The golden octagon of the Renaissance
Lodi, on the Adda river south east of Milan, was refounded in 1158 by Frederick Barbarossa after the Milanese had destroyed the old town, Lodi Vecchio. Its historic centre is gathered around the vast arcaded Piazza della Vittoria, one of the most beautiful squares in Lombardy, with the Romanesque cathedral and the Broletto.
A short walk away is the city's treasure, the Tempio Civico della Beata Vergine Incoronata, a sanctuary built from 1488 by Giovanni Battagio, a pupil of Bramante, on the site of a brothel where a miraculous image of the Virgin had appeared. Its plain octagonal brick exterior gives no hint of the interior, which is one of the most astonishing in Italy: every surface is covered with gilded decorations, frescoes, paintings and coloured stuccoes, under a dome that seems made of gold. Among the works are four panels by Bergognone with the life of the Virgin. In 1796, after the battle at the bridge of Lodi, Napoleon first felt, as he later wrote, that he was destined for great things.
Tip: the Incoronata is open every day; Lodi is also a good place to taste the "raspadura", thin shavings of Grana cheese.
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