Description
The Arengario is the great round arch of Piazza Broletto, in the medieval heart of Mantua: built around 1300, it links the Palazzo del Podestà to the Palazzo del Massaro, home of the official who managed the commune's property.
Above the arch open two triple-arched windows and, at the top, an open gallery of small arches resting on slender columns. Under the vault, white stone alternates with red terracotta in two-coloured bands.
Look closely and under the vault you can still see the iron rings used for the "squassi de corda", the rope torture to which criminals were sentenced. It is no coincidence: the broletto was where the Lombard cities of the commune era held their assemblies and administered justice.
Above the arch open two triple-arched windows and, at the top, an open gallery of small arches resting on slender columns. Under the vault, white stone alternates with red terracotta in two-coloured bands.
Look closely and under the vault you can still see the iron rings used for the "squassi de corda", the rope torture to which criminals were sentenced. It is no coincidence: the broletto was where the Lombard cities of the commune era held their assemblies and administered justice.