Palazzo della Ragione, Padua

About this place

The Palazzo della Ragione is a medieval market hall, town hall and palace of justice building in Padua, in the Veneto region of Italy. The upper floor was dedicated to the town and justice administration; while the ground floor still hosts the historical covered market of the city. The palace separates the two market squares of Piazza delle Erbe from Piazza dei Frutti. It is popularly called il Salone. It is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site inscribed as "Padua’s fourteenth-century fresco cycles" in 2021. Notice how the building presents itself to the surrounding streets or landscape, then compare its public and more intimate spaces. This helps explain how architecture expressed the position, resources and ambitions of the people who commissioned it.