What to See in Padua - Top Sights and Attractions

Botanical gardens founded in 1545. The Orto Botanico di Padova is a botanical garden in Padua, in the northeastern part of Italy. Founded in 1545 by the Venetian Republic, it is the world's oldest academic botanical garden that is still in its original location. The garden – affiliated with the University of Padua – currently covers roughly 22,000 square meters, and is known for its special collections and historical design.^[1]

Vast 1300s church with historic relics. The Pontifical Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua is a Roman Catholic church and minor basilica in Padua, Veneto, Northern Italy, dedicated to St. Anthony. Although the Basilica is visited as a place of pilgrimage by people from all over the world, it is not the titular cathedral of the city, a title belonging to the Cathedral-Basilica of St. Mary of Padua. The basilica is known locally as "il Santo". It is one of the international shrines recognized by the Holy See.^[3]

Historic abbey with notable artwork. The Abbey of Santa Giustina is a 10th-century Benedictine abbey complex located in front of the Prato della Valle in central Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. Adjacent to the former monastery is the basilica church of Santa Giustina, initially built in the 6th century, but whose present form derives from a 17th-century reconstruction.^[4]

Baroque palace with a Tiepolo fresco. Villa Pisani at Stra refers to the monumental, late-Baroque rural palace located along the Brenta Canal at Via Doge Pisani 7 near the town of Stra, on the mainland of the Veneto, northern Italy. This villa is one of the largest examples of Villa Veneta located in the Riviera del Brenta, the canal linking Venice to Padua. The patrician Pisani family of Venice commissioned a number of villas, also known as Villa Pisani across the Venetian mainland. The villa and gardens now operate as a national museum, and the site sponsors art exhibitions.^[5]

Prominent square with many statues. Prato della Valle is a 90,000-square-meter elliptical square in Padova, Italy. It is the largest square in Italy, and one of the largest in Europe. Today, the square is a large space with a green island at the center, l'Isola Memmia, surrounded by a small canal bordered by two rings of statues.^[7]

Medieval civic building with food shops. The Palazzo della Ragione is a medieval market hall, town hall and palace of justice building in Padua, in the Veneto region of Italy. The upper floor was dedicated to the town and justice administration; while the ground floor still hosts the historical covered market of the city. The palace separates the two market squares of Piazza delle Erbe from Piazza dei Frutti. It is popularly called "il Salone". It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Padua's 14th-century fresco cycles.^[8]

Museum in Padua. The Museum of Precinema is a museum in the Palazzo Angeli, Prato della Valle, Padua, Italy, related to the history of precinema, or precursors of film. It was created in 1998 to display the Minici Zotti Collection, in collaboration with the Comune di Padova. It also produces interactive touring exhibitions and makes valuable loans to other prestigious exhibitions such as 'Lanterne magique et film peint' at the Cinémathèque Française in Paris and the Museum of Cinema in Turin.^[9]

The Anatomical Theatre of Padua, Northern Italy, is the first permanent anatomical theatre in the world. Still preserved in the Palazzo del Bo, it was inaugurated in 1595 by Girolamo Fabrici of Acquapendente, according to the project of Paolo Sarpi and Dario Varotari. This theatre constituted the model for the anatomical theatres built during the seventeenth century in the main universities of Europe: all would have been based on the Paduan archetype. It is the emblem of a great successful period for Padua's University, and it is considered one of the most important achievements for the study of anatomy during the sixteenth century.^[10]

The San Michele Oratory or Oratory of San Michele is an oratory chapel in Padova, Italy. The interior is painted with a cycle of frescoes on the life of the Virgin Mary by Jacopo da Verona.^[11]

Chapel in Padua, Italy. The Oratorio di San Giorgio or St George's Oratory is a Gothic-style Roman Catholic chapel or prayer hall in Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. It is notable for its frescoed interiors.^[12]

The Loggia and Odeo Cornaro are two Renaissance buildings, built in the 16th century for the humanist Alvise Cornaro and hosting theater and music performances, locate in via Cesarotti 37 in Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. They are now part of the city's museums.^[14]

Celebrated bronze equestrian statue. The Equestrian Statue of Gattamelata is a sculpture by Italian early Renaissance artist Donatello, dating from 1453, located in the Piazza del Santo in Padua, Italy, today. It portrays the Renaissance condottiero Erasmo da Narni, known as "Gattamelata", who served mostly under the Republic of Venice, which ruled Padua at the time.^[15]

Sports arena in Padua, Italy. Kioene Arena is an indoor sports arena located in Padua, Italy. The arena has a seating capacity of 3,916 for volleyball and is primarily used for basketball, futsal and handball. It also hosts live concerts.

