Knowing 's province: History, art, nature and new architecture

Today, Milan's province includes 189 cities. This area is so rich and diverse that it deserves several itineraries: hence, the publication "Knowing Milan and its province". Cultura, arte, paesaggi, tradizioni fan- Milano, la grande capitale della laborio- Dopo aver avviato, ormai nel lontano Conoscere Milano e la sua provincia. Un This project aims at promoting and enhancing the Milan no parte del patrimonio turistico, spes- sità italiana, ha una lunga storia da rac- 2002, i primi itinerari alla scoperta di invito che AIM rivolge a tutti i cittadini area; it was conceived by the Department for Tourism so sottovalutato, della provincia di contare e da leggere nei segni che dal una Milano in profonda trasformazio- della città centrale a diventare "viandan- of the Provincial Administration, together with the Milano. Eppure il nostro territorio è al passato ad oggi e nelle prospettive del ne,e in particolare dei nuovi quartieri ti nella loro terra", ad uscire dalle mura Urban Center of the City of Milan and the Chamber of sesto posto nella graduatoria italiana futuro segnalano gli interventi dell'uomo con nuovi parchi sorti su aree industria- urbane e a ritrovare nei segni del passa- Commerce of Milan. per le presenze turistiche e, anche se sul territorio, con le diversificate forme li dismesse, Urban Center promuove to e nelle realtà della vita odierna il per- gran parte di queste vengono generate di agricoltura e di produzione e nelle questo nuovo Conoscere Milano esteso corso che l'uomo ha condotto occupan- AIM designed and dal flusso di visite per affari, vi è un infrastrutture. E poi la rete dei centri a tutto il territorio della provincia. do e facendo fruttare un territorio fra i co-ordinated sempre crescente numero di cittadini urbani divenuti centri dell'industria Gli itinerari, disegnati a corolla attorno più fertili e ricchi dell'Europa. the itineraries. Ten interessati a scoprire inaspettati luoghi lungo le linee del trasporto viario, d'ac- a Milano, con tappe molto diverse tra Il percorso di conoscenza del moderno guided tours, di interesse a poca distanza da casa. qua e ferroviario, e accanto alle fonti di loro, toccheranno il ricco patrimonio viandante incontrerà poi, pur nella ricor- diverse and Per questo motivo presentiamo con energia. E ancora gli snodi del commer- storico e artistico insieme a trasforma- rente congestione di un territorio fitto interesting, soddisfazione, insieme alla Camera di cio, dell'incontro e della residenza dalle zioni e recuperi contemporanei, parten- di presenze abitative, produttive e infra- to unveil an area that Commercio e con il patrocinio di più lontane forme di insediamento ai do spesso da luoghi storici, nuovi quar- strutturali, i segni evidenti di nuove has a rich heritage Urban Center, questo programma di iti- nuovi quartieri. Negli itinerari per "cono- tieri o progetti di recupero realizzati a politiche di recupero e riassesto dei and a strong nerari attraverso la storia e l'arte nei scere Milano e la Provincia" si leggono Milano, a sottolineare il ruolo baricen- centri storici, di restauro di beni monu- drive towards the dintorni della città senza tralasciare le stratificati tutti questi interventi e si vede trico che il capoluogo detiene. mentali pubblici, privati ed ecclesiasti- aree dedicate all'agricoltura, all’indu- anche quanto lavoro ancora si possa e Urban Center si dimostra ancora una ci, nuove tipologie di parchi tutelati e future. stria e quelle degli ambienti naturali. si debba promuovere per migliorare la volta il luogo dedicato alla comunica- aperti ad utilizzi vari per il tempo libero Brevi visite per scoprire che, per "fare qualità della vita e dell'ambiente e per zione e all'informazione sul territorio, in e lo sport. Segnali concreti di un diffu- turismo", non sempre è necessario dare nuovi impulsi economici e sociali questo caso con l'obiettivo rivolto alle so rinascimento e rinnovamento am- ITINERARY 7 affrontare lunghi viaggi in terre lontane. allo sviluppo. tante mete ricche di storia e di tesori bientale promosso e gestito dagli enti disseminati nella provincia milanese locali che sono anch'essi una ricchezza Direttore centrale Hanno collaborato Roberto Barelli VILLAS AND HISTORIC CENTRES BETWEEN Filippo Penati Carlo Sangalli del nostro territorio. Cultura e Turismo THE MARTESANA CANAL AND THE RIVER Presidente Presidente Pia Benci Alessandra Costarpa Provincia di Milano Camera di Commercio di Milano Silvia Iantorno Responsabile Servizio Loretta Sangalli City Doors Turismo Luisa Zanardi The city's Custom Houses are being Monica Giudici Anna Zetti renovated to accommodate new functions VILLAS AND HISTORIC CENTRES BETWEEN THE MARTESANA CANAL AND THE ADDA RIVER Via Padova - Martesana A multi-ethnic neighbourhood and historic villas As we go north-east of Milan, we flank the Martesana canal Area Programmazione Renato Mattioni on the canal along the ancient "Venetian Post Road" along Via Padova; in the past, it was know as the riviera of Comunicazione Federica Villa Milan because of the villas, famous hostels and restaurants e Relazioni Istituzionali Laura Colombo along the canal. Unfortunately, today the villas are surrounded In the historic centre and all along Martesana, by modern high-rise buildings, but the old-time beauty can sumptuous villas with their huge parks still be perceived. The Naviglio della Martesana was designed Research and copy General co-ordination Luisa Toeschi Vimercate under Duke Filippo Maria Visconti in the 15th century, to Monica Torri Mara Martello Carlo Berizzi A rich, commercial town with scenic provide water to farming fields, power to the industry and to Claudia Galassi monuments and noble houses create a navigable canal connecting to the Adda river and the Massimo Tiano Milly Di Bello region of Bergamo. It