Lose yourself in the narrow medieval streets of the historical centre, only to suddenly find the magnificent Estense Castle standing before you, and then go soak in the “Addizione Erculea”, the renaissance urban project that earned Ferrara the name of “First modern European city”, and discover the beauty of renaissance palaces like the outstanding Palazzo dei Diamanti.
Stroll along the places where the Este family built their fame and luxury, where men of letters like Ariosto, Torquato Tasso, and painters like Dosso Dossi, Giovanni Boldini, Filippo De Pisis found their inspiration, where Giorgio De Chirico stayed and found his muse for a series of paintings inspired by the city, and the birthplace of Michelangelo Antonioni.
All this is just a sample of the experience you will enjoy in Ferrara.
Not only did the city of Ferrara played a pivotal role during the Middle Ages, but it was also one of the most sumptuous courts of the European Renaissance. Its history is closely related to that of the “Great River” Po, which has created a wetland area that is unique in Italy and has been recognised today as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Urban development was influenced by the policy of the House of Este, that ruled Ferrara for more than three centuries. The Este family left their personal mark both in the narrow, winding streets of the medieval town and in the perfect geometry of the Renaissance city. Within the 9-km ring-shaped city walls are situated wonderful palaces, historic churches, and important museums which can be easily reached on foot or by bicycle.
In the middle of the city centre rises the superb Romanesque-Gothic Cathedral, with its original façade and symbolic statues. In the shadow of its bell tower, the mysterious medieval streets of the Jewish Ghetto meet in Via delle Volte with almost 2 km of vaults. Beyond the majestic red bulk of the Estense Castle, with its white marble balconies facing the water-filled moat, begins the so-called Addizione Erculea, the ambitious Renaissance architectural project that turned Ferrara into the first modern city of Europe. Palazzo dei Diamanti, famous for the marble bugnato of its exterior walls, is the core of this part of the city. Do not miss Palazzo Schifanoia, whichhosts the biggest series of pagan frescoes in Europe painted by the best local artists of the XV century, and Palazzo Costabili, seat of the National Archaeological Museum, where you can see precious artefacts from the Etruscan excavations in Spina.
