The history of the Mercanzia Palace
Piazza della Mercanzia in the Morning, Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
On the side of the Two Towers opens the Piazza della Mercanzia , but what's its history ?
The square is an asymmetrical and busy space dominated by the homonymous palace, a splendid example of a Gothic building. The palace was probably built to complement the buildings that surrounded the square which spontaneously formed already in Roman times at the intersection of the ancient Via Emilia for Rimini (Strada Maggiore) and the ancient Via Salaria for Ravenna (Via San Vitale).
In 1382 the municipality of Bologna decided to give a seat to the Forum of Merchants and, having identified the site in the area where the Gabella stood,
entrusted the design of the building to the architects Lorenzo da Bagnomarino and Antonio di Vincenzo, the latter known for having designed the Basilica of San Petronio. The works were completed in 1391.
Here the Municipality installed the mercantile court which, among others, was responsible for judging commercial cases. The marble balcony on the facade was used to publicly announce the sentences, after the tolling of a bell had called the citizens together. Those who were convicted of what we would now call fraudulent bankruptcy were tied up in front of the central column of the lodge. In this way, the bankrupt was subjected to the humiliation of the sight of passersby.
By Napoleonic decree in 1811 the Chamber of Commerce was placed in the building, which still has its seat there.
CURIOSITIES
The Palace houses theoriginal recipesof some typical products of the Bolognese cuisine. In particular:
- measure and recipe of the real Bologna noodle, filed on April 16, 1972;
- secret and recipe of the real stuffing of tortellini from Bologna, filed on 07 December 1974;
- secrets and recipe of Bolognese sauce, filed October 17, 1982;
- recipe of the certosino of Bologna, filed on June 23, 2003;
- Bolognese green lasagna recipe, filed on 04 July 2003.
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