Visit Italy > Emilia-Romagna > Faenza
Visit Faenza
Faenza is a city of art of extraordinary value, and should be visited slowly and carefully to best enjoy all it has to offer.
Guided tour of Faenza
Start your tour from Freedom Square in the town-centre, where the Cathedral stands.
Faenza cathedral: Founded in the second half of the 15th century by Bishop Federico Manfredi (died 1478), following a design by Giuliano da Majano (1432-1490), the cathedral has three naves, separated by eight arches and supported by columns and pillars. The internal decorations are of exquisite workmanship, and present some work by local painters and sculptors such as Ferraù Fanzoni (1562-1645) and Pietro Barilotti [1482-1553]. The main altar, by Giuseppe Pistocchi (1744-1814), is of Baroque style while on the vault a round ceramic attributed to Andrea della Robbia (1435-1525) stands out. The façade is equally impressive, but it remained unfinished.
Near the cathedral there is the beautiful Portico of Lords, built in the early 16th century and facing the fountain by Domenico Paganelli (1545-1624) and Domenico Castelli (1582-1657). The Clock Tower is also extraordinary - the original construction dates back to the 16th Century, but it was rebuilt after World War II.
Continuing along Corso Saffi you reach the Piazza del Popolo, surrounded by arcades dating back to the second half of the 15th century, where the Palazzo Comunale and Palazzo del Popolo (XII century) stand. This is the former seat of the Captain of People, then of the Manfredi Family, which is accessed via an imposing staircase. In the palace you can visit some of the rooms beautifully decorated in the first half of the 18th Century by Vittorio Bigari (1692-1776) and Stefano Orlandi (1681-1760).
Follow the so-called 'Voltone of the Molinella', built in the Manfredi period, to reach Molinella Square, where you can admire the famous 'Galleria dei Cento Pacifici', an extraordinary work by Giuseppe Pistocchi (1785), with decorations by Serafino Barozzi (1735-1810) and numerous statues by Antonio Trentanove (1745-1812) visible in the niches.
Following Corso Mazzini you leave the 'City of the Manfredi' to enter other stylish neighbourhoods along Via Cavour - a more eclectic style, with palaces built between the 18th and 19th centuries such as the Conti Palace and Zanelli Palace, in Baroque style and by Pistocchi (1786). In these neighbourhoods and in Via Cavour are a whole series of buildings of extraordinary workmanship, dating back to the 15th and the 18th centuries, such as the 14th century 'Great Hospital' (called the “House of God”) and the Piani Pasi Palace (1807).
Continuing towards Piazza 2 Giugno you reach the church of St. Domenico (from the second half of the 18th century); the beautiful “International Museum of Ceramics” (including a glass stand with "Adoration of the Child Jesus" [1535] and an amphora with stories of the Old Testament of the Sixteenth Century); and the Church of St. Stefano “Vetere”.
The most notable buildings in this part of Faenza are the Laderchi Palace (with frescoes of the "Salone delle Feste", 1780); the monument to Evangelista Torricelli (1608-1647), who invented the barometer and, along Corso Matteotti, there is a series of palaces and churches worth a visit (the Romanesque church of St. Bartolomeo, the Naldi Palace, Cavina Palace and Milzetti Palace, today seat of the “Neo-classicism of Romagna Museum”) .
Among the religious buildings there are several churches of great architectural value in Faenza, such as the church of Santa Maria Vecchia, with a Belltower dating back to the 9th Century. Another important artefact dating back to the Lordship of Manfredi is the 'Church of the Osservanza', - the church contains 19th century frescoes by Antonio and Romolo Liverani.
Your tour of Faenza might finish perhaps with the former Palace of the Jesuits, today home to a valuable Art Gallery, and with some significant collections of paintings by artists from Faenza and Romagna, ranging from the 14th to the 20th centuries.
Places to visit near Faenza - local cuisine
Drive towards Brisighella, Casola Valsenio, Riolo Terme and Castelbolognese, where, in many farmhouses, you can taste the natural products of the area; apples, mushrooms, chestnuts, truffles, honey, preserves and delicious homemade jam. Among the recipes using these fruits arethe “sauce of blackberries and mulberries”, “savour of jujube”, apple pie dessert with pears; and the salad of celery, white and red currants, or dandelion with fennel, chervil and pomegranate sauce with olive oil. Among the wines, the vineyards of the hills of Faenza are significant; among white wines we have Chardonnay, Pignoletto, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon and Trebbiano of Romagna; among red wines, there are the Cabernet Sauvignon, Ancellotta, Ciliegiolo, Merlot and Sangiovese.
See also article about the history of Faenza.
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