leads from the ancient Castle of Trezzo Trezzo sull'Adda to central Milan, where it is now flowing under the street at the Graphic and photos Itinerary guides Roberto Redaelli A scenic view on river from the top of the castle, San Marco Locks - the city's old fluvial harbour. The land Società CIVITA with the famous hydroelectric power plant around the Martesana is characterised by ancient settlements, noble villas and hydraulic-powered workshops, still visible in INFORMATION a heavily industrialised and urbanised area.Up the Naviglio, we reach the area of Vimercate, where many industrial concerns www.provincia.milano.it specialise in IT, technology and communication. This area has www.conosceremilano.it many small or medium-sized towns, that have attracted plenty Tourist Office Province of Milan of business activities. Vimercate itself has a surprising town Piazza Castello 1 ang. Via Luca Beltrami centre, with villas, mansions and churches. Tel 02 805.80.614/15/16 Back to the waterfront, our itinerary leads to Trezzo sull'Adda, where the river is still used for the production of hydraulic Monday to friday 9 a.m. - 3 p.m power. Here, we find the historic Taccani power station, that Mail: [email protected] dates back to the early 20th century and stands as an Copyright: Province of Milan-AIM 2006 extraordinary example of elegant industrial archaeology. 4. CERNUSCO SUL NAVIGLIO 1. LE PORTE 3. LA MARTESANA Martesana is also one of the reasons for the fortunes 5. PESSANO The Custom Houses at Porta Between the 18th and 19th of Cernusco sul Naviglio, that was founded by the CON BORNAGO Venezia, now renovated, are centuries, Via Padova was Romans and later became a feud of the Torriani, After a stretch of land interspersed with farmhouses, the location of the Bread known as "Milan's riviera" Trivulzio and Serbelloni families. In the 18th century, we get to the industrial area of ; Museum. They belong to a thanks to its many noble "delight houses" started to appear along the canal, in 1991, the Corriere della Sera daily opened its wider scheme including the mansions. Lavish gardens belonging to Milan's aristocracy. They can still be printing facility here. This area is protected within and Porta were easily grown thanks to seen in the town centre, where precious architectural the Parco del Molgora, 1,000 hectares of wetland Nuova Custom Houses, that their proximity to the canal, details appear, such as the 18th-century Villa Biancani and farmland around the namesake creek. aims at renovating the Doors 2. VIA PADOVA that also afforded scenic views. Greppi, and along the canal - where we see the parks that marked Milan's Out of the Doors, the Stradone Near the Church of Santa of Villa Uboldo and Villa Alari Visconti; the latter is boundaries until the 19th del Loreto, now Corso Buenos Maria Rossa in , a sumptuous mansion designed by Ruggeri in 1719. century. The beautiful neo- Aires, was created in 1787, we find Villa Petrovic, Villa Both gardens now belong to the City; they are included classical Villa Belgiojoso leading to the "Venetian Post De Ponti and Villa Lecchi. The in the Parco della Martesana, that has a 2-km walk Bonaparte at Road", today Via Padova. This Naviglio was completed in just along the water and is the largest linear park in has also been recently convenient transport network 40 years, in 1497; it connected . Water abounds here, and it is the renovated; it opened in 2006 attracted industries to settle in Milan to the Adda river, and theme of many park facilities and amenities. as the 19th century Museum. the area, such as Magneti was a part of the canal system Marelli and Ovomaltina. A that transformed Milan into a council housing district was water city between the 12th and built here in the early 19th 19th centuries. century, that has become a lively multi-ethnic neighbourhood.

6. VIMERCATE Until the 19th century, this area was basically moor land. Its main centre is Vimercate, that has been an active marketplace ever since Roman times. It became particularly important during the Middle Ages, when the Roman Bridge of San Rocco was fortified. The period Romanic church of Santo Stefano still exists (10th-11th century), modified in the 16th century with Campi frescoes and the Oratorio of Sant'Antonio Abate (12th-14th century). The most impressive building is Palazzo Trotti, now the Town Hall, built in the late 17th century. It is very sober on the outside, but hides rich 7. TREZZO mythological 18th-century frescoes in its rooms. In Oreno, SULL’ADDA we find more mansions: neo-classical Going towards the Adda river, we pass the Sulbiate Inferiore and Bellusco castles, that bear witness to a land Villa Gallarati Scotti (1790-93) and that has long been fought over; the river marked the natural boundary between the and the Borromeo Hunting Pavilion, Venice's Serenissima Republic. Three centuries later, the same river became the main source of hydraulic decorated with 15th century frescoes. power, that spurred the area's industrial development. This is shown by the many power plants built along the Adda in the early 20th century; the most famous is the Taccani power plant, then a state-of-the-art installation. G. Moretti designed it in 1906 to feed power to the nearby Crespi d'Adda factories. It mirrors in the river and is a unique environmental case study. Because of its location, the outside is covered in local stone, and it is embattled on top, like the Castle just above. The plant still provides power to the provinces of Milan, Como and Bergamo. The need to control the river was the reason why the castle was built to defend Milan; Bernabò Visconti started its plan in 1377 on the site of an ancient Lombard fort. The castle, that stood as a proud display of the Viscontis' power, was destroyed several times; it stands on top of a cliff high above the winding river.