We all know Verona has a lot more to offer than “just” natural stone. The famous city on the Adiger river is one of the main cultural centres in the north/northeast of Italy.
We will take a quick glimpse at 2 spectacular buildings: The Scaligero (also: Castelvecchio) Bridge, and the Arco dei Gavi.
The bridge is one of the miracles of Verona given the time it was built: most certainly from 1354 till 1356. Its original purpose was to serve as a way out of the Castle in times of trouble. Destroyed at the end of WWII, it was rebuilt a couple of years later, sticking to the original. The lower part of the bridge, and this is why we decided to bring it up here, is made of white and red marble. This is a noteworthy proof that marble has more than aesthetic use only! We took this picture in August 2020.
The second monument is the Arco dei Gavi. It is estimated to have been erected around the middle of the first century AD, in honour of the Gens Gavia, one of the noble families of presumed Veronese origin.
The arch is of interest not only because of its visual and architectural appeal: The builders did not choose marble, but the famous Lessinia stone, a limestone from the larger Verona region (Valpolicella). This stone can be found in many old and new buildings in the area and can match the beauty of marble, too!
