The ideal city of the Gonzaga
In the countryside south west of Mantua, Sabbioneta is one of the purest examples of a Renaissance ideal city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site together with Mantua. It was built from nothing between 1556 and 1591 by Vespasiano Gonzaga, a cultured condottiero and duke from a cadet branch of the family, who wanted a "little Athens" following the principles of the treatise writers of the time.
Enclosed in star-shaped walls with bastions, the town has a grid of straight streets and two main squares, one for civic power, one for the duke. Its main buildings can be visited on a single route: the Palazzo Ducale, with the wooden equestrian statues of the Gonzaga; the Teatro all'Antica, designed by Vincenzo Scamozzi in 1588, one of the first purpose-built theatres in Europe, with a colonnade of statues of the gods; the Palazzo Giardino, the duke's private residence, connected to the Galleria degli Antichi, a gallery almost 100 metres long that once displayed his collection of ancient sculptures; and the church of the Incoronata, with Vespasiano's tomb. Today Sabbioneta has about four thousand inhabitants and keeps an atmosphere of quiet perfection.
Tip: buy the cumulative ticket at the tourist office, which includes all the monuments with guided access; the town is also lovely to explore by bicycle.
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