The origins
The history of the Italian Lakes region is fascinating... and thousands of years old! The park of rock engravings of Valcamonica is undoubtedly one of the most impressive prehistoric sites in the region. It contains nearly 150,000 petroglyphs, most of which date back to 8,000 B.C. and bear witness to an extremely elaborate know-how. This ingenuity and know-how can be found in the south of Lake Orta and at Castellaro Lagusello near Lake Garda, on the so-called palafittic sites, which include the remains of Neolithic dwellings designed on stilts to adapt to this lake region. These sites are now classified as Unesco World Heritage sites. Although less numerous than in other parts of Italy, the ancient remains of the region are no less impressive. In Verona, you will discover the3rd largest Roman amphitheatre in the world still standing! See the pink and white polychromy of its arches and the sparkling marble of its terraces. Briscia, the archaeological park of Roman Brescia, is also a must-see with its Capitoline temple with beautiful Corinthian columns and the remains of its theatre. When you walk along Via Gombito and Vie Lupo and San Lorenzo in Bergamo, you'll be walking along the Roman decumanus and cardo, the main arteries of the ancient checkerboard layout. Milan, once a prosperous Mediolanum, has also preserved this geometric layout. The Romans were pragmatic, but they were also great lovers of luxury, as shown by the remains of the sumptuous villas built by the elite. The Villa of Desenzano di Garda contains some of the most beautiful polychrome mosaics in the region, as well as the remains of some amazing semi-circular baths. But the most famous of the Roman villas is of course the one called the Caves of Catullus, not far from Sirmione. These "caves" are in fact the ruins of a villa of impressive dimensions (167 x 105 m) and whose walls and arches could reach a height of 3 floors. The tradition of the villas of the Lakes was born!
Medieval treasures
It all starts with the early Christian treasures, marked both by ancient Rome - many of these buildings were built on ancient civil basilicas or temples - and by Byzantium, especially in the use of domes and frescoes. The church of San Lorenzo Maggiore in Milan is one of the largest circular churches in the Western Roman Empire. Notice how the 16 columns of an ancient temple were reused to build its monumental portico. Don't miss the Chapel of Sant'Aquilino with its 4th century mosaics. A decorative splendour that can be found in the chapel of San Vittore in Ciel d'Oro in the basilica of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan with its mosaics on a gold and azure background dating from the5th century. The Duomo Vecchio in Brescia is another superb example of this syncretism. The original church dates from the 6th century and houses fragments of mosaics that belonged to... ancient baths! To these Roman and Byzantine influences is added the influence of the very Germanic Lombards, as shown by the monastic group of San Salvatore and Santa Giulia (7th-9th centuries) with rich columns and sculpted capitals. The Lombards, eager to impose their hegemony, erected numerous towers and fortifications. The archaeological site of Sibrium, near Castelseprio, contains the remains of a Lombard castrum or fortified site. The monastery of Torba was itself originally an advanced watchtower protecting the castrum. Between the Lombard hegemony and the power of the monastic orders, a Romano-Lombard architecture gradually developed. The latter can be recognised by the use of the Lombard band (vertical bands of low projection linked together by small blind arcatures), geometric or zigzag motifs, as well as floral motifs or those borrowed from pagan and Christian beliefs. Multiple aisles and several apses characterize the RomanoLombard churches, which can be of brick or stone. It is around Como that this architecture was particularly developed, carried by the know-how of those called the Masters of Como. Among their masterpieces are the Basilica of Sant'Abbondio in Como, with its geometric motifs sculpted on the façade; the Basilica of San Giacomo in Bellagio, with its three richly decorated apses; and the Abbey of San Nicolo di Piona, which has a superb cloister with beautiful polychrome brickwork and local stone. This Lombard Romanesque style is also inseparable from two elements that mark the landscapes of the region: the baptisteries, which are centred and isolated, like the baptistery of Lenno; and the bell towers, which are also isolated and have a slender silhouette. The basilica of Sant'Eustorgio in Milan boasts the highest Lombard bell tower in the city. The Lombard Romanesque was followed by the Gothic style, of which the Duomo of Milan is the most famous representative. The whiteness of its marble and the finesse of its lace-like decorations are the symbols of an ornate and abundant Gothic style. The Middle Ages also saw the advent of city-states that would build powerful fortifications. Thus appeared the rocca or fortresses dominating the cities, which were themselves protected by imposing systems of ramparts. Among the most beautiful examples of this military architecture are: the castle of Sirmione, whose walls increase in height the closer you get to the central keep; the castles of Bellinzona; or the Rocca Scaligera, which dominates the superb fortified town of Lazise. In the Middle Ages, all the city's roads converged on its central element: the piazza. Lined with arcades and porticoes, it also housed the buildings of power. Among them, the broletto and the palazzo della ragione, the new municipal palaces. The latter are characterized by a ground floor with arcades topped by a second floor. Don't miss the Brolettos in Como and Brescia and the Palazzo della Ragione in Bergamo. If you want to experience the picturesque charm of an authentic medieval village, Orta San Giulio is the place to go.
