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| Reggio Emilia, the Tricolore City and the Tricolore Room |
| The Tricolore Room, designed by Ludovico Bolognini, ducal architect and engineer in 1774, owe their fame today to the meeting - which occurred in this site on January 7, 1797 - between the deputies of the city of Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna and Ferrara. During the meeting the Cispadane Republic was proclaimed, as well as the proposal of Giuseppe Compagnoni to adopt the three-color flag selected in 1848 as the national flag. A special law in 1996 named January 7 as Flag Day, demonstrating the indissoluble tie between the nation and its symbolic representation. |
| ART END CULTURE |
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The best way to discover Reggio Emilia? Rent a bicycle and take a leisurely ride through this city, always the top in terms of wealth and quality of life.
Everyone knows about its daycares, the most beautiful in the world; however few realize that Reggio Emilia, or rather the ancient Regium Lepidi, is above all a beautiful city of art and history
 Everyone knows about its daycares, the most beautiful in the world; however few realize that Reggio Emilia, or rather the ancient Regium Lepidi, is above all a beautiful city of art and history. The most exciting building today is the Basilica della Ghiara (XVII Century), located in the historic city center. It is famous not just for its magnificent Baroque architecture, rich in frescoes from the greatest artists of the XVII Century (including a Crucificixion by Guercino), but also for the sensations created by these walls and the series of frescoes. According to history, in 1596 a deaf mute boy, contemplating the image of a small Madonna on a low wall, was miraculously healed. The place became such a popular destination for pilgrimages that the Basilica was built. The most pleasant walk is following the ancient Via Emilia which cuts across the city in two and then continues across the plain. The urban Via Emilia is almost completely porticoed with stores and old shops, and above all with people strolling and talking. Reggio Emilia is a place imbued with an atmosphere full of life and ease. And so, following the Via Emilia, we approach the heart of the city. This is the Piazza Prampolini (or Piazza Grande) where we find the Fifteenth Century Palazzo del Comune (City Hall) and the Duomo, built in the IX Century and frequently remodeled. Why enter? To admire the various chapels, decorated with such prestigious works as the" Ascension of the Virgin Maria with Sts. Peter and Girolamo"(1626) by Francesco Barbieri called Il Guercino; the "Visit of Maria to St. Elisabeth" (1604) by Giuseppe Cesari called il Cavalier d'Arpino; the marble Sepulchre of Valerio Malaguzzi, which is the work of Bartolomeo Spani (a Reggian sculptor and goldsmith from the 1600s). In the Piazza Grande, to the right of the Duomo, is an arched passage way with a "secret passage." This is the Broletto, a small covered alley vaguely Oriental and full of businesses and life, which connects the Piazza Grande with Piazza Piccola, that is, with the scenic Piazza San Prospero, the piazza most beloved by all inhabitants of Reggio. On market days (Tuesdays and Fridays) the stalls take life under the shade of the Basilica di San Prospero. There is a strong contrast between the Eighteenth Century facade of the Church and the adjacent Bell Tower (1536-70), a unique octagonal construction whose design was approved by Giulio Romano, one of the most important examples of the Reggio Emilia Renaissance.
Another stop not to be missed is the "Romolo Valli" Municipal Theater, inaugurated in 1857. |
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