In 1492, the same year that Columbus discovered America for Spain a rich nobleman in Italy was creating "the first modern European city."
Both men were Italian, but with very different goals. One set out to claim a new world for Italy, the other, Duke Ercole d’Este, to create what was to become known as the first modern city in Europe,
The d'Este family ruled Ferrara from 1208 to 1598, constructing many of the monuments we see today and because of their wealth and vision, Ferrara became a center of the arts. Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, and Petrarch, among others, spent time under their patronage of the d'Este family.
Palazzo dei Diamanti
Duke Ercole ordered the expansion of Ferrara in 1492. At the heart of his town plan was the Palazzo dei Diamanti, an amazing building whose exterior walls consist of 8,500 marble blocks carved in the shape of diamonds. The duke built it as a palace for his brother. Today, more than six hundred years later, it looks a very modern design and is an, appropriately, an excellant modern art gallery. Legend says there is a very valuable diamond buried under one of the stones.
Parco Massari
This is a lovely place to spend a few hours on a hot day. It was the inspiration for the novel‘The Garden of the Finzi-Continis’ by Giorgio Bassani, which was made into a brilliant film by Vittorio de Sica in 1971. Said to be his greatest achievement, the movie is set in the years 1938 to 1943 and it’s subject has been described as ‘the last golden flash of freedom before one of history's major tragedies’. The title refers to the vast walled garden beside the magnificent mansion of th Finzi-Continis, a wealthy Jewish family in Ferrara, who were transported to the Nazi death camps along with hundreds more of the city’s Jews who lived a much less luxurious lifestyle.
The Jewish Ghetto
The old ghetto area is an interesting place to wander. There are medieval streets to explore and the Synogogue dates from 1440. There’s a plaque on its outside wall listing those Jews who were taken away during the war and never returned, including two members of the Finzi-Contini family.
The Castle and Savonarola
Castello Estense was built because of a revolt in 1385 when one of the elite d'Este family felt he needed to build a mighty big fortress to protect him and his family against the people.I t dominates the town with its towers, moat and drawbridge. Standing outside is a statue of Savonarola, a Dominican priest famous for the ‘burning of the vanities’ - the destruction of books he considered to be immoral art. He was born in Ferrara and here he died in 1498 - executed and burned for allegedly claiming to have the gift of prophecy.
The City Wall
Ferrara is one of the few cities in Italy that still has a full circular city wall, within which is the historic centre. You can walk or cycle along the path on top of the wall. It’s about 9-10 km all round and is really worth doing. Ferrara is home to a famous university and there are masses of students on bikes whereever you go - including around the wall. Hire a bike and join them.
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