Faenza

Faenza is known all over the world for the production of ceramics; The very name of the city has become synonymous with pottery (majolica) in many languages including faïance in French and faience in English. Faenza’s best-known architectural presences are concentrated in the two adjoining main squares: Piazza del Popolo and Piazza della Libertà. Piazza del Popolo houses the Palazzo del Podestà and the Town Hall, both of medieval origin. Along the eastern side of Piazza della Libertà stands majestically the splendid Cathedral, one of the highest expressions of Renaissance art in Romagna, of clear Tuscan influence. In front of the entrance to the square stands the Clock Tower, a postwar reconstruction of a 17th-century tower located at the intersection of the “cardo” and “decumanus” of Roman Faventia. Other monumental assets in the historic center include Palazzo Milzetti, the richest and most significant neoclassical building in the region, and the Masini Theater (1780-1787), one of Italy’s finest theaters.

In Faenza, moreover, it is possible to visit one of the most beautiful and complete ceramic art collections in the world: that of the International Museum of Ceramics, where you can admire works of every geographical origin and every historical period, from the amphorae of the classical world to the works of Chagall and Picasso, from pre-Columbian artifacts to the most successful artists of contemporary ceramics. A rich selection of works is devoted to Faenza ceramics. Other art collections of great interest are those preserved in the Museum of the Risorgimento, and the Pinacoteca Comunale.