MONUMENTS OF RIMINI

SIGISMONDO'S CASTLE

The fortified residence was erected on the area previously occupied by the thirteenth-century homes of  Malatesta family by Sigismondo Malatesta. The castle was completed between 1438 and 1446, and advice on its design may have been given by Brunelleschi, who is known to have been in Rimini around 1438. The original form of the castle, now substantially altered by a series of demolitions and trasformations, can be seen in the commemorative medal struck by Matteo de' Pasti and in the fresco painted by Piero della  Francesca in the Reliquie Chapel in the Malatesta Temple. A recent programme of restoration, aimed at conserving the surviving parts of the building, has also allowed several rooms inside the castle to be converted for use as exhibition space, and it now houses the Museum of Non-European Cultures, which displays many of objects collected by Dinz Rialto in Africa, Oceania and South America between 1940-70.

THE AUGUSTUS ARCH

Erected in 27 B.C. in honour of Augustus, as inscribed on the upper part of Arch, it is the oldest surviving Roman archway and is made of Istrian stone. The vault is 8.84 metres. It as a  depth of  4.10 metres and the entire structureis 10.40 metres tall. Between the Arch's lintels and its capitals there are four divinities (in four clipei): Jupiter, Neptune, Apollo and Minerva. Work done to isolate the structure between 1937 and 1939 led to the realization that the Arch was an urban gateway attched ìon two sides to  the walls of the city. It is said that at the summit of the Arch there was once  a marble statue of a four-horsed chariot driven by Augustus. During the Medieval period the upper part of what was then known as the Aurea Gateway, was dismantled. The battlements wich can now  be seen were constructed in the 10th century. The Arch of Augustus has recently been restored, returning it to its ancient splendour.

SANTA MARIA DELLE GRAZIE

This fourteenth-century Franciscan church is situated on the Covignano hill. Seriously damaged in World  War II, when the original right-hand aiside was destroyed, fortunately rebuilt very soon after, it attracts  many visitors, partly fot its particular religious  interest, partly for the pleasant surroundings, and partly for the museun, which has a small art gallery displaying works by Lionello Spada, Ottaviano Nelli, Giuseppe Maria Crespi, Giuseppe de Ribera and Bernardo Strozzi. Numerous examples of sacred art, ceramics and Malatesta glassware are also exhibited, together with archaeological finds, silverware, fabrics and a small collection of modern etchings and paintings.



THE MALATESTA TEMPLE

Built on the wishes of Sigismondo Malatesta around the mid fifteenth century to immortalize his glory and that of his family, the Malatesta Temple, real jewel of the italian Renaissance  style, found in the famous architect Leon  Battista Alberti  a brilliant conceiver who translated the noblest canons of Classicism in its structures. Its  interior is inspired by the same ambitious artistic project with bas-relief and decorations  of Agostino di Duccio and Matteo dè Pasti, the high vast scale arcades, the deep side chapels closed by beautiful marble balustrades, the harmonic balance of all its parts. Worthy of mention are: Giotto's crucifix (relic from the Gothic Franciscan church, later transformed by Alberti), the fresco of Piero della Francesca, the tombs of Sigismondo and his wife Isotta, the Ark of the Ancestors, a large canvas  by Vasari. The recent excellent restoration gave  back the monumental  interior its colours and magnificence. The Malatesta Temple is the cathedral of Rimini.

FONTANA DEI QUATTRO CAVALLI

"La Fontana dei quattro cavalli fu inaugurata il 29 giugno del 1928, con la presenza della banda militare di San Marino (...) Ancora supersite nel 1945, dopo il passaggio del fronte, al centro dei giardini, demolito il Kursaal nel 1949, la Fontana dei Cavalli fu di li a poco rimossa e la vasca grande abbattuta nel settembre 1954; dei cavalli marini, trasportati nella locale sede dei Vigili del Fuoco, che ne avevano garantito il salvataggio, in via Dario Campana, tre furono alloggiati nel Parco Marecchia, uno nell'adiacente terreno dell'Acquedotto. Fu solo grazie al pertinace zelo di Umberto Bartolani e della figlia dello scultore Fausta Fabbri, che la fontana, dopo quasi due decenni di alterne ipotesi di "ricollocazione" (P.zza Tripoli, P.le Kennedy) venne ripristinata nella sede originaria nel 1983."

PONTE DI TIBERIO

Started in 14 AD during the regin of Caesar Augustus and completed in 21 AD under Tiberius, this bridge must have been one of the most impressive constructions, together with the Augustus Arch, of the Roman city of Ariminum. The bridge is built in Istrian limestone, and the five arches are supported with  oblique piers that run parallel to the direction of the current. The bridge has come down to us in virtually its original form, restored only once, in 1689, when the most notherly arch was reconstrued after having been demolished by the Ostrogoth leader Usdrila in 522, while Rimini was being besieged by the Byzantine general Narses.



LA VECCHIA PESCHERIA

La vecchia pescheria è uno dei luoghi più pittoreschi e caratteristici della città.
Opera dell'architetto riminese Buonamici, venne eretta nel 1747; agli angoli quattro statuette di delfini con zampillo d'acqua.

FONTANA DELLA PIGNA

Still  existing  in Roman age, it presents the actual  circular, lobate, marble form,  with three drums since 500 and it is a wonderful example of Renaissance architecture. The  fountain  get  water from a roman well far 900 metres. It has been the only water resource till 1912,  when  the  public aqueduct  has been inaugurated. On  the Fountain we can see many inscriptions and the most famous is by Leonardo Da Vinci.



PIAZZA CAVOUR

Ever since the early Middle Ages Piazza Cavour has been the square of the city from which political  and  religious  power  has  been  exercised.  The Palazzo dell'Arengo was  built in Romanesque-Gothic  style  around 1204. It was originally used for the assemblies of the Chief Magistrate, and also as a gaol. Its present appearance is the result of  restorations  carried  out by Gaspare Rastelli in 1924.  At the ground floor, the large  fourteenth-century  fresco of the 'Last  Judgement'  of anonymous  painter known  as  the  Master of  the  Arengo,  and a sixteenth-century fresco showing the 'Last Supper' of the Coda family. Next to the Palazzo dell'Arengo is the Palazzo del Podestà,  built aronud 1330, a circular marble fountain  and a statue of Pope Paul V,  sclulpted in 1611 by Nicolas Cordier. On  the western side of the square is the  Amintore Galli Theatre, designed by Luigi Poletti,inaugurated in 1857 with a performance of Verdi's 'Harold'.

THE GALLI THEATRE

On the western side of the square Cavour is the Amintore Galli Theatre, built in the nineteenth century on the site of a previous seventeenth century building called the 'Forni' or 'Abbondanza'. Designed by  Luigi Poletti, the theatre was inaugurated in 1857 with a performance of Verdi's 'Harold'. The theatre suffered extensive damage during bombing raids in World War II, and only the façade, the foyer and the Ressi Room on the upper storey have survived. These were restored in 1972.