L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JULY 22, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 12 L'Italo-Americano W e a l l k n o w t h a t Italy has t h e l a r g e s t n u m b e r o f U N E S C O W o r l d H e r - itage sites in the world, 55. From North to South, il Belpaese provided some of its most famous buildings, locations and traditions to the famous list, from the Tower of Pisa to the city center of Palermo, from N e a p o l i t a n p i z z a t o t h e Dolomites. I f e v e r y t h i n g g o e s a s p l a n n e d , h o w e v e r , w e c o u l d s o o n g e t a 5 6 t h UNESCO-recognized site, the famously iconic porti- ci of Bologna. It isn't the first time that Bologna's porticoes have been con- sidered for a candidature, a s a f i r s t a t t e m p t w a s made, unsuccessfully, in 2 0 0 6 . T h i s t i m e – w e should know by the end of the month – the city and the country really hope the dream will become true. And not only for Bologna, b u t f o r a n a r c h i t e c t u r a l feature which is charming, beautiful and unique, and typical of many cities and towns of Italy. Turin, first capital of Italy and beloved c i t y o f t h e S a v o i a s i s known for the elegance of h e r s , c r e a t e d – t h e Piedmontese usually say – to protect people from the weather during the colder months of the year. True or not, porticoes are ubiqui- tous in Piedmont, so there may be some truth to the old local saying. But what are, exactly, porticoes – or portici, as we say in Italian? They are covered pathways support- ed by columns, lined usu- ally with stores, restau- r a n t s a n d c a f é s : a b o v e t h e m , b e a u t i f u l p a l a c e s w i t h o f f i c e s a n d a p a r t - ments. Yes, because portici t e n d t o b e a c i t y c e n t e r a f f a i r a n d , w h i l e t h e y remain a common archi- t e c t u r a l f e a t u r e a l s o i n m o r e m o d e r n a r e a s o f c i t i e s , t h e y a r e l a r g e l y associated with the centri storici. I n d e e d , t h e p o r t i c i o f Bologna date back to the 11 th century and they were "intended to be used as a p u b l i c w a y o f p a s s a g e , even though the property is private," Elena Bonesi, a r t h i s t o r i a n , r e c e n t l y e x p l a i n e d t o H a n n a h Brown of AP. It isn't only a matter of how old these portici are, however, it's also their extension that m a k e s t h e m s p e c i a l , a s there are "about 38 to 40 km (23.5 to 25 miles), and more than 50 (31 miles) if you count those outside t h e c i t y d o o r s , " B o n e s i continues. B u t h o w d i d p o r t i c i came to be, why were they first built? To find out, we need to step back in time, as we said, to the Middle Ages, to w h e n t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f Bologna, the most ancient university in Europe, was founded. It was the mid to late 11 th century, and the new academic institution attracted immediately a great number of students f r o m a l l o v e r t h e c o n t i - nent; this meant there was a sudden need for accom- modation, much as it hap- pens still today in many university towns around t h e w o r l d . I n g e n i o u s l y enough, Bolognese proper- ty owners began extending t h e t o p f l o o r s o f t h e i r b u i l d i n g s t o w a r d s t h e street, creating a sort of wooden, covered balcony o n t h e i r f a ç a d e , c a l l e d sporto. Soon, they became so large they needed to be s u p p o r t e d b y c o l u m n s sturdily planted at ground level. Two centuries later, i n 1 2 8 8 , s p o r t i w e r e s o c o m m o n t h a t t h e c i t y council decided to make their construction compul- sory for all new buildings in the city: wood was no l o n g e r g o o d e n o u g h , though, brick and mortar w a s t h e w a y t o g o n o w . B u i l d i n g o w n e r s w e r e responsible for keeping the area of the portici in front of their home clean and t i d y , b u t e v e r y o n e w a s allowed to walk there. And s o , t h e p o r t i c i q u i c k l y b e c a m e a h u b f o r c o m - m e r c e , w i t h s t o r e s a n d craftsmen's ateliers finding s p a c e u n d e r t h e i r a r c h - ways. W h i l e w o o d e n p o r t i c i were largely replaced with masonry ones between the 1 4 t h a n d 1 5 t h c e n t u r y , some examples of this type of architecture – eight in t o t a l - - s t i l l r e m a i n s around the city: the most famous are the portici of C a s a I s o l a n i in Strada Maggiore, and those of the C a s e R e g g i a n i - Seracchioli, just under Bologna's famous torri. W a n t s o m e m o r e details? Well, the widest portici in the city are those of the Chiesa di Santa Maria d e i S e r v i , w h e r e t h e f a m o u s S a n t a L u c i a C h r i s t m a s M a r k e t t a k e s place every year; in Piazza Maggiore, you'll find those o f t h e P a l a z z o Arcivescovile, the high- est at 10 meters (33 ft). The narrowest portici are in Via Senzanome: they a r e o n l y 9 5 c m ( 3 . 2 f t ) wide! The longest ones are t h o s e o f V i a S a r a g o z z a , that lead to the Santuario d e l l a M a d o n n a d i S a n Luca: they measure a total o f 4 k m ( 2 . 5 m i l e s ) a n d they are supported by 664 arches. In Bologna, just like in all the other cities where they exists, portici are the s o u l o f t h e t o w n : t h a t ' s where people meet and go s h o p p i n g , t h a t ' s w h e r e they get their aperitivo, or take a stroll with friends on Saturday afternoons. H o w e v e r , t h e r e i s n ' t a place where portici are as distinctive and historically r e l e v a n t a s t h e y a r e i n B o l o g n a , a n d t h i s a l o n e should be enough to make them part of the UNESCO World Heritage List. People relaxing under portici, a typical architectural feature of Italy (Photo: Igor Abramovych/Dreamstime) LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE P o r t i c i c o u l d b e I t a l y ' s n e x t UNESCO World Heritage site CHIARA D'ALESSIO

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