What to see in Belluno, one-day itinerary including the main monuments and places of interest, including the Duomo, the Civic Museum, Palazzo dei Rettore, San Pietro Church, as well as excursions to do in the surrounding area.
Tourist information
Located in the middle of a large basin formed by the Piave river, at the confluence of the Ardo torrent, Belluno is enclosed between the Dolomites of Feltre, and those of Agordo to the north, and the pre-Alps of Belluno to the south.
Anciently paleoveneto center, it became in the first century B.C. Roman municipality, later underwent the barbarian invasions, before becoming a fief of the bishops.
In the High Medieval period it became common, then it was affected by struggles between local potentates and was occupied first by Ezzelino da Romano then, in the mid-thirteenth century, by the Da Camino, before subsequently passing to the Scaligeri, the Carraresi, the Visconti and finally to the Republic of Venice, belonging to the latter which lasted until the end of 1797 and which made the city know a period of well-being.
The main places to visit include Piazza Duomo, which overlooks the Cathedral, the baptistery, the Town Hall building and the Rectors palace, the latter dominated by the civic tower.
In its present form, the Duomo looks like the result of a reconstruction carried out by Tullio Lombardo in the early sixteenth century.
In the unfinished facade, two Gothic single lancet windows and bronze portals made by Canevaci in 1983 stand out.
On the side there is the Baroque bell tower of 1743, erected on a project by Iuvarra, while the interior has three naves, with imposing columns that act as a partition and remarkable works of art embellish the overall appearance.
In front of the Cathedral there is the Baptistery, of sixteenth-century origin but restored after several times.
The Palazzo del Comune was built in the first half of the nineteenth century by Segusini, using some Gothic parts of the demolished Palazzo dei Nobili in the construction of the facade.
The Palazzo dei Rettore, built on a project by Candiani from 1491, is a remarkable example of the Venetian Renaissance.
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It is characterized on the outside by a portico on which two floors characterized by mullioned windows rest, there are also various coats of arms and decorations.
Next to the building is the civic tower, which represents the only remaining part of the palace of the bishops-counts dating back to the twelfth century.
In the Civic Museum, which is housed inside the seventeenth-century Palazzo dei Giuristi, it displays prehistoric and Roman artifacts, as well as a well-assorted art gallery containing works from the Venetian school, dating back to the period between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries.
In Piazza dei Martiri there is the Church of San Rocco, which preserves the Ecstasy of San Francesco, a remarkable altarpiece by Diziani.
In the Piazza Vittorio Emanuele overlook the municipal theater, in neoclassical style, and the Doglioni palace, with a sixteenth-century facade.
What see
In via Rialto you can see the Dojona gate, which in the Middle Ages was one of the main defensive works, rebuilt by Nicolò Tagliapietra in the sixteenth century.
From Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, on the right, Via Roma begins, along which you come across Palazzo Fulcis, a building characterized by a beautiful facade with stucco decoration, the result of a renovation carried out in the eighteenth century, with frescoes inside of the Guarana and Ricci's paintings.
The Gothic church of Santo Stefano, built in 1486, has on the right side a remarkable portal from the fifteenth century and the reproduction of the Roman sarcophagus of Ostilio and his wife, having interesting bas-reliefs with hunting scenes and supported by six columns, the original is located in the Crepadona palace.
The interior with three naves with two-color columns, placed in support of the pointed arches, is an interesting example of fusion between the Gothic and Roman styles.
The wooden sculptures of Brustolon deserve attention, the frescoes of the vault made by Montagnana and the gilded wooden altarpiece of the forum, dating back to the sixteenth century, located in the apse.
The most popular center of the city is the Market Square, also called Piazza delle Erbe, including a 1410 fountain in a central position and elegant Renaissance buildings with arcades overlooking the sides.
Among these buildings is the Casa Miari, with a remarkable fresco of the fifteenth century and a Renaissance-style portico, and the Palazzo del Monte dei Pegni, characterized by coat of arms decoration.
In via San Pietro there is the homonymous church, construction rebuilt in the eighteenth century which has a Gothic arch inserted in the facade on the right, while inside there is the chapel of the seminary, as well as interesting paintings by Schiavone placed above the entrance and a Madonna and Child with Saints by Ricci, located on the main altar.
On the second altar on the left there are two remarkable Brustolon altarpieces, made of bas-relief wood.
The Gregorian seminary, located next to the church of San Pietro, includes two cloisters that date back to the ancient convent of the fifteenth century.
Inside, frescoed by Ricci, there is the library of Bishop Lollino, containing numerous rare books, including a fourteenth century Divine Comedy.
The small road in front of the church leads to Via Mezzaterra, the main street of the medieval city, characterized by various 16th-century buildings, built in Venetian style, including the Pagani palace.
Excursions from Belluno
The recommended excursions include the one to the Alpe del Nevegal, which is a summer and winter resort located in an excellent position on the Belluna valley.
A cableway departs from the town and leads to Monte Faverghera, the botanical garden and Col Visentin.
Ten kilometers away is the Certosa di Vedana, dating back to the twelfth century, originally a hospice it later became a charterhouse, to which a cloister was added in the sixteenth century.
Inside there are remarkable works by Ricci, Frigimelica and Cesare da Conigliano.
Feltre, located at a distance of 31 kilometers, includes Piazza Maggiore, where several palaces with frescoed loggias overlook, dating back for the most part to the Venetian renovation.
From this square begins Via Mezzaterra, which crosses the historic center within the walls, from the Imperial door to the Oria door, in the vicinity of which is the civic museum, containing a picture gallery with interesting works made between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, which testify to the typical art of the area in that period.
At 16 km is Mel, characterized by a large central square overlooked on three sides by seventeenth and eighteenth century buildings, in addition to the 1756 parish church built in Palladian style.
Inside the church there are many works by Titian and Schiavone, as well as an altarpiece by Giovanni da Mel.
A short distance away is the Oratory of the Addolorata, rebuilt in the nineteenth century, which contains inside a remarkable baptismal font from the fifteenth century, as well as a small stone aedicule, with interesting reliefs, and an interesting canvas, made by Schiavone .
