Loggia degli Osii
Encyclopedia
The Loggia
degli Osii is a historical building of Milan
, Italy
. It is located in Piazza Mercanti
, a central city square of Milan that used to be its centre in the Middle Ages
.
Sentences and edicts were proclaimed by the Milanese judges from the Loggia's balcony (known as parlera), decorated with an eagle holding a prey, symbol of justice.
portico and loggia in the façade; not usual for the Milanese Gothic structures is the white and black marble decoration: this, more common in Genoa at the time, is perhaps a homage to Matteo Visconti's wife, Valentina Doria
.
The two loggias are surmounted by a series of triple mullioned windows, housing statues. These were realized by Ugo da Campione and his son Giovanni, by other masters from Campione d'Italia
and Tuscany
, in the 14th century.
Loggia
Loggia is the name given to an architectural feature, originally of Minoan design. They are often a gallery or corridor at ground level, sometimes higher, on the facade of a building and open to the air on one side, where it is supported by columns or pierced openings in the wall...
degli Osii is a historical building of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It is located in Piazza Mercanti
Piazza Mercanti
Piazza Mercanti is a central city square of Milan, Italy. It is located between Piazza del Duomo, which marks the centre of the modern city of Milan, and Piazza Cordusio, and it used to be the heart of the city in the Middle Ages...
, a central city square of Milan that used to be its centre in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
.
History
It was built in 1321 by order of Matteo I Visconti, lord of Milan, who wanted a series of porticoes near the Palazzo della Ragione to house the judicial and notary activities of the city. The name derives from that of the Osii family, who held some palaces in the area before its construction. The Loggia was designed by Scoto da San Gimignano.Sentences and edicts were proclaimed by the Milanese judges from the Loggia's balcony (known as parlera), decorated with an eagle holding a prey, symbol of justice.
Description
The edifice has a Gothic styleGothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
portico and loggia in the façade; not usual for the Milanese Gothic structures is the white and black marble decoration: this, more common in Genoa at the time, is perhaps a homage to Matteo Visconti's wife, Valentina Doria
Doria
Doria, originally de Auria , meaning "the sons of Auria", and then de Oria or d'Oria, is the name of an old and extremely wealthy Genoese family who played a major role in the history of the Republic of Genoa and in Italy, from the 12th century to the 16th century.-Origins:According to legend, a...
.
The two loggias are surmounted by a series of triple mullioned windows, housing statues. These were realized by Ugo da Campione and his son Giovanni, by other masters from Campione d'Italia
Campione d'Italia
Campione d'Italia is an Italian comune of the Province of Como in the Lombardy region, occupying an enclave within the Swiss canton of Ticino, separated from the rest of Italy by Lake Lugano and mountains...
and Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, in the 14th century.