Stop 1: Cattedrale di Santa Maria Annunciata
Construction of the cathedral was begun in 1482, to plans by Lorenzo of Bologna, and completed in the 1560s. The cupola was planned by
Andrea Palladio and probably the north doorway also. Only the original façade survived the bombing of World War II; the rest of the
present building has been reconstructed. The construction of the apse in the Cathedral of Vicenza had begun in 1482 to the design of
Lorenzo da Bologna, but in 1531 it was still unfinished. Early, temporary, roofing was erected in 1540, as a result of the possibility
that Vicenza might host the Church Council which in the end was held at Trent. Only in 1557 did the Comune of Vicenza receive the
financial means necessary from the Republic of Venice, in the shape of a bequest left by Bishop Zeno at the beginning of the century,
and were therefore able to set in motion the work's completion in 1566. The bell tower is slightly detached from the church and placed
in the street that runs along the south side of the cathedral. It rests on a 10th-century stone base, the bell tower dates from the
twelfth century and has five bells
Stop 2: Piazza dei Signori
Basilica Palladiana was originally constructed in the 15th century and was known as the Palazzo della Ragione, having been designed
to include two pre-existing public palazzi. The building, which was in the Gothic style, served as the seat of government and also housed a
number of shops on the ground floor. The 82-metre (269 ft)-tall Torre Bissara precedes this structure, as it is known from as early as 1172;
however, its height was increased on this occasion, and its pinnacle was finished in 1444. The Gothic façade was in red and
gialletto marble of Verona, and is still visible behind the later addition. A double order of columns was built in 1481–1494 to surround the palace.
However, two years after its completion, the south-western corner collapsed. In 1546, the Council of One Hundred chose a 40-year-old local architect,
Andrea Palladio, to reconstruct the building starting from April 1549. Palladio added a new outer shell of marble classical forms, a loggia and
a portico that now obscures the original Gothic architecture. He also dubbed the building a "basilica", after the ancient Roman civil structures
of that name. The Basilica was an expensive project (some 60,000 ducats once finished) and took a long time to complete.
Palladio received for the work an income of five ducats a month for most of his life. In 1614—thirty years after his death—the building was completed,
with the finishing of the main façade.
Palazzo del Capitaniato, also known as loggia del Capitanio or loggia Bernarda, was designed by Andrea Palladio in 1565 and built in 1571 and '72.
It faces the Basilica Palladiana. The Palazzo is currently used by the town council. Since 1994 the palace has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site
of the "City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto".
Stop 3: Palazzo Chiericati
Palladio was asked to design and build the palazzo by Count Girolamo Chiericati. The architect started building the palace in 1550, and some further
work was completed under the patronage of Chiericati's son, Valerio. However, the palazzo was not fully finished until about 1680. The palazzo was built
in an area called "piazza dell'Isola" (island square, currently Piazza Matteotti), which housed the wood and cattle market. At that time, it was an
islet surrounded by the Retrone and Bacchiglione streams, and to protect the structure from the frequent floods, Palladio designed it on an elevated
position: the entrance could be accessed by a triple Classic-style staircase.
Stop 4: Olympic Theater
The Teatro Olimpico is the first indoor theater in masonry in the world, with interiors made of wood, stucco and plaster. It was constructed by architect
Andrea Palladio, between 1580 and 1585, when it was inaugurated. The trompe-l'œil onstage scenery, designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi to give the appearance of
long streets receding to a distant horizon, was installed in 1585 for the first performance held in the theater, and is the oldest surviving stage set still
in existence. The full Roman-style scaenae frons back screen across the stage is made from wood and stucco imitating marble. The Teatro Olimpico is, along
with the Teatro all'antica in Sabbioneta and the Teatro Farnese in Parma, one of only three Renaissance theaters remaining in existence. Both these theaters
were based, in large measure, on the Teatro Olimpico. It is still used several times a year.
Stop 5: St. Michael Bridge
Ponte San Michele (Saint Michael Bridge) is a pedestrian only bridge over the Retrone River. A wooden bridge was built on this site in 1265, and replaced in
1422 with a stone bridge. The current bridge was built between 1621 and 1623 on the model of Venetian bridges.
The name of the bridge derives from the Romanesque-Gothic Church of San Michele, located nearby, built in the 13th century by the Augustinians, but destroyed
in the Napoleonic era.
Stop 5: Piazza delle Erbe
South of the Palladian Basilica is Piazza delle Erbe, which is surrounded by shops and restaurants. In the center is the Girone Tower
(Torre del Girone), built in the 12th century by the Carnaroli family to use as a residence. To protect the family, it was initially surrounded by a deep moat
beyond which stood the shops of the local artisans. The moat inspired the other name under which the tower is still known to this day: Torre del Girone, girone
meaning a ’round’ or ‘circle. From the mid-17th, it was used as a prison and archive. This gained
it another name, the Tower of Torment (Torre del Tormento). Unfortunately, in 1509 the original tower was almost demolished in a fire, which had
been started to destroy compromising documents. The archives did not survive the flames. The tower was re-built in 1656 and used as a prison again until the
end of the 19th century. It’s connected to the Palladian Basilica by an arch.
Stop 6: Ponte San Paolo
In Roman times, the Retrone river protected the south side of Vicenza and was crossed by two bridges which in the Middle Ages were called the San Pietro bridge
and the San Paolo bridge. Ponte San Paolo originally had three arches and gave access to the majestic Berga Roman Theater with a capacity of five thousand spectators,
the remains of which are still visible even if partly incorporated into subsequent constructions. It was then demolished in 1875 and replaced by the current bridge
with a single lowered arch which was completed 1877 and has remained unchanged in appearance to this day.