Torre della Gabbia, Medieval tower in Mantua, Italy.
Torre della Gabbia is a 55-metre medieval tower at Via Cavour 102 in Mantua, facing Piazza Sordello. Its facade toward Via Cavour was reworked in the 16th century with marble pilasters and Mantegnesque decorations. A rectangular iron cage, two metres long, one metre wide and just over one metre high, hangs about a third of the way up. Next to the tower stands the Bonacolsi family chapel, painted with a 14th-century Giottesque cycle.
The tower was constructed by the Acerbi family in 1281 as a defensive structure and subsequently came under the control of the Bonacolsi clan. The metal cage was installed later during the rule of Duke Guglielmo Gonzaga as a means for displaying public punishment.
The metal cage served as a tool for public shame, exposing prisoners to the elements and the gaze of passersby for extended periods. This method of punishment reveals how medieval society used the tower to warn others about the consequences of crime.
The tower is easily accessible on foot from the city center, located near Palazzo Acerbi and central piazzas. The surrounding area is densely built with medieval and Renaissance structures, so it helps to understand the tight layout before wandering the streets.
In 1798 the tower's owner was ordered to destroy the cage as a symbol of tyranny, but it was kept, apparently as a curiosity. The cage itself measures two metres long, one metre deep and just over one metre high, set about a third of the way up the tower.
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