MONSELICE + ROVIGO, ITALIA

April 25
Our Saturday adventure was a trip to giardino di valsanzinio, however we were not able to walk through the gardens because we had a certain four-legged friend with us. There are several gardens that do not allow dogs and this is apparently one of them. Another time…

After the small let down we headed to the town of Monselice. It is a medieval town located at the edge of Colli Euganei. There are several sights to see as well as a nice walk up the Colle della Rocca. The center has a thirteenth century tower called the Torre Civica which was turned into a clock tower in 1504.

There is also a castle which has been added onto multiple times throughout history. The oldest facade dates to the 1200s while the more recent side, called Ca' Marcello, was built in the 1400s. The Torre di Ezzelino can be found to the left of the Ca'Marcello.

There are also several villas in the town. Villa Nani Mocenigo was built by the Venetian aristocrat Agostino Nani in the 1500s. There are a series of grotesque marble dwarfs along the surrounding wall which relates to the name 'Nani', or 'dwarfs' in italian.

Further up the hill is the old cathedral named Chiesa di Santa Giustina which dates back to 1256. Next are the two large stone lions at the entrance of Piazza La Rotonda. Further up the road is Villa Duodo and a pilgrimage route, Sentiero dell Sette Chiese, which is lined by a series of chapels built in the 1600s. These were designs of Vincenzo Scamozzi. 

Villa Duodo was built in the late 1500s by Vincenzo Scamozzi. Along with the villa is a garden and an amphitheater. A large flight of steps that climb to the Rocca and Mastio Federiciano can be found next to the amphitheater, but the stairs are closed to visitors.

Piazza Mazzini

Part of the castle

Chiesa di Santa Giustina

Chiesa di Santa Giustina

Chapels

Villa Duodo

Villa Duodo

Villa Duodo

Villa Nani Mocenigo with the dwarfs

Villa Nani Mocenigo

We continued on to the town of Rovigo, which is about 25 minutes south of Monselice. Rovigo is located in the Po Valley and is crossed by the Po and the Adige rivers. There are obvious medieval influences in such buildings as the tower in Via Pighin and the two leaning towers, Donà and Mozza. The two towers are the only existing ruins from the original castle [tenth century].

The church of Madonna del Soccorso [La Rotonda] was built between 1594 and 1606 by Francesco Zamberlan who was a student of Palladio. Another sight is the Duomo which was originally built before the eleventh century. It was rebuilt in 1461 and again in 1696. 

There are other great sights such as the town hall, the church of St. Francis as well as many great Renaissance mansions, such as Palazzo Roverella, Palazzo Roncale di Michele Sanmichelo, etc. 

We were there during riposo so many things were closed in the beginning, but some started to open while we were walking around. It seemed to be a quiet place, but that could have been due to the lunch hours. There is also a university right outside of the centro. 

Torre Mozza

Torre Donà

San Bortolo Gate

The Ghetto

Piazza Garibaldi

Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II

Duomo

After visiting both Monselice and Rovigo we decided to stop by old faithful, Villa Sceriman, which is a winery popular with Italians, Austrians, Germans and Americans. It is located in Vo and is a minor work of Palladio dating back to the sixteenth century. It is a family run winery with great prosecco, marzemino, and serprino, to name a few.