Promo - published on 14 August 2024
Belluno, a city of remote origins, with the first settlements of the Paleovenetians and Celts, seems to have derived its name from the latter: ‘Belo-dunum’ meaning ‘fortified city or bright, shining fortress’, a reference perhaps to its privileged position that from the isolated promontory on which it stands allows the eye to wander from the ridge of the Pre-Alps to the peaks of the Dolomites, a UNESCO heritage site, and to extend over the valley of the Piave River.
Water, in fact, is a distinctive feature of the town: on the slopes of the hill the Ardo torrent flows on three sides, with its spectacular gorges, and the Piave river, on which the rafts once floated, laden with Cadore timber, down to Venice to supply the Arsenal of the Serenissima. But water is also present in the beautiful fountains carved in local stone that embellish the urban landscape with very characteristic architectural elements.
The historical centre, protected in the past by fortified walls, of which only a few traces can now be seen, including the imposing 22-metre-high round tower and the ancient gates, is a treasure trove of beauty that slowly reveals itself to the visitor. The elegant bell tower, designed by the Messina architect Filippo Juvarra, one of the greatest exponents of Italian Baroque, towers over Piazza Duomo, the heart of political and religious life in the past and present. The irregular space of the square is crowned by the Renaissance Cathedral of St Martin with its unfinished façade, the Palazzo dei Rettori in Venetian Gothic style, a testimony to the centuries-long rule of the Serenissima, the Palazzo Rosso, the neo-Gothic seat of the city municipality, and the Palazzo dei Vescovi, now the Auditorium, an ancient fortified building that has been remodelled several times and still retains its original medieval civic tower. Closing the southern front is Palazzo Piloni, now the seat of the Provincial Administration, which houses a beautiful cycle of frescoes -an allegory of the four seasons- by Cesare Vecellio, cousin of the famous Titian.
Art lovers will be interested in the churches of S. Stefano and S. Pietro, rich in precious artistic artefacts, and the Museo Civico di Palazzo Fulcis, a refined example of 18th-century architecture that houses numerous collections, including the works of the internationally renowned Bellunese Andrea Brustolon, defined by Honoré de Balzac as the ‘Michelangelo of wood’, and the coeval Sebastiano Ricci, an absolute protagonist of European Rococo painting.
For those in search of conviviality, the city salon of Piazza dei Martiri offers historic restaurants and modern pubs, while the medieval Piazza delle Erbe remains the place for daily shopping and hosts a small fruit and vegetable market in the Veneto tradition. Piazza Martiri is also home to one of the city’s main cultural landmarks, the majestic neoclassical municipal theatre dedicated to Dino Buzzati, the well-known 20th-century writer and journalist from Belluno, which hosts plays, concerts and other artistic events, including the autumn festival ‘Oltre le Vette. Metaphors, people, places of the mountains’. Belluno is also a child-friendly city for children and their families, promoting initiatives and activities for children, both residents and tourists, all year round.
Among the most animated and popular events in the city are the Sagra dei Fisciòt with the historic procession of the Madonna dell’Addolorata and the St. Martin’s Fair celebrating the patron saint, moments in which the skill of local craftsmen is also measured. And it is precisely in the autumn ‘Ex tempore internazionale di scultura su legno’ (International Wood Sculpture Fair) that Belluno connotes itself as an Alpine city, when the scent of pine wood and the sound of chisels waft through the streets and squares of the centre. The same spirit can be encountered at Gianluigi Secco’s Museo Maschere Dolomitiche (Museum of the Dolomite Masks), an exhibition space set up in a beautiful 15th-century building on the former river port, where an important legacy can be admired that merges woodworking with the rituals and traditions of the Dolomite carnivals.
Not to be missed during the square festivals is the tasting of typical dishes, above all the “pastin”, made with coarsely minced pork and beef with a strong spicy flavour, which is served as a hamburger or accompanied by sponcio corn polenta and seasonal vegetables, thus enhancing the genuine flavours of mountain tradition.
Immersing yourself in nature starting from Belluno is very easy: as soon as you leave the city, you have a vast network of hiking trails with different levels of difficulty to cover on foot or by bicycle. For those seeking a more demanding challenge, there is the opportunity to practice mountaineering on the equipped routes of the surrounding peaks, or to walk the Alta Via delle Dolomiti n. 1, a 125 km-long path in stages, which, starting from Lake Braies and crossing the most beautiful Dolomite massifs, reaches Belluno. In addition, the nearby pre-alpine resort of Nevegal offers beautiful walks, with the possibility on clear days to see the Dolomite peaks and the Venetian lagoon at the same time. Popular throughout the year, in winter Nevegal becomes the realm of snowboarders and snowshoers, as well as on and off-piste skiers.
Belluno, then, is a shining city, a fortified city, a city with a mountain heart, animated by what the Bellunese Dino Buzzati described as ‘a special personality that gives it an extraordinary charm, but which few people actually notice’.
Text and translation by Cecilia Flaccavento
Intern at the Chamber of Commerce of Treviso – Belluno|Dolomites
In collaboration with Monica Sandi,
Culture and Tourism Office, Territorial School-Work Alternation of the Chamber of Commerce of Treviso – Belluno|Dolomites
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