Arounder Milan Special Projects
There are three special projects within Arounder Milan: Santa Maria delle Grazie contains four full screen panoramas of the 15th century monastery including two high-resolution images of the famous frescos housed within the refectory - da Vinci’s Last Supper (Il Cenacolo) and Montorfano’s Crucifixion; the church of Sant’Ambrogio consists of five panoramas taken both inside and outside the basilica and includes such famous pieces as the golden altar and the apse mosaic; and Milan’s Duomo consists of nine panoramas taken in and around the cathedral, including the panoramic view from the spires, from which one can see as far as the Alps on a good day.Each of the three special projects opens in a separate window; in the upper left-hand corner is a diagram of the building with numbered orange dots representing each of the panos; listed on the lower left is a numbered description of each of the panos; the main portion of the page contains the pano and beneath that there is both written and audio commentary (user-selected) in English and Italian. Viewers can tour through the panos by a) clicking on the hot spots within each pano b) clicking on the orange dots in the diagram or c) clicking on the numbered descriptions. Viewers can also switch modes by selecting the Java, QTVR Medium or QTVR Fullscreen options at the top of the page.
Starting at the top of the homepage map and working clockwise, the twelve areas of interest are:
1. Branca Tower
2. Castello Sforzesco
Built in 1368 by Galeazzo II Visconti as a fortress, the Sforza castle was enlarged in the 14th century and transformed into a ducal palace. Francesco Sforza, who became lord of Milan in 1450, and his son Lodovico il Moro made the castle the home of one of the most magnificent courts in Renaissance Italy, graced by Bramante and Leonardo da Vinci. Under Spanish and Austrian domination, the Castello went into gradual decline, as it resumed its original military function until the architect Luca Beltrami, who from 1893 to 1904 restored it and converted it into an important museum center, saved it from demolition. During World War II, bombing raids seriously damaged the castle, and a radical restoration project set up an avant-garde museum space that has been preserved on the ground floor of the Ducal Courtyard.
3. Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
The 19th century belle époque-style Galeria Vittorio Emanuele is one of the most beautiful covered shopping malls in Europe. It was built to connect the squares of La Scala and Il Duomo and represent the recent union of church and state. Begun in 1865, it was the first of its kind to make use of an iron and glass structure. In 1867, Giuseppe Mengoni, the architect, fell to his death from the heights of the glass dome while scrutinizing decorative details two days before King Vittorio Emanuele led the opening ceremony.
4. Piazza dei Mercanti
Just a few steps away from the Duomo, Piazza Mercanti, built in 1228, was the ancient heart of medieval Milan, serving as the administrative and political center.
5. Duomo
Milan’s Duomo, or cathedral, is one of the largest churches in the world, comprised of 135 spires and 3,400 statues. Located in the center of Milan, in the Piazza del Duomo, the Duomo is within walking distance of many other tourist attractions. The Duomo was commissioned in 1386 but not finished until the early 1800s, and is thus a strange mixture of architectural styles. It has five aisles and just inside the entrance is a staircase leading down to the remains of the baptistery. The view from the Duomo’s roof is spectacular, stretching across the city and to the Alps.
6. Velasca Tower
Completed in 1958, the post-war, post-fascist Torre Velasca is one of Milan’s tallest and most unusual looking buildings. Made of brownish concrete, the 106-meter building’s eight upper storeys are cantilevered out from the main structure, giving it a striking and top-heavy appearance that has resulted in mixed reactions. Studio BBPR designed Torre Velasca in minute detail, quite literally all the way down to the door handles, believing that architecture should respond to location, history and tradition.
7. Navigli
8. The Basilica and Cloisters of Sant’Eustorgio
The Basilica di Sant’ Eustorgio is one of the oldest in Milan, founded by the bishop Eustorgio in the 4th century and rebuilt in the Romanesque style in the 12th century. It was entrusted to the Dominicans in 1220, who built one of the city’s most important convents next door, which later became the headquarters of the Inquisition. Wealthy Milanese families built family chapels along the sides of the basilica, the most extraordinary of which is the Portinari chapel.
9. Basilica di San Lorenzo
The Basilica, built between the 4th and 5th centuries is probably made of material taken from the nearby Roman amphitheatre. Its original Early Christian plan was later altered in 1573 by Martino Bassi, who managed to preserve much of the original octagonal shape and who is responsible for the dome set on the high drum. The chapels of St. Aquilinus and St. Hippolytus were built adjacent to the basilica in the 4th century, while the small mausoleum to St. Sixtus dates from the early 6th century.
10. Columns of San Lorenzo
In the populous quarter around Porta Ticinese, the place where locals hang out at night before hitting the Navigli clubs and bars, are sixteen Corinthian columns, scavenged from a Roman ruin and standing outside the church of San Lorenzo. The sixteen fluted marble columns with Corinthian capitals belonged to a Roman building of the late Imperial period (2nd or 3rd century B.C.), perhaps a temple, palace or baths. In the 4th century they were brought to Milan and lined up to form the front of the portico of the Basilica of San Lorenzo, at the time under construction.
11. Sant’Ambrogio
San Ambrogio was built by St. Ambrose, the Patron Saint of Milan, and is dedicated to the martyrs whose bones rest beneath its altar. The original basilica dates back to the fourth century and was greatly modified throughout the centuries: in the 9th century an elaborate altar of gold and silver leaf studded with jewels and enamel was added by master goldsmith Volvinio; the bell tower on the south was constructed in the 9th century and the north tower was added in the 12th century; the church was restored externally and in the interior many times in the 15th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Basilica was redone in Romanesque style in the 12th century. During Sforza rule, the Bramante portico was added and between the 17th and 19th centuries, the basilica was renovated according to the tastes of the moment, from Baroque to neo-Classical. The Gothic style façade was remade in 1880.
12. Santa Maria delle Grazie
Originally constructed in austere Gothic style in 1490, the church and its adjoining convent are now a symbol of the glory of Renaissance Milan. Ludovico il Moro, in his quest to turn Milan into a beautiful rival of Florence, directed the architect Bramante to reconstruct the apse and lantern of his favorites church, St. Mary of Grace. Leonardo da Vinci was commissioned to paint the frescos - the most famous being Il Cenacolo or Last Supper, which graces the far wall of the adjacent Dominican Refectory, or dining hall.
