Palazzo del Comune, Medieval town hall in Piacenza, Italy.
The Palazzo del Comune, also known as the Broletto, is a medieval civic palace on Piazza Cavalli in Piacenza, built in a Gothic-Lombard style. Its facade has five pointed arches at street level made of pink marble, with six circular windows decorated in terracotta above them.
Work started in 1281, commissioned by Alberto Scoto, a merchant who led the city at the time and hired four local architects for the project. The building went through several changes over the following centuries but remained the seat of civic authority throughout.
The building still hosts exhibitions and official events today, keeping it at the center of local public life. The square in front often serves as a meeting point for residents, giving the whole area a lively and lived-in feel.
The palace sits directly on Piazza Cavalli, which is easy to reach on foot from anywhere in the city center. Access to the interior is not always open to the public, so checking whether a guided tour is available before visiting is a good idea.
Although the building looks unified from the outside, it was constructed using two deliberately different materials: pink marble at the base and terracotta at the top. This choice reflects the availability of local resources and the range of craftsmanship that existed in the region during the 13th century.
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