Renaissance and Baroque
The Renaissance is entirely based on an idealized vision of the world. It is therefore not surprising that this period coincided with the development of Italian-style gardens that were laid out around villas and palaces. With symmetrical hedges, labyrinths of geometric precision, fountains and sculptures with lines reminiscent of ancient rigour, man ordered nature in gardens that were the counterparts of architecture with pure and harmonious lines. Among the very beautiful villas of the 16th century are the Villa d'Este and the sumptuous Giusti Palace in Verona. A concern for orderliness that can be found in the new urban creations of the time, such as the magnificent Piazza Vecchia in Bergamo or the Piazza Ducale in Vigevano, on which a certain Leonardo da Vinci worked. The great master of the Renaissance also contributed to the technical improvement of the canals of Milan, and to the strengthening of the fortifications of the Sforza castle. Bramante, another master of the Renaissance, left his mark on the region. He created the harmonious cloister and the tribune of the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie with its imposing 16-sided dome. We also owe him the incredible trompe-l'oeil choir of the chapel of Santa Maria Presso San Satiro, created to give perspective to a limited space. The Sacri Monti are the jewels of the Lake District, making an elegant transition between Renaissance and Baroque. These devotional routes, built on a mountain, are composed of a series of chapels, each representing a stage in the life of Jesus or the saint celebrated. These sacred mountains were also bulwarks of the Christian faith in the face of nearby Protestant Switzerland. One of the most beautiful is the Sacro Monte d'Orta with its superb white chapels with lauze roofs, typical of the region. Some of the chapels bear the hallmarks of a very theatrical baroque style which reached its peak in the sumptuous Isola Bella, the island palace of the Borromean Islands, with its harmonious and elegant excessiveness. Don't miss the throne room with its red marble pilasters and stuccoed vaults, and the astonishing "grottoes" on the ground floor decorated with mosaics combining tuff, stucco, shells and shiny stones. The gardens also contribute to this baroque splendour: see the 10 terraces that give the whole place the appearance of a plant pyramid. Unforgettable!
