The historic heart of Feltre
Piazza Maggiore, officially named Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, is the square in the heart of the historic center of the City of Feltre.
A place rich in history, the center of social and political life of the city, its current shape dates back to the Renaissance. The square is bordered by the Gazzi, Guarnieri, and Cingolani palaces, the Lombard fountains, the church dedicated to Saints Rocco and Sebastiano, the Castle of Alboino with the Clock Tower and the Palazzo della Ragione, the seat of the Municipality with the majestic Teatro della Sena and the Hall of Heraldry.
In the square stand out the statues dedicated to Vittorino da Feltre (great Italian educator) and to Panfilo Castaldi (physician and master of printing books, credited by some historians as the “true” inventor of movable type for printing) as well as the Lion of St. Mark, a symbol of dedication to the Most Serene Republic of Venice that occurred in 1404 and is remembered every year on the first weekend of August with the Palio of Feltre or Palio dei 15 ducati, where costumed characters parade through the city streets along with flag-wavers and representatives of the four city districts who then compete in contests to win the Palio.
