Cool Attractions in Downtown (Milan)

Pusterla di Sant'Ambrogio

This was built in 1939 by Gino Chierici, in imitation of a defensive gate in the ancient walls dating to 1171. The original materials were re-used in the two towers of different heights. The tabernacle with saints Ambrogio, Gervasio and Protasio were sculpted by craftsmen from Campione, coming from the hospital of Sant'Ambrogio founded by Galeazzo II Visconti, in the mid 15th century. Today the building houses the 'Museo della Pusterla', with a permanent exhibition of criminology and antique weapons.

Castello Sforzesco

Built in 1368 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti to defend the city from attack, the castle was enlarged by military architect Magatti under the instruction of Visconti's successor Gian Galeazzo. Destroyed in 1447, Castello Sforzesco was rebuilt between 1450 and 1500 and enlarged under Francesco Sforza's rule. In 1500, once Sforza's rule was over, the building regained its military function and, after successive transformations, eventually fell into ruin. Rebuilt in the late 1900s, from 1893 onwards the castle gradually became home to various cultural institutions and art collections and remains an integral part of the city's culture today. Guided tours are available. Check the website for timing and other details.

Resti romani di via Brisa

Built by Emperor Maximian in the 4th c. AD when Milan was the capital of the Roman empire in the West, the imperial palace occupied a huge area between what are now Via Meravigli and Via Torino. The only remains of the huge building are to be seen in Via Brisa. It was during demolition work following WW2 that parts of the foundations and of the elevation were found but it was thought originally that they belonged to a baths complex. Now they are considered to have been part of the official section of Maximian's palace. The central plan building is made up of 3 series of small apsed rooms that open onto the sides of a large round hall (once surrounded by columns) which was reached via a rectangular atrium. The remains are worthy of a brief pause, not so much for what they are, but for the fact that are representative of a glorious past.

Fontana di Piazza San Babila

Donated to the city by the Ente Autonomo Fiera Milano in 1997, this fountain was designed by Luigi Caccia Dominioni. It is situated in front of the portico of the Toro Assicurazioni building- a garden of water and stones. The water falls from a central pinnacle into a large quadrangular basin which is surrounded by green 'hills'. Using an intelligent combination of stone (it is almost a living museum of Lombardian stone - Serizzo from Val Masino, pink granite from Baveno and red granite from Val Gerola, to Dubino from Valtellina) and forms, the fountain stands as a symbol and an expression of the resources to be found in the region. Thus the water, of which Milan became so proud, and which is today a forgotten part of the city, has rediscovered a role in an urban context and has become a focus for relaxation in the crowded and chaotic city centre.

Torre di Ansperto

In the 4th c. AD, Emperor Maximian made two expansions to the 1st c. BC Roman walls to encircle two new areas of the city. The most complete section of the addition to the walls on the west side can be seen in the garden of the Archaeological Museum (the ex-Monastero Maggiore). Here you can see the Asperto tower (named after the 9th c.Bishop Ansperto who was considered for centuries to have had it built) made from a pebble based cement and brick lining. It has 24 sides and is probably still as high as it was originally (17 metres). It is one of the few visible Roman monuments that has remained whole to the present day. A second, square tower stands in the museum's courtyard that was renovated in the Middle Ages. It was turned into the bell-tower for the monastery. It was also one of the two towers in the body of the construction at one end of the Roman circus from where the 2-wheeled chariots exited in races during the Imperial era.

Torre Velasca

The most famous and discussed skyscraper in the centre of Milan was designed by the BBPR studio (Banfi, Belgiojoso, Peressutti, Rogers): it was begun in 1950 and completed 8 years later. At 106 metres high, it was the symbol of Milanese architecture after WW2. From an initial parallelepiped design, the need to distribute the volumes meant the building was built like a mushroom resting on brackets made from reinforced concrete. The formal allusions to the Castello Sforzesco, structural emphasis on the ribbing and uprights, use and grain of the materials, and the careful design of the details make the building one of the most interesting modern constructions in the city.

Palazzo di Giustizia

The Palazzo di Giustizia, designed by Marcello Piacentini, was built between 1932 and 1940 to replace the old palace in Piazza Beccaria and to give Justice a unified and monumental seat. Piacentini responded to the requests of the regime with a building that is isolated from from surrounding urban developments, being both monumental and imposing. 1200 rooms and 65 courtrooms are present on this trapezoid plot, spread over four floors around a courtyard of honour and 12 mini courtyards with axial symmetry. The large windows with bronze fixtures and the walls entirely inn stone from Val Masino, distinguish the external façade. Inside there are the decorations in relief and the frescoes by many different artists among the designer's contemporaries (Sironi, Pini, Severini, Manzù, Carrà, Martini)

Palazzo Viviani Cova

A typical example of work by the Coppedè brothers, the building was constructed in 1915. Contained in a basically cubic volume, it is distinctive for its 'Guelph'-type tower opposite the Medieval city gate. On the corner, a large enclosed loggia houses a bar-café, while the entire building is decorated with inserts in artificial stone.

Casa Pacchetti

Designed by Gaetano Moretti in 1903, this is an interesting example of how the International Style reached Milan in the early years of the 20th century. Built in a sober, simple style, the house consists of a ground floor in rusticated ashlar, and three other floors featuring geometric decorations in stone and graffito-work. There is a clear influence of Otto Wagner's Viennese school.

Palazzo dell'Arte

The historic seat of the Triennale institution was designed by Giovanni Muzio in 1932-33. The building consists of a series of halls for temporary exhibitions, laid out in a series of separate volumes that end in a large semi-circular building housing the theatre. The entrance, with its distinctive marble portal, generates an impression of monumentality by means of the proportions and the contrast with the brickwork.

Casa Berri-Meregalli

This building that has had a chequered career in terms of critical approval; built by Giulio Ulisse Arata between 1911 and 1914, it represents a mixture of styles. The superb craftsmanship visible in the architectural and decorative elements is due to the high quality of the workmanship of the various famous companies of Milan who worked on it. Notwithstanding the criticism, it remains one of the most innovative and original pieces of architecture from that period.

Società Orticola di Lombardia

In the centre of Milan, the shop windows are king, it is would be nigh on impossible to forget that you are in a great metropolis, the capital of fashion, and it is here that this horticultural society was founded in 1874. There is a huge range of colours here; red, yellow, green.. but we are not talking about clothing colours here. It is plants and flowers that interest the people who meet here in Via Monte Napoleone at eight o'clock. The society organises trips to gardens, conferences and classes on gardening techniques and flower arranging. Every June it organises a horticultural show that takes place in the gardens of Via Palestro. The Societa' Orticola di Lombardia is open to members only.