The Forum is the home floor of the professional volleyball team Pallavolo Padova.^[16]

The Padua Baptistery, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, is a religious building found on the Piazza del Duomo next to the cathedral in Padua. Preserved inside is one of the most important fresco cycles of the 14th century, a masterpiece by Giusto de Menabuoi.^[17]

Parish in Padua, Italy. Santa Maria dei Servi, or simply known as the Chiesa dei Servi, or more fully as the Church of the Nativity of the Servants of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a 14th-century, Roman Catholic church that faces the Via Roma in Padua, region of the Veneto, Italy. This is the parish church in the vicariate of the Cathedral Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta governed by the Servite Order. The church contains outstanding works of art including a wooden crucifix by Donatello.^[18]

Historical place in Padua, Italy. The Bo Palace, is the historical seat of University of Padua since 1493, It is still home to the Rectorate and the School of Law. It is also home to the oldest anatomical theatre in the world.^[19]

Piazza delle Erbe is one of the many squares in the historic center of Padua. For centuries, with Piazza della Frutta, it was the commercial center of the city. In the two squares is one of the largest markets in Italy. Unlike Piazza dei Signori, the civic theater of celebrations, Piazza delle Erbe was the site of the folk festivities. The square is dominated by the imposing Palazzo della Ragione.^[20]

The Basilica del Carmine is a 16th-century Roman Catholic church located on piazza Francesco Petrarca in Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. It was made a minor basilica in 1960 by pope John XXIII^[21]

Medieval-era Roman Catholic cathedral. Padua Cathedral, or Basilica Cathedral of Saint Mary of the Assumption, is a Roman Catholic minor basilica and the cathedral located on the east end of Piazza Duomo, adjacent to the Bishop's palace, in Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. The cathedral, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, is the seat of the bishop of Padua. The church building, first erected as seat of a bishop of the diocese in the 4th century, has undergone major reconstructions over the centuries.^[22]

Museum in Padua, Italy. The Oratory of San Rocco is a Renaissance style, Roman Catholic church located in the city center of Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. It arises adjacent to the church of Santa Lucia, and is notable for its collection of frescoes.^[23]

The Walls of Padua are a complex of defensive works around the Italian city of Padua, designed to defend it from hostile attack. It was built in 4 phases.^[24]

Historical landmark in Padua, Italy. Piazza dei Signori is a city square in Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. This piazza for centuries hosted official civic and government celebrations, while the larger squares of Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza della Frutta hosted commerce and public festive celebrations. The square is dominated by the famous Clock Tower.^[25]

The Triumphal Arch of Vallaresso, or locally referred to as the Arco Vallaresso is a 17th-century monumental arch in the town center of Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. In 1632, the arch, designed by Giambattista della Scala, was meant to honor Alvise Vallaresso, Venetian captain of the town, for his diligence in attempting to stem the Bubonic plague in Padua.^[26]

Catholic church in Padua, Italy. The Church of the Eremitani, or Church of the Hermits, is a former-Augustinian, 13th-century Gothic-style church in Padua, region of the Veneto, Italy. It is also now notable for being adjacent to the Cappella Scrovegni with Giotto frescoes and the municipal archeology and art gallery: the Musei Civici agli Eremitani, which is housed in the former Augustinian monastery located to the left of the entrance.^[27]

Modern art museum in Padua, Italy. The Palazzo Zabarella is a medieval, fortress-like palace with a crenellated roof-line, and corner tower, located on Via San Francesco 27 in the center of Padua, Italy. The building now houses the Fondazione Bano, and serves as a locale for cultural events and exhibition.^[28]

Bridge in Padua, Italy. The Ponte Molino is a Roman bridge across the Bacchiglione in Padua, Italy. The span-to-rise ratio of the Late Republican bridge varies between 3.5–4.5 and 1, the ratio of clear span and pier thickness between 4–6.5 and 1.

Apart from the Ponte Molino, there are other extant Roman bridges in Padua: Ponte San Lorenzo, Ponte Altinate and Ponte Corbo, all three also featuring segmented arches, as well as Ponte S. Matteo.^[29]

Sant'Andrea is a Roman Catholic church located on Via Sant'Andrea in Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. Founded by the 12th-century as a parish church, the present church was completed in the late 19th century.^[31]

Museum in Padua, Italy. The Diocesan museum of Padua displays arts and artifacts belonging to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Padua; it is housed in the 15th-century former bishop's residence or Palazzo Vescovile. The building, adjacent to the Cathedral of Padua, faces the Piazza del Duomo, can in the historic center of Padua, region of Veneto, Italy.

Many of the works in the museum derive from the cathedral or from other diocesan churches, some suppressed and no longer extant. The collections date from the 9th to the 19th centuries. They are displayed on two separate floors and are ordered chronologically and by type.^[32]

Garden in Padua, Italy. The gardens of the rotonda is a terraced garden, situated close to the historical centre of Padua, behind the sixteenth century wall and the Rampart of the Cat.^[33]

Santa Sofia is the oldest Roman Catholic church structure in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, Italy. It was built in the 10th century on the site of a presumed Mithraeum. A grant was made to bishop Sinibaldo of this church in 1123, which had already been in construction. The Romanesque stone and brick facade was constructed from 1106 to 1127, but the semicircular apse may date from earlier. The interior is now relatively bare.^[34]

Piazza Duomo is a city square in Padua, Italy.^[35]