Palazzo dell'Archiginnasio and Teatro Anatomico

Until the 16th century, the University of Bologna had no home: masters taught in rooms scattered across the city. In 1562, Cardinal Carlo Borromeo, on behalf of Pope Pius IV, had this palace built to a design by Antonio Morandi, known as il Terribilia, and in little over a year the schools of law and arts had a single seat. The university remained here until 1803.

The courtyard and staircases are covered with coats of arms and inscriptions of the masters and students who succeeded one another over the centuries: thousands of painted and carved coats of arms, the largest heraldic wall complex in existence. Today the palace houses the municipal library, which is not open to tourists.

On the first floor you can visit the Teatro Anatomico, built in 1637 to a design by Antonio Levanti: an amphitheatre entirely in fir wood where students attended anatomy lessons on the marble table in the centre. The professor's chair is supported by the Spellati, two statues of skinless men carved in the 18th century by Ercole Lelli. The bombs of 1944 destroyed it almost completely: it was rebuilt with the original pieces recovered from the rubble.

Next to it is the Stabat Mater hall, the former law lecture room, which takes its name from the first Italian performance of Gioachino Rossini's Stabat Mater, on 18 March 1842, conducted by Gaetano Donizetti. The palace portico, the Pavaglione, is part of the porticoes of Bologna UNESCO World Heritage Site.