Piazza Broletto

Mantua

One of half a dozen squares that embellish Mantua's historic centre, the Broletto is home to the Palazzo del Podestà, once home to the city's highest official and adorned with a coat of arms, The piazza also features a white stone shrine dedicated to native son Virgil, depicting the Roman poet sitting at his desk.

The brick arch to the left, the Arengario, bears evidence of medieval Mantuan punishments. Prisoners were suspended from the iron rings in the ceiling and the ropes pulled taught, a torture known as squassi di corda.

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Nearby Mantua attractions

1. Arengario

0.02 MILES

This archway built around 1300 links two palaces with a covered walkway above the street. Look up as you pass beneath the arch to see iron rings on which…

2. Palazzo del Podestà

0.02 MILES

This huge, 13th-century palace sits between Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza Broletto and was commissioned by Duke Ludovico Gonzaga. For centuries it served…

3. Palazzo della Ragione

0.05 MILES

In the Palazzo della Ragione, which runs the length of the square from the Rotonda, and was once the seat of secular power in the city, you can see…

4. Torre della Gabbia

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Enter Piazza Sordello from the south and on your left you have the grand house of the Gonzagas' predecessors, the Bonacolsi clan. Hapless prisoners used…

5. Piazza delle Erbe

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Once the location of the town's vegetable market, Piazza delle Erbe is Mantua's most lively piazza. Its 13th-century Palazzo della Ragione sports a 15th…

6. Rotonda di San Lorenzo

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8. Piazza Sordello

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  "country": "Italy",
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