The porticoes: 62 kilometres of umbrella

In Bologna an umbrella is almost optional. The porticoes cover about 62 kilometres, some forty of them in the historic centre: no other city in the world has so many. In 2021 UNESCO inscribed them as a World Heritage Site.

Why they were built

In the Middle Ages the city was growing fast, partly thanks to the University, which drew students from all over Europe. To gain space, houses were extended over the street on overhangs supported by beams. In the 13th century a city regulation made porticoes compulsory: they had to be high enough for a man on horseback to pass beneath.

Wood, brick, marble

Walking around, you can read the city’s history above your head. In Strada Maggiore, Casa Isolani still has a medieval portico with very tall wooden columns. Then come Renaissance stone porticoes, Baroque ones and even modern concrete ones in the Barca district, nicknamed “the Train”.

All the way to San Luca

The longest of all climbs from the Meloncello arch to the Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca on the Colle della Guardia: almost 4 kilometres and 666 arches. The number is no coincidence: according to tradition it represents the serpent – the devil – crushed by the Madonna at the top of the climb. Walking it is a ritual for the Bolognese, some out of devotion and some for exercise.