Must-see attractions in Padua

  • Jesus Before Caiaphas by Italian Artist Giotto di Bondone, fresco

    Cappella degli Scrovegni

    Padua

    Padua's version of the Sistine Chapel, the Cappella degli Scrovegni houses one of Italy's great Renaissance masterpieces – a striking cycle of Giotto…

  • Musme

    Padua

    Padua’s Museum of Medical History is a fascinating mash-up of historical artefacts and high-tech exhibits that detail the city’s outsized contribution to…

  • Palazzo Bo

    Padua

    This Renaissance palazzo (mansion) is the seat of Padua’s history-making university. Founded by renegade scholars from Bologna seeking greater…

  • Basilica di Sant’Antonio

    Padua

    A pilgrimage site and the burial place of St Anthony of Padua (1193–1231), this huge church was begun in 1232, its polyglot style incorporating rising…

  • Palazzo della Ragione

    Padua

    Ancient Padua can be glimpsed in elegant twin squares (one the fruit market, the other the vegetable market) separated by the triple-decker Gothic Palazzo…

  • Musei Civici agli Eremitani

    Padua

    The ground floor of this monastery houses artefacts dating from Padua’s Roman and pre-Roman past, including some delicate glass, serviceable Roman…

  • Orto Botanico

    Padua

    Planted in 1545 by Padua University’s medical faculty to study the medicinal properties of rare plants, Padua’s World Heritage–listed Orto Botanico is the…

  • Duomo

    Padua

    Built from a much-altered design of Michelangelo’s, the rather industrial facade and whitewashed symmetry of Padua's duomo is a far cry from its rival in…

  • Palazzo del Capitaniato

    Padua

    Flanking the western side of elegant Piazza dei Signori, the Palazzo del Capitaniato became the seat of Venetian authority when Padua came under the…

  • Palazzo Zuckermann

    Padua

    The ground and 1st floors of the early-20th-century Palazzo Zuckermann are home to the Museo d’Arti Applicate e Decorative, with an eclectic assortment of…

  • Chiesa degli Eremitani

    Padua

    When a 1944 bombing raid demolished the extraordinary 1448–57 frescoes by Andrea Mantegna in the Capella Overtari in the Chiesa degli Eremitani, the loss…

  • Prato della Valle

    Padua

    At the southern edge of the historical centre, this odd, elliptical garden was long used as a communal sports ground. Today it's a popular spot for locals…

  • Gattamelata Statue

    Padua

    Gracing Piazza del Santo, Donatello's majestic bronze equestrian statue dates back to 1453. On horseback is Erasmo da Narni (nicknamed Gattamelata), a…

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