Mantua

a city in N Italy, in E Lombardy, surrounded by lakes: birthplace of Virgil. Pop.: 47 790 (2001)

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Mantua

(also Mantova), a city in Northern Italy, in Lombardy. It is located on an island in a lake-like widening of the Mincio River, near its confluence with the Po. It is the capital of the province of Mantua. Population, 65,900 (1971); river port and railroad junction. Industrial activities include oil refining and the production of petrochemicals. Other important products are agricultural machinery, ceramics, paper, furniture, silk, and sugar.

Mantua, which was founded by the Etruscans, is the site of the Accademia Virgiliana (Vergilian Academy of Arts and Sciences). Nearby is the little town of Pietole (known in ancient times as Andes), which is considered to be the birthplace of Vergil. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Mantua was one of the centers of the Italian Renaissance. Between 1628 and 1631 a war was fought for the territory of Mantua and Montferrat.

Mantua has many noteworthy medieval architectural monuments. On the Piazza delle Erbe are located the Rotunda di San Lorenzo (11th century), the Palazzo della Ragione (1250), and the Palazzo Broletto (1227-73). The Piazza Sordello is the site of the Palazzo Bonacolsi (13th century) and the cathedral (rebuilt in 1545 by Giulio Romano). Also in Mantua are the Palazzo Ducale complex, which is now a museum (1290-1708; including the apartments of Isabella d’Este, 16th century), and the Castle of St. George (1395-1406, architect Bartolino Ploti da Novara; including the Camera degli Sposi with frescoes by Mantegna, 1474). Renaissance churches in the city include San Sebastiano (1460) and Sant’ Andrea (1472-94), which were both designed by L. B. Alberti and executed by the architect L. Fancelli. There are several buildings by Giulio Romano in Mantua, including the Palazzo di Giustizia (1530) and the Palazzo del Te (1525-34). Another noteworthy building in the city is the Palazzo del Accademia Virgiliana (facade by architect G. Piermarini, 1773).

REFERENCE

Mantova: La storia, le lettere, le arti, vols. 1-9. Mantua, 1958-65.

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References in periodicals archive

On trips ashore, we discovered that over the centuries the locals have given back to the river as much as they've taken, in the shape of verdant vineyards, fragrant orchards, elegant country houses and glorious towns and cities - Venice, Cremona, Piacenza, Ferrara and Mantua - which chart Italy's history and the course of the Italian Renaissance.

Less is amore; Family-run La Bella Vita patrols the backwaters between Venice and Mantua for a cruise with a difference

Both employees will be based in Mantua's Ohio office, where they will be applying their experience to bring the sales team even greater success.

Mantua Manufacturing Adds Two Sales Executives

The coloratura soprano Raphaelle Paquet, a familiar figure in Quebec for the past 10 years thanks to Starmania, combined vocal flexibility and poise with finesse and conviction in "Caro nome," as well as in the duets with Rigoletto and the Duke of Mantua. In the role of the Duke, tenor Steeve Michaud, though he could have been more nuanced, projects his voice with force, producing flawless high notes.

QUEBEC CITY

As he once famously remarked, "ground I may recover; time never." Knowing his opponents' obsession with fixed places, Napoleon never conducted a proper siege of Mantua, instead using the threat of seizing "the key to Italy" as a baited gambit to draw a succession of Habsburg commanders into the open.

Napoleon in Italy: The Sieges of Mantua, 1796-1799

The Italian peninsula being divided into numerous states, even relatively short journeys, such as that from Venice to Ferrara or to Mantua, involved entering a different state with different social, political, and economic circumstances and different traditions.

Erith Jaffe-Berg. Commedia dell'Arte and the Mediterranean: Charting Journeys and Mapping "Others."

Some of Italy's most spectacular Renaissance towns and cities have sprung up on or near the Po's banks, in a region known La Bassa Padana which is famous as much for its cuisine as for the architectural glories of Mantua, Cremona, Piacenza and Ferrara.

All aboard for the good life

So, between touring outstanding cities like Mantua - a remarkably unspoiled "mini-Florence" with a memorable domed and turreted skyline and a magnificent Ducal palace, and medieval Ferrera, which combines striking Renaissance architecture with lively, unusual shops and bars - we got to visit more offbeat places.

All aboard for the good life in Italy; MARIA HARDING takes a river cruise along Italy's Po river and lives like the locals

Although De' Sommi was a prolific poet, playwright, and director at the Gonzaga court of Mantua for three decades, as well as a Hebrew poet, translator, and community leader, his limited fame is due mainly to the importance of his treatise, Quattro dialoghi in materia di rappresentazioni sceniche (c.

Beyond praxis: Leone de' Sommi's apology of theater and Judaism in his Quattro dialoghi in materia di rappresentazioni sceniche

A two-hour drive from Milan, on the southern tip of Lombardy, is Mantua, nicknamed 'sleeping beauty' because the city hasn't changed much since the Middle Ages.

Italian treasures; Fine art, fascinating history and a balsamic vinegar served at Kate and William's wedding - LEANNE RINNE visits the Italian regions of Emilia-Romagna and Lombardy

One of my favourite modern ranges is the Mantua Dining Furniture Collection.

timeless elegance Timeless elegance from iconic brand

Surrounded by three small lakes, the town of Mantua - a UNESCO World Heritage Site - is steeped in art and culture.

CORNELIANI A BYWORD FOR STYLE

This chronological account of the Napoleonic sieges of Mantua in 1796-97 and 1799 is written in a style accessible to general readers, yet packed with detail for historians.

Napoleon in Italy: The Sieges of Mantua, 1796-1799