain and local jewellery.
Tel. +43 (0)4852 65265
Tel. + 39 0437 940083
Tel. +43 (0)4852 65822
Tel. + 39 0437 944836
