Palazzo dell'Università, Baroque palace in central Parma, Italy.

Palazzo dell'Università, also called Palazzo Centrale, is the seat of the University of Parma at Strada dell'Università 12. Three brick facades in severe Counter-Reformation style enclose a large square courtyard, with a slightly battered base, a stone string course between ground and first floors, and stone-framed windows. The decoration stops at the entrance, where the arched portal was left unfinished.

The Jesuits settled in Parma in 1539 and were officially called by Duke Ottavio Farnese in 1564, who gave them the church of San Rocco and three adjacent houses. After a substantial bequest from novice Giovanni Federico Cusani, finalized in 1662, construction of the large college began in 1659 and was completed around 1730. In 1768 the Jesuits were expelled from the duchy by minister Guillaume du Tillot, and the building was assigned to the University of Parma.

The Natural History Museum occupies an entire wing and displays bird specimens and scientific objects collected over centuries. Walking through these rooms, you see how the palace evolved into a center where knowledge and nature are presented together.

The building is the seat of the University of Parma, at Strada dell'Università 12, and holds the rectorate, administrative offices, the Aula Magna and the law department. The Natural History Museum's main branch occupies one whole side of the palace, with a second branch at the botanical garden. The entrance is on Strada dell'Università, and the unfinished portal marks the doorway.

The decoration stops abruptly at the entrance: the stone frames of the windows break off and the arched portal itself was never finished, leaving the brickwork bare around the doorway. The gap dates from the long campaign that ended around 1730, when the block next to the entrance was left incomplete.