Filoxenia

The Borsa Vecchia is one of Trieste's most outstanding buildings and a Chamber of Commerce is absolutely the last thing you expect to find in this type of setting. Walking along the street you think it's a church or an art gallery or possibly a theatre but the clue is in the name of the Piazza and this is actually the Palazzo de Borsa Vecchio. The Old Stock Exchange building ( the new one is next door and looks every inch a poor relation) this has something of the splendour of Greece and Rome about it. It resembles a Greek temple with four Doric columns holding up the portico and the tympaneum on top. On top of the building is a line of statues and underneath are a series of bas-reliefs crossing the second floor. At ground level are another four statues sculpted by various Venetian artists and the whole effect is absolutely stunning. The only thing that lets this building down is its location, just plonked on the side of the street surrounded by the most ordinary and mundane offices and shops.