Verona

Description

Located in the north east of the Po Valley, the city of Verona extends along the banks of the Adige river, where its first prehistoric inhabitants settled. After its foundation by the Romans, the city passed to the Lombards, the Franks, and then to the Holy Roman Empire. From the late Middle Ages, it established itself as a commune and then a lordship under the della Scala dynasty. In 1405, it passed to the Republic of Venice.
The Scaligeri (della Scala) coat of arms (a ladder) still dominates monuments and buildings today, and one of the undisputed symbols of the city is the famous equestrian statue of Cangrande della Scala (†1329) amidst the family tombs. Lord and patron, Cangrande brought Dante who dedicated the third canticle of the Divine Comedy to him, to Verona, and Giotto (Vasari notes that he worked in the della Scala palace and in San Fermo although nothing has survived to the present day).  
Notable churches include the Early Christian cathedral, rebuilt in the 12^th century, which houses Titian's Assumption of the Virgin; San Fermo, Sant'Anastasia, and San Zeno whose façade reliefs and bronze door are masterpieces of the Romanesque period.
Iconic spaces in the city include piazza delle Erbe, piazza dei Signori, and Palazzo della Ragione, the historic seat of municipal power and the judicial offices located between them. Verona's most popular attractions are the Arena, a 1^st century AD Roman amphitheatre that is still used for shows and concerts, and, less philologically, Juliet's house on via Cappello. Albeit linked to the adventures of the Montagues and Capulets narrated by William Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet, this is actually a medieval house that was owned by the Cappello family, whose coat of arms (a hat) was mistakenly associated with the Capulets.

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