On the eight hundredth anniversary of its foundation (1222-2022), the University of Padua opens the doors of its most prestigious science locations to the public, every Saturday and Sunday.

For the first time, you can make the Grand Tour of the Sciences taking advantage of a single ticket, visiting the Palazzo del Bo, with its Anatomical Theatre and the podium used by Galileo; the oldest university Botanical Garden in the world, a Unesco heritage site; the Hall of the Giants with its majestic cycle of frescoes; the Museum of Archaeological Sciences and Art, and the Palazzo Liviano, designed by Gio Ponti; the first Geography Museum in Italy; the “Giovanni Poleni” Museum of Physics history with its priceless scientific instruments; the “Enrico Bernardi” Museum of Machines, housing the first Italian motor car; and the historic garden of the Villa Parco Bolasco in Castelfranco Veneto (Treviso), past winner of the ‘Most Beautiful Italian Park’ award.

PALAZZO DEL BO

Via 8 Febbraio 1848 2, guided tour with advance booking,
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00.

Palazzo del Bo, the historic seat of the University of Padua since 1493. This is the location of the Rector’s Rooms and the Law School, and it also houses the oldest permanent Anatomical Theatre in the world, designed by Girolamo Fabrici D’Acquapendente in 1595. The guided tour takes in the Aula Magna, the Hall of the Forty with the Chair of Galileo Galilei, the old Courtyard and 20th century interiors designed in the 1930s by renowned architect Gio Ponti.

Info about the guided tours

 

SALA DEI GIGANTI HALL OF THE GIANTS

Palazzo Liviano, Piazza Capitaniato 7
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00.
Access subject to scheduling of events and shows on the premises.

The Hall of the Giants was one of the reception rooms in the Palace of the Carraresi. Francesco I of Carrara commissioned a cycle of frescoes for the Hall, depicting illustrious figures of ancient history, inspired by Petrarch’s De viris illustribus. Once Padua had become part of the Venetian Republic in 1405, the palace became the seat of the Capitanio, and during 1539 and 1540, a new cycle of frescoes was added on the initiative of Girolamo Corner, complementing that of the period under the Carrara. From the 17th century to the beginning of the 20th, this hall was home to the initial core of the University Library, whereas today it provides a venue for concerts and cultural events.

Info about the guided tours

 

THE BOTANICAL GARDEN

Via Orto botanico 15
Tuesday to Sunday, between 10.00 and 19.00 from April to September; 10.00 and 18.00 during October; 10.00 and 17.00 from November to March.

Founded in 1545, the Botanical Garden of Padua is the oldest university botanical garden in the world. It is also a Unesco heritage site. There are 3,500 botanical species grown here, and more than 6,000 specimens of plants from around the world.

Along with the original Hortus simplicium, dedicated to the cultivation of medicinal plants, 2014 saw the addition of the Biodiversity Garden, a greenhouse complex affording a unique way to experience the biomes of Planet Earth, and discover how plants, humans and the environment interrelate.

Plan your visit

 

MUSEUM OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCES AND ART

Palazzo Liviano, Piazza Capitaniato 7,
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00.

The Museum of Archaeological Sciences and Art, at the Palazzo Liviano, was designed by Gio Ponti in the late 1930s. Its historic core consists of antiquities and objets d’art from the 16th century Mantova Benavides collection. Displayed in the archaeology rooms are findings from the civilizations of the Eastern Mediterranean and Ancient Egypt, from Greek civilization, Italic peoples and Roman civilization, with a particular focus on ancient Patavium. The plaster gallery of the Museum features casts of classical sculptures from the foremost museums in Rome, Naples, Florence and Venice, and others from important international excavations.

Info about the museum collections

 

GEOGRAPHY MUSEUM

Palazzo Wollemborg, via del Santo 26,
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00.

This Geography Museum is the first and the only university museum of its kind in Italy. Housed in the historic Palazzo Wollemborg, the exhibits include globes, models, maps, atlases, photographs and measuring instruments dating from the 15th century. A collection created over more than 150 years of studying and teaching this discipline in one of Italian Geography’s most celebrated temples.

Info about the museum collections

 

GIOVANNI POLENI MUSEUM

Via Loredan 10,
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00.

The new Museum has its origins in the Physics Laboratory established in Padua in 1739 by Giovanni Poleni, a scientist of European renown.
The collections, enriched with instruments of the 16th and 17th century, pave the way for the innovations of the 20th century in the field of physics research. The museum houses unique items such as sundials and astrolabes, and instruments for giving direct and immediate demonstrations of the laws of physics. Alongside the first radiographs made using X-rays, there are instruments for studying cosmic rays: a journey through the development of scientific thought and technology, embracing astronomy, mechanics, pneumatics and electricity.

Info about the museum collections

 

ENRICO BERNARDI MUSEUM OF MACHINES

Via Venezia 1,
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00.

On show in the Museum are early internal combustion engines built by Enrico Bernardi, prototypes that shaped the history of motor vehicles in Europe during the second half of the 19th century.
Exhibits include the Pia power unit, the first example of a petrol engine in the world, a number of Lauro 4-stroke engines, one of which fitted to an ordinary bicycle — a precursor of modern motorcycles — and the 3-wheeler built in 1894: the first all-Italian motor car.

Info about the museum collections

 

VILLA PARCO BOLASCO IN CASTELFRANCO VENETO

Entrance in Via Ospedale,
Friday to Sunday, between 10.00 and 19.00 from April to September; between 10.00 and 18.00 during October. Closed from November 2022 to Spring 2023

The historic garden of the Villa has over a thousand trees and includes a lake fed by the waters of the Avenale stream, with two small islands. An area of eight hectares in all. Inspired by the typical features of the English garden, it was laid out in the mid-1800s by Venetian architect Giambattista Meduna. The garden occupies an architectural site known in the 17th century as “Il Paradiso” and incorporates certain of the remains, such as statues by the sculptor Orazio Marinali, which today surround a highly original manège, dominated by two monumental chargers.
Features of the Villa, open only for guided tours, include a magnificent hall — the Sala delle Feste — and stables in the Liberty style.

Information