2 – ALBERICA SQUARE (ENG)

It’s the most important square in the city, built starting in 1557 by order of the young ruler Alberico I Cybo Malaspina.
In the new urban design, the palaces constructed by the city’s most prominent noble and bourgeois families outline the square’s distinctive trapezoidal shape. The layout of the city is also harmonized with the extraordinary surrounding nature, offering a scenic backdrop of hills and marble mountains.
The city’s identity is immediately affirmed through the ubiquitous presence of marble, from the ten large rectangles of the pavement to the façades of the most prestigious buildings.
In the 17th century, roads were also built at strategic points to draw attention to the most important buildings. The square is surrounded by Renaissance and Baroque palaces, distinguished by their vibrant pink, red, and yellow hues.
At its center stands a marble fountain with a basin and a lion, crowned by a large statue of Duchess Maria Beatrice d’Este (created in 1824 by the Carrara sculptor Pietro Fontana), which rises above a tall pedestal adorned with bas-reliefs.