On the west side of Piazza Aurelio Saffi there is a beautiful building whose history describes Forlì’s complex history and culture. Its name is Palazzo del Podestà, built by Melozzo degli Ambrogi’s uncle in the second half of the fifteenth century and restored in the first half of the twentieth century. During restoration, a small balcony was introduced on the main floor, based on the traces left on the wall by the access to an iron cage placed there in 1426, used to expose the condemned or their corpses. This little terrace is therefore a historical fake.
Built on the ruins of a previous building, it presents a façade with a decidedly Gothic character – also visible because of the two orders of windows, single and double lancet windows – in local terracotta, as are the capitals of the columns, modelled on the spot after their installation. The portico, with its pointed arches, typical of the public buildings of the communal age, is decorated with angular leaf capitals on which the ancient cross of the people and the coat of arms of the Ordelaffi family are sculpted.
Opening hours:
Currently the building is private property and can be visited only from the outside.
How to get there:
Located in Piazza Saffi, at the end of Corso della Repubblica, it can be reached by bus (lines 1, 2, 3, 4) and by car (pay parking nearby, in Piazza XX Settembre and Piazza del Carmine).
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