Piazza della Vittoria, Pedestrian square in the center of Pavia, Italy
Piazza della Vittoria, also known as Piazza Grande, is the main square of Pavia, a large rectangular open space lined on all sides by porticoed buildings. On one side stands the Palazzo del Broletto, and just behind it the dome of the cathedral rises above the rooftops.
The square developed at the crossing of the two main axes of the Roman town, now called Strada Nuova and Corso Cavour, and became the commercial heart of the city during the Middle Ages. The Palazzo del Broletto dates to the 13th century and was the seat of the city's government for hundreds of years.
The square was once called Platea Magna, meaning large square, to tell it apart from the smaller Platea Parva near the cathedral. Today it remains a natural gathering point for students and locals, who fill the outdoor tables under the arcades in the evening.
The square sits at the junction of the city's two main shopping streets and is easy to reach on foot from most parts of the center. Evening is a good time to visit, as the arcades come alive and there is always something to see along the edges of the square.
Beneath the paving stones of the square lies an underground market built in the 1950s to replace the outdoor one that once filled the open space above. During the construction work, ancient remains were uncovered, and this lower level can still be visited today.
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