Around the world
by iandsmith
Consider for a moment. You are born and live in this house. It is 1519. Palladio hasn't designed anything yet. The world, as most people believe it, is flat. You live 100 kilometres from the sea yet you are about to set out on a trip of epic proportions.
Pigafetta belonged to a rich family of Vicenza.
In his youth he studied astronomy, geography and cartography. He served on board the ships of the Knights of Rhodes at the beginning of the 16th century. Until 1519, he accompanied the papal nuncio, Monsignor Chieregati.
The details of your destination are, at best, sketchy. Crude maps with huge areas blank or incorrectly drawn are all that you have to guide you.
Your name is Antonio Pigafetta, and you are about to embark with Ferdinand Magellan on an incredible voyage around a globe that doesn't exist.
You have to get to Spain but since your are an academic and supported by the church you manage this and wait for Magellan in Seville.
The astronauts of today know where they're going, have excellent visual knowledge of their destinations and high tech equipment yet you will set sail in a ship whose greatest asset is its sturdiness. What and where will you eat? Who will know if you are lost? Where would a rescue crew go to save you?
Put yourself in the picture, 500 years ago. I did. I found it extraordinary. Though couched in heroic terms the expedition was so nearly a complete disaster. Only 18 of the original 240 that departed survived. Magellan himself was killed in the Phillipines (read Off the Beaten Path for details) in a skirmish where Pigafetta was also injured.
On his return he wrote three accounts of the voyage but all were thought to be lost until a surviving copy emerged and was printed in full in the 18th century.
That's what I love about history. If you know about it, and you're on a key site, it comes alive. I hope for just a few moments you felt what I did. It would have been a special moment for you.
La Rotonda
by iandsmith
There was a man I used to know and we used to call him "Rotundo" due to his excessive girth. I don't know why I mentioned that here, it suddenly crossed my mind and I thought I'd share it with you. All of which has nothing to do with Palladio's best known and copied work, La Rotonda (1550-1552).
Canon Paolo Almerico thought it might make a nice retirement home, the sort of one you can afford it you have lots of money.
Simplistic geometry overlapping itself is all it took to make this standout attraction.
A dome above a cube and colonnaded entrances all round have a simple symmetry that leaves a lasting impression on the viewer and the four corners perfectly aligned with the cardinal points make the maximum use of light and shade on the walls.
It was commenced at the same time Palladio got his first public commission (1550) and completed two years later.
The four facades have pronaos with six ionic columns and a staircase. The dome, by Vincenzo Scamozzi, was altered from Palladio's original plans by lowering it.
Inside, one of the features is Veronese's "Banquet of Gregory the Great" and, while on the subject of artistry, it was also featured in a 1979 film called Don Giovanni.
The chapel, meant to have been close by, was not built until after the palace was sold and was then erected across the road.
A final word
by iandsmith
I took this, relatively early in the morning, because it captured the feeling of the weather. The sombre grey tones and the ice covered fountain all leant that bleak chill to the winter's landscape.
Attractive in its own way it probably meant more to me because I hardly ever see snow or ice, certainly not in my home town, but I can understand if you lived here all the time you would be yearning for the beaches I live near.
Monte Berico
by croisbeauty
The Shrine of Our Lady of Monte Berico stands with its distinctive outline at the summitof the hill which overlooks the city of Vicenza.
If you wish to go on foot, it's only a short walk from the town centre, durring which you can enjoy the view of the city. The walkway starts by "scalette", a pitoresque stairway of 192 steps which begins at Piazza Fraccon with the Triumphal Arch attributed to the architect Palladio. This exeptional work was designed and built by Francesco Muttoni, started March 7, 1746.
Its total length is 700 meters consisting of 150 arches, grouped by tens, and each group is divided by a samll landing in a form of chapel to symbolize the 15 mysteries and the 150 Hail Maries in the rosary.
Marostica
by BruceDunning
There are two castellos in the town of 13,000. The one at top of the hill is Castello Superiore, and one at bottom Castello Inferiore. The latter was built in 1312 by Della Scalla family form Verona. In time it transferred ownership to the Scalgeri family that enhanced the fortress. This town was a focal point for many battles and under Verona control for most of the time.
The game of chess using humans is the vogue thing to see in September on every even year. They dress in costumes of the medieval period and actually maneuver in position on the chess board as moves are made.
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Nice Dish To Try
Walk along side of castle
Square of Duomo-Bishops Place
Bio of palace Capitano
