Specola

❝The western wall of the city of Padua offers fascinating views, not least of the original long tower (Torlonga) of the medieval Carraresi fortress. The Torlonga rises adjacent to the Bacchiglione River, once the object of its political control. Today, the Specola Tower is the seat of the Observatory, from which it took its name in the eighteenth century.❞

The Specola tower, the ancient Torlonga of the formidable fortress that was built to preside over traffic on the Bacchiglione river, rises up from green banks on the principal urban tract of the river, called the Tronco Maestro. This exceptional medieval building stands in a key position, at the point where the Naviglio Interno canal (partly buried today, sadly) leaves the river and pushed on through the historical centre to be reunited with the main branch at the Porte Contarine. Due to the strategic location, which allowed for easy control of commercial traffic on the urban water arteries of Padua, the Ezzelini family erected an imposing fortification with two towers here in 1242. During the following century, the Da Carrara family who took over the governing of the city, built a new castle on the ruins of the prior defensive structure, embellishing it with impressive decoration both inside and outside. When Padua was annexed by the Venetian republic and the sixteenth century wall was built, the fortress lost its original military function and fell into decline until the eighteenth century when its restoration began. In 1761 the Venetian Senate decided to instate an Observatory for the University of Padua here, in the ancient Torlonga of the Carraresi Castle. Thanks to the abbot and Professor of Astrology, Giuseppe Toaldo, and the architect Domenico Cerato, the Specola was completed in 1777, becoming one of the most important observatories in Europe. It is even mentioned by Goethe in his "Italian Journey". Today the tower houses the La Specola astronomical museum, and is a fascinating site of "Padua city of water", set upon the urban course of the Bacchiglione, amid lush riparian vegetation, historical bridges and, on the opposite banks, the characteristic arcade of the Paleocapa Riviera.