Reggio nell'Emilia Attractions

In the western part of Reggio nell'Emilia, in the broad Corso Garibaldi, is the church of the Madonna della Ghiaira, a Baroque church built 1597-1619, on a Greek cross plan with a dome over the crossing. The interior, notable for the beauty of its proportions, has charming stucco decoration and frescoes.

A little way south of the Piazza Cesare Battisti is the large Piazza Prampolini on the east side of which stands the cathedral (13th century, rebuilt in 15th-16th centuries). Behind the unfinished Renaissance facade is the original Romanesque structure, with remains of frescoes and sculpture (on the facade and in the interior) by Prospero Spani (d. 1584), a pupil of Michelangelo's and Bartolomeo Spani, both natives of Reggio.

To the north of Piazza Cesare Battisti in the Piazza Cavour is the large Municipal Theater (1857). Near the square can be found the Municipal Museum (Musei Civici), with an 18th century natural history collection, a paleo-ethnological collection, works of art of several periods and a picture collecton. A palace to the west of the Piazza Cesare Battisti houses the Galleria Parmeggiani, with folk costumes, goldsmith's work and sculpture.

In the center of Reggio nell'Emilia is the Piazza Cesare Battisti, with the 13th century crenellated Palazzo del Capitano del Popolo. The square lies on the line of the ancient Via Aemilia, which traverses the town under the name of Via Emilia a San Pietro (to the east) and Via Emilia a Santo Stefano (to the west).

To the southeast of the cathedral stands the 16th century church of San Prospero, on the site of an earlier Romanesque building. On the facade (rebuilt 1748) are six marble lions from the original building. The church has frescoes, including a "Last Judgment" by Camillo Procaccini (1585-89), choir-stalls of 1546 with intarsio decoration, and a copy of the "Birth of Christ" (1528) by Correggio. Adjoining the church is a fine octagonal campanile.