Classic lines and urban renewal
After the abundant baroque, the 18th century turned to the sober and harmonious lines of classicism. This choice was partly due to the Austrians who controlled the Duchy of Milan at the time. It was to Maria Theresa of Austria that we owe the construction of one of the most famous theatres in the world: La Scala in Milan, the work of the architect Giuseppe Piermarini. It is to one of his collaborators that we also owe the astonishing Villa Reale, often called the little Versailles of Milan. The villas were also classical, like the beautiful Villa Serbelloni and the sumptuous Villa Olmo with its gardens that combine the rigorous Italian gardens with the fantastic English gardens that imitate nature. It was also during this period that the large lemon greenhouses, the region's most important crop, appeared, as well as the cascina, large agricultural complexes consisting of the owner's house, the employees' houses, the stables and the dairy where the cheeses are prepared. Cascina comes from the Latin caseus meaning cheese! The 19th century was the century of villas. The shores of the lakes were popular with the elite, and sumptuous neoclassical residences were built. The Villa Erba in Cernobbio, home of the Viscontis, and the Rotonda in Inverigo are fine examples. With the advent of the railway, many villages were transformed into real holiday towns with beautiful promenades or lungomare overlooking the lakes. But the 19th century was also a period of urban renewal, especially for Milan. The city developed with the construction of new arteries. The city also acquired numerous green spaces, such as its monumental garden cemetery, whose tombs compete in originality and extravagance. While neo-styles are still very much in vogue, especially neoclassical and neo-Gothic, which are used in many restorations, such as the Sforza castle, or in the construction of factories, such as the hydroelectric power station in Trezzo sull'Adda, the city also saw the first examples of architecture that combined engineering prowess and formal modernity. The Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele II, with its 47-metre-high glass roof, is the finest example.
Modern and contemporary effervescence
The turn of the 20th century was marked by the Liberty style, the name given to Art Nouveau in Italy. In Milan, the Venezia Library, with its façade rich in volutes, floral motifs and stylized ribbons, bears witness to this new formal freedom. Villas also succumbed to the Liberty fashion. The most famous of them is the Villa Bernasconi with its ceramics, stained glass and wrought iron decorations. These voluptuous curves were followed by the more sober and geometric lines of Art Deco, as shown by the Villa Necchi-Campiglia in Milan. It was also during this period that Gio Ponti's career began. His first creations are an astonishing mixture of styles, such as the house built in Via Randaccio, which combines Art Deco, Baroque and classical elements, or the Casa Borletti, where he designed all the details, including the mosaic and ceramic decorations. This stylistic abundance will then give way to a geometric sobriety that can be seen in the Montecatini building, all in grey-blue marble. At the same time, the region saw many examples of Fascist architecture. Administrative buildings sprang up and overwhelmed the newly built piazzas with their classical monumentality. This was the case in Piazza Monte Grappa in Varese with its Torre Civica, an enormous belfry whose base had an arengario (this term, which used to designate municipal palaces, was reintroduced by the Fascists who appreciated the concept of these public buildings having a balcony from which they could harangue the crowd), or in Piazza della Vittoria in Brescia, which was lined with buildings with porticoes and marble columns. In Milan, the Palazzo dell'Arengario, composed of two perfectly symmetrical buildings, and the Central Station are also two great achievements of the Fascist era. But one of the most astonishing witnesses of this period is the Casa del Fascio in Como. Designed by Giuseppe Terragni, it harmoniously combines classical canons and rationalist lines. After the war, the greatest Italian architects came to make their mark in the region. In Milan, Gio Ponti, in collaboration with Pier-Luigi Nervi, designed the Pirelli Tower, the city's first skyscraper; while Aldo Rossi created an architecture that adapted traditional canons to contemporary requirements, as shown by his Hotel Duca. In Verona, Carlo Scarpa rethought the Castel Vecchio, creating a dialogue between the periods. And in Ticino, Mario Botta deploys his monumental architecture with subtlety and contrast, as shown by the 12-storey Casino in Camione d'Italia. These great names in architecture have paved the way for today's starchitects. In Milan, don't miss: the Prada Foundation, housed in a former distillery rehabilitated by Rem Koolhaas; the MUDEC designed by David Chipperfield on the site of former steelworks; Stefano Boeri's astonishing Bosco Verticale with its 27 floors entirely planted with vegetation; and, of course, Piazza Tre Torri, so named because three skyscrapers designed by Zaha Hadid, Arata Isozaki and Daniel Libeskind unfold in an astonishing dance. A creative vitality that can be found in the Quadrilatero d'Oro, which brings together the biggest fashion and design brands, because Milan is also one of the world's design capitals. You have so much to see!
