Welcome to Parma
From
Jesse's Journeys in
Italy
Population: 175,789 (2004)
Official website:
Parma
Wikipedia:
Parma
Map:
MapQuest
Originally settled by
Celtic
tribes people, Parma became an
Etruscan
town, named for their round battle
shield. By 183 BC, along with
Modena,
Parma had become another
Roman colony. It was destroyed
in 44 BC, but re-built by
Caesar Augustus later.
The medieval and modern history of Parma
follows the general course of other
cities in Italy's northern plains.
During the long decline of the Roman
Empire, it was invaded by barbarian
forces from the north - first the
Huns
under
Attila
and then the
Goths
under
Totila
who destroyed the city. Parma next
fell under the short rule of the
Byzantine Empire
who had come to Italy seeking to restore
the hegemony of the Roman Empire.
During this time it was made part of the
Exarchate of Ravenna.
In 570 AD, Byzantine rule gave
way to the
Longobards
invasion and a long period of Longobard
domination ensued.
Parma found itself as a main staging
point along the main road from Italy to
northern Europe, the
via Francigena,
which exposed it to an array of
prodigious cultural influences but also
landed it in the middle of all the
violence that occurred over the
centuries. From the 9th
century onward, Parma's history becomes
very complicated as the surrounding
region - the Romagna - came under
Frankish, Austrian,
Napoleonic and Savoyan rule, and as
struggles between the Papacy and the
Holy Roman Empire waxed and
waned.
Ultimately, Parma was absorbed with the
rest of the Romagna into the modern
state of Italy in 1860. It was
always a volatile and hyper political
city - and has remained so to the
present: animated, sometimes violent
political demonstrations and hot
labor strikes are were and are not -
even toay - uncommon.
Notwithstanding Parma's frequent
destruction at the hands of invaders,
and under the bombs of the Allies during
WW2, much has survived.
Indeed, although Parma is a large,
industrial and business center, its
ancient heart contains a treasure trove
of architectural, artistic and cultural
works.
Traces of Roman times, including ruins
of their theater, amphitheater, thermal
spa and basilica and portions of
the ancient Roman road, the
Via Emilia, are still evident in the
city today. Indeed many of the
main thoroughfares, the stretch from
Via Gramsci to Via D'Azeglio
and the stretch
from Via Mazzini to Via Repubblica of the city are
built on the old thoroughfare. All
other streets in the centro historico
- the historical center - in the grid
originally laid-out by the Romans are
either perpendicular or parallel to the
road. The main piazza, Piazza
Garibaldi, is built on the site of
the ancient Roman forum.
The most significant buildings, which
house incredible frescoes, paintings,
relief work and statuary, include the
Romanesque
Cathedral - or Duomo - and Baptistry, a
complex started in 1196. The Duomo
has works by
Correggio and
Antelami. The church of
Saint John the Evangelist was built
during the high Renaissance between 1498
and 1510 AD. A
Baroque
facade was added later. The
interior dome was frescoed by Correggio
who, along with another local artist,
Araldi, also frescoed the Monastery
of Saint Paul.
The Palazzo della Pilotta is
probably the most important and
impressive secular buidling. Built
in 1583 in the
Renaissance style,
it currently houses the Academy of
Fine Arts, whose collection includes
works from the so-called School of
Parma. The Palazzo is also
home to the the Palatine Library,
the National Gallery, the
Archaeological Museum, the Bodoni Museum and the
Farnese
Theatre. The later was built entirely in wood over the
years 1618 and 1619.
Music aficionados will find much to see
and do in Parma. Parma's opera
house, the Teatro Regio,
featuring a neo-Classical facade and a
porch with a double row of windows was
built between 1821 and 1829. The
very famous modern Italian
architect,
Renzo Piano, designed another
theatre, an Auditorium dedicated to
Niccolo Pagannini. The birth home of
conductor
Arturo Toscanini, now a museum, is
close by.
Museum lovers
should be sure to see the Museo Lombardi
with its superior prestigious collection of art and historical
artifacts and lovers of gardens and
man-made landscapes should pay a visit
to the
Ducal Park, opened in 1561, at
the Farnese Palace. Here
you will find a place to relax and
take a deep breath amidst a well-tended
green space that evokes a long bygone
era.
We can not end an article about Parma
without advising travelers to take the
time out to eat at least one good
Parmensi meal - and many more if
possible - during their time in the
city.
Two of its foods are famous the world
over: Parmesan cheese and
Parma ham, including the spectacular
prosciutto. Naturally, these
products find themselves into a variety
of the dishes served up by restaurants
in Parma and the surrounding area.
Remember, Parma is in the middle of an
immensely fertile area, and so there are
a host of other local agricultural
products - vegetable, grain, meat and
dairy - that find their way into the
local cuisine. And, of course, a
good meal goes is enjoyed all the more
with a glass - or two! - of local wine,
say the Rossi di Colli di Parma,
which is made from Barbera and Bonarda
grapes or the the Malvasia or
Sauvignon whites.
Perfetto!
By Vian Andrews, September 2, 2006 |
