Broletto Palace, Gothic town hall in Lodi, Italy.
Broletto Palace is Lodi's town hall, standing beside the cathedral. Of its medieval founding, placed by 1284, only the brick wall facing the old courtyard survives: four pointed arches on cylindrical pillars with leafy capitals, with pilasters above and three now-walled bifora windows with twisted decoration. The facade dates to 1778, by engineer Castelli of Milan, and bears two marble busts of 1615, Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo and Frederick Barbarossa.
The building was constructed in the 13th century when Lodi needed a central place for city administration. Over the centuries it was remodeled several times, receiving Baroque additions that shaped its appearance to this day.
The name Broletto comes from the medieval broletto, the open space where the city's assembly met. In the courtyard beside the cathedral stands the old baptismal font, carved from a single block of pink Verona marble with an octagonal exterior and a four-lobed interior, donated by Bassiano da Ponte in 1508 and moved here in the 1950s.
The palace is located directly in the center of Lodi and is easily reached on foot from the main square. The facade can be viewed from the street, while visits to the interior depend on the working hours of the city administration.
The building was traditionally where the local community gathered to make decisions that affected daily life in the city. This function continues today, with the place retaining its weight as the center of city administration.
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