RAVENNA: this ancient capital first of the Eastern Roman
Empire, and then of the Ostrogothic kingdom of Theodoro, finally came under
the sway of Byzantium and subsequently declined. It revived briefly during
its short period of Venetian rule, and then fell into decay with its
assimilation into the Papal States. It has returned to life only in this
century. Nevertheless, the city preserves evidences of art and culture
astonishing both in their homogeneity and in their character. A remarkable
group of buildings and monuments, which has survived almost intact from the
early Middle Ages, has been handed down to us, testifying to the glory of
Byzantine art as it flourished on Italian soil.
We enter the town by Via Cavour where, standing in a place
rich with greenery, are the Basilica of San Vitale (6th century) and the
Mausoleum of Gallo Placidia (5th century). The former is a vast octagonal
structure with a double portico and an octagonal dome, one of the most
imaginative architectural works of all time, and one which has had an
enormous influence in western religious architecture; the latter, a small,
extremely simple shrine, little more than a shed built of brick in the form
of a Greek cross. But the interior shimmers with the blues and gold of the
most beautiful mosaics in Ravenna, more impressive perhaps than the
grandiose scenes showing Justinian and Theodora which glitter on the walls
of San Vitale.
In the nearby National Museum there are sculptures of
classical antiquity, ivories, bronzes, etc. Following Via San Vitale and Via
Paolo Costa, we come to the Battistero degli Ariani (6th century), also
decorated with mosaics. Next to it stands the Renaissance church of Santo
Spirito with its handsome portico.
Taking Viale Farini, which leads to the station, we reach
the church of San Giovanni Evangelisle (5th century,) with its graceful apse.
Coming back to Via di Roma, we continue on to S. Apollinare Nuevo, whose
severe 6th century facade is relieved by a 16th century portico. The interior
is exceedingly impressive, with its satisfying proportions and the
extraordinary throng of mosaic figures and landscapes adorning the
clerestory which is supported by columns.
Coming out and passing the front of the so called Palazzo
degli Esarchi (Palace of the Exsarchs) (8th century), we reach Santa Maria in
Porto, a 10 century church with a Baroque facade (inside, paintings by
Scarsellino and Palma il Giovane), with a fine cloister, and an airy early
16th century- Loggia.
We return by way of Via di Roma to the corner of Via
Guaccimani, which we then follow as far as the austere Basilica of San
Francesco (10th century), beside which stands the simple Tomb of Dante
Alighieri. Crossing Piazza Garibaldi, we come into Piazza del Popolo, where
we find the handsome 15th century Palazzo Comunale (Town Hall) and next to
it, the two columns which recall the city's Venetian past.
Then we pass Piazza Kennedy, with the massive Palazzo
Rasponi, and come to the 18th century Cathedral, built on the spot where the
Basilica Ursiniana once stood; and next to it, still intact in the
perfection of its forms and the magnificence of its mosaic decorations, we
find the Baptistery, which was formed by adapting a Roman bath.
Behind the Baptistery, we come upon the Museo
Arcivescovile (Arcidiocesan Museum) which contains, among many other works
of art, what is surely the absolute masterpiece of ivory carving: the Throne
of Bishop Maximianus dating from the 6th century. In the nearby Accademia di
Belle Arti (Picture Gallery), we will find, besides the extremely famous
Effigy of Guidarello Guidarelli (1525) by Tullio Lombardo, numerous
paintings including some by pre-Renaissance artists such as Lorenzo Monaco
and Matteo di Giovanni, and other of later masters such as Vasari, etc.:
most, however, are attributable to Emilian and Romagna painters.
Behind the station, close to the road to Ferrara, we find
the Mausoleum of Theodoric (6th century), a hewn stone structure, suggestive
of barbaric strength, while some three miles out of town on the road to
Rimini, the most beautiful church in Ravenna stands built in the 6th century
Sant'Appolinare in Classe, with superb mosaics in the chancel and a
magnificent cylindrical bell-tower.
Visit Ravenna in one day