There are two monuments that immediately strike the visitor entering from Porta Paola: the oldest tower in the city, that of the Lenti family of Ravenna, now the bell tower of the church of San Paolo and, at its foot, the long structure constituted by via delle Volte parallele to via Ripagrande, which used to define the banks of the Po to the south and marked the city limits. Via delle Volte was the service road that afforted direct access to the houses of the merchants and their warehouses along the port-canal whose commerce made the city’s fortuneduring the decades of the commune.
A truly great urban monument.
The church of San Paolo and a great work by Scarsellino
Adjacent to via delle Volte
stands the large complex comprised of the church
of San Polo and its cloisters. This is 17th
century church is an example of the figurative
modules of the day. It is Ferrara’s pantheon for
its illustious citizens and it gives into the
little piazza named after Alberto Schiatti, the
architect responsible for the recostruction work
following the collapse of the 1570. The wider
urban area opposite the church is the first of a
series of spaces distinguished by the imposing
facades and small churches that lend a specific
character to this part of the town. An element
of great importance inside the church is the
fresco in the vault of the apse, which is the
work of Ippolito Scarsella, known as Scarsellino.
He was the first artist in the Po valley area to
make a landscape the principale subject of a
large painting, in this case entitled Elia
Rapito in cielo.
filmato flash
Ripagrande Hotel - via Ripagrande, 21 44100 - Ferrara (Italy)
