Photo: MarkusMark, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Historic villa / palace
Palazzo della Ragione
Building in Milan, Italy
At a glance
- Style
- Gothic architecture
- Architect
- Vincenzo Seregni
- Protection
- Italian national heritage
- Coordinates
- 45°27′53″ N, 9°11′16″ E
- Address
- Piazza Mercanti
History and description
The Palazzo della Ragione ("Palace of Reason") is a historic building in Milan, Italy, located in Piazza Mercanti, facing the Loggia degli Osii. Built in the 13th century, it originally served as a broletto—an administrative and judicial building. As the second broletto constructed in Milan, it is also known as the Broletto Nuovo ("New Broletto").
The palace features a relief of Oldrado da Tresseno, the podestà of Milan known for his harsh prosecution of Cathar heretics. Another notable element is the bas-relief of the scrofa semilanuta ("half-woolly sow"), which has been the subject of much scholarly debate concerning the foundation and early symbolism of Milan.
History
The building was constructed between 1228 and 1233 for podestà Oldrado da Tresseno. It maintained a central role in the administrative and public life of Milan until the late 18th century. In 1773, under Empress Maria Theresa, it was restored and enlarged to serve as legal archives. The structural changes were designed by architect Francesco Croce, who added a new upper floor with large round windows and restyled the whole building based on Neoclassic canons. Other major modifications of the buildings were done in 1854 by architect Enrico Terzaghi; these included glass panes that closed the ground floor ambulatory, which was reopened between 1905 and 1907.
Between 1866 and 1870, the building housed the headquarters of the Banca Popolare di Milano, a major Milanese bank, but thereafter returned to its function as a legal archives seat until 1970. In 1978, Marco Dezzi Bardeschi restored the building again, but he strongly opposed any proposal of structural change, including that of removing the upper floor added by Croce.
Palazzo della Ragione inspired the design of another renowned building in the Milanese area, the Arengario of Monza.
Text from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Full article: «Palazzo della Ragione».
People
Events and people from Wikidata (CC0).
Photos
Getting there
Milano CadornaTrain, nearest
1.0 km as the crow flies
Palazzo della RagionePiazza Mercanti
Aeroporto di Milano-Linate6.8 km
Distances are as the crow flies, not walking or driving.
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Nearby
See on the mapMore historic villas and palaces in Lombardy
Frequently asked questions
Where is Palazzo della Ragione?
Palazzo della Ragione is in Milan, in the province of Milano (Lombardy), Italy. Address: Piazza Mercanti. GPS coordinates: 45.46481, 9.18778.
What else is there to see near Palazzo della Ragione?
Nearby you’ll find: Palazzo delle Scuole Palatine (0 m away), Casa Panigarola (0 m away), Palazzo dei Giureconsulti (0 m away).
Sources and licences
Text. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Data. Wikidata (CC0); opening hours and contacts OpenStreetMap (ODbL).
Photos. Wikimedia Commons, author and licence on every image.
Credits for the 9 photos
- 878MilanoPalazzoRagione — MarkusMark, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Milano - Palazzo della Ragione - 2023-10-29 4252 — C messier, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Milano - palazzo della Ragione - 2026-09-30 19-11-05 001 — Effems, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Milano - Palazzo della Ragione — Lucamato, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Milano - Portico del Palazzo della Ragione — Lucamato, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Palazzo della Ragione - Milano 1 — Diego Baglieri, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Palazzo della Ragione (a destra nella foto), Milano — Margherito1, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Palazzo della Ragione Milano 2022-09-28 01 — Leonhard Lenz, CC0
- Palazzo della Ragione-Scorcio — Mbettacc, CC BY-SA 4.0
Updated 28 October 2026. All sources and licences