Porta Volta, City gate in Milan, Italy
Porta Volta is a city gate in northern Milan made up of two symmetrical neoclassical control buildings joined by an iron gate. The structure marks the passage through what were once the Spanish walls surrounding the city.
The gate was completed in 1880 by architect Cesare Beruto to link the city center with the newly built Monumentale Cemetery to the north. It was part of a broader plan to extend the urban fabric of Milan in that direction.
Porta Volta sits near the headquarters of the Fondazione Feltrinelli, a modern building used as a library and meeting place. The contrast between the old gate and the contemporary structure around it is easy to notice as you walk through.
The gate is within walking distance of Garibaldi metro station on lines M2 and M5, heading north along Via Alessandro Volta. The area is flat and easy to walk through, with the gate visible from the street.
The two small buildings flanking the iron gate are the original 19th-century toll houses, where officials once collected taxes from those entering the city. This type of structure has rarely survived in such good condition elsewhere in Milan.
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