Statue of Petronius, Bologna
The statue of Saint Petronius (La statua di San Petronio) is located in the heart of Bologna, in the middle of the ancient square. There’s a reason behind such a placement – this man is the patron saint of the city. Accordingly, his statue should be in the most visible place. And there is no better place for it since the symbol of the city stands next to it – the Asinelli Tower.
History of the statue
Saint Petronius was a Catholic bishop in Bologna who helped rebuild the city in the mid-5th century. Pope appointed Petronius as the patron of the city and approved veneration of him. For the first time, the idea of installing the monument appeared in 1658. At the same time, people started to raise funds for construction. However, the project was frozen, and resumed only 20 years later, in 1678. By order of the legate Lazzaro Pallavicini, the sculptor Gabriele Brunelli’s design was approved, the plinth was made by the architect Giovanbattista Albertoni. The statue was ready by Christmas, December 24, 1582. But the official opening took place only on May 10, 1584. In 1797, during the Napoleonic occupation, the statue, along with the towers, was bought by Senator Piriteo Malvezzi.
In 1827, the city administration asked to move it somewhere else, as the traffic was constantly increasing. In 1871, the request was fulfilled, and the statue was placed in the small chapel of the Basilica of San Petronio to gather dust. And only on October 4, 2001, the sculpture was returned to where it used to stand.
Sculptural design
The statue of the saint is made entirely of white marble. The plinth is quite new, it was restored according to the original model which was destroyed during the transfer of the monument in 1871. There were bas-reliefs depicting the coats of arms of Bologna, Pope Innocent IX and Cardinal Pallavicini on the old one. They were removed in 1797 by order of Napoleon. The bishop is depicted in priestly clothing, holding a staff in his left hand. The saint is reaching out his right hand as if blessing.
How to get
The statue is located in the ancient heart of the city, on Piazza di Porta Ravegnana. The Jewish Museum and the International Museum and Library of Music are nearby as well. The closest bus stops are Rizzoli (buses № 11, 13, 14, 30) and Piazza di Porta Ravegnana (buses № T1, T2).
