Description
Piazza De Ferrari is Genoa's main square, between the old town and the modern city: a large bronze fountain in the middle, the Teatro Carlo Felice, the painted side of the Palazzo Ducale and the monumental buildings of the early twentieth century. This is where the city gathers to celebrate and to protest.
It covers about 11,000 square metres and has an irregular shape: it was born from the joining of two different spaces, the old Piazza San Domenico and the site of a levelled hill. From here start Via XX Settembre, Via Dante, Via San Lorenzo and Via Roma.
In the middle stands the bronze fountain of 1936, designed by Giuseppe Crosa di Vergagni: together with the Lanterna, it has become one of the symbols of the city. Around 2001 a lower basin and rows of water jets were added.
On the side facing the old town is the Palazzo Ducale, its façade entirely painted in trompe-l'œil. To the east rise the eclectic buildings put up between 1899 and 1923, including the one housing the Liguria Region.
On the corner of Via XX Settembre and Via Dante, the Palazzo della Nuova Borsa has a curved façade; inside, the Art Nouveau trading hall hosts exhibitions. At the time, its decorations did not please the Genoese.
To the west stand Carlo Barabino's Neoclassical buildings: the Teatro Carlo Felice, with its columned portico, and the palace of the Accademia Ligustica di Belle Arti. In front of the theatre is Garibaldi on horseback, a statue by Augusto Rivalta from 1893.
Where the theatre now stands was the church of San Domenico, demolished in the 1820s. The Carlo Felice was almost destroyed by wartime bombs and only reopened in 1991, after a long debate.
In 1904, to enlarge the square, the whole Sant'Andrea hill was levelled, along with its houses, the old convent and a stretch of the Barbarossa walls. Until 1899, by contrast, the fruit and flower market was held here.
The square is named after Raffaele De Ferrari, Duke of Galliera, banker and politician, who lived in one of the buildings overlooking it. Since the early twentieth century, distances from Genoa have been measured from here.
Don't miss
• The fountain.
• Teatro Carlo Felice.
• The painted façade of the Palazzo Ducale.
• Palazzo della Nuova Borsa.
Did you know?
• After victories by Genoa, Sampdoria and the national team, fans celebrate with a dip in the fountain.
• In 1979 the square held 250,000 people for the funeral of Guido Rossa, the trade unionist killed by the Red Brigades.
It covers about 11,000 square metres and has an irregular shape: it was born from the joining of two different spaces, the old Piazza San Domenico and the site of a levelled hill. From here start Via XX Settembre, Via Dante, Via San Lorenzo and Via Roma.
In the middle stands the bronze fountain of 1936, designed by Giuseppe Crosa di Vergagni: together with the Lanterna, it has become one of the symbols of the city. Around 2001 a lower basin and rows of water jets were added.
On the side facing the old town is the Palazzo Ducale, its façade entirely painted in trompe-l'œil. To the east rise the eclectic buildings put up between 1899 and 1923, including the one housing the Liguria Region.
On the corner of Via XX Settembre and Via Dante, the Palazzo della Nuova Borsa has a curved façade; inside, the Art Nouveau trading hall hosts exhibitions. At the time, its decorations did not please the Genoese.
To the west stand Carlo Barabino's Neoclassical buildings: the Teatro Carlo Felice, with its columned portico, and the palace of the Accademia Ligustica di Belle Arti. In front of the theatre is Garibaldi on horseback, a statue by Augusto Rivalta from 1893.
Where the theatre now stands was the church of San Domenico, demolished in the 1820s. The Carlo Felice was almost destroyed by wartime bombs and only reopened in 1991, after a long debate.
In 1904, to enlarge the square, the whole Sant'Andrea hill was levelled, along with its houses, the old convent and a stretch of the Barbarossa walls. Until 1899, by contrast, the fruit and flower market was held here.
The square is named after Raffaele De Ferrari, Duke of Galliera, banker and politician, who lived in one of the buildings overlooking it. Since the early twentieth century, distances from Genoa have been measured from here.
Don't miss
• The fountain.
• Teatro Carlo Felice.
• The painted façade of the Palazzo Ducale.
• Palazzo della Nuova Borsa.
Did you know?
• After victories by Genoa, Sampdoria and the national team, fans celebrate with a dip in the fountain.
• In 1979 the square held 250,000 people for the funeral of Guido Rossa, the trade unionist killed by the Red Brigades.