Where: Prato della Valle, 32, Padua
Distance from Residence La Mason: 55 km, 55 minutes.
Prato della Valle is the largest square in Padua and one of the widest in Europe. It is undoubtedly one of the most elegant places in the city, with its harmonious lines, light stones and maples reflecting on the water.
Parco della Valle through the centuries
During the Roman period, the current Prato area was one of the main transit points to reach the city. Since 304 a.D., after the death of the martyr Giustina, who was buried near the square, this place acquired, for proto-Christians people, a great value, which it maintained in the following centuries. In the Middle Ages, following the Longobard invasion in the sixth century, Padua was considerably reduced: the Prato was therefore on the edge of town and fell into disuse. Only its central role for Christians spared the square from complete oblivion, especially from the sixth century, when the Basilica of Santa Giustina was erected (it was then demolished in 1498 to build the current Renaissance church).
During the XI century, due to Padua’s rebirth, Prato della Valle started to be a popular area again. It began to be used as a market place again (hence the name Pratum, which indicates a commercial area) and to host games, shows and sacred representations.
In the second half of the XVIII century, Prato della Valle became property of the city administration, which decided to transform it and to solve the serious problems of instability in the area. At the head of this transformation was, from 1775, Andrea Memmo: to him, who was passionate about architecture, we owe the current appearance of the square. Memmo’s project included a central island (named Memmia Island after him), surrounded by an elliptical channel that was decorated by a double ring of statues on its banks. Currently, there are 78 statues and, because of an edict in 1776, they only depict characters who have a strong bound with the city: they are, in fact, mostly university professors, artists, commanders or former rulers of Padua.
Parco della Valle today
During the nineties, Prato della Valle was the aim of a recovery initiative: the traffic that used to circulate around the square was limited and the purpose was to transform it into a meeting place and a place for recreation, especially for young people .
Currently, Prato della Valle hosts the market every Saturday and the antique market every third Sunday of the month. It is also the ideal space, especially in summer evenings, to listen to some good live music, performed by artists who gather in the Prato to play in front of passers-by.
