PADUA. 
187 
quis John Polani, are as complete as any in Europe; hut 
the cabirjet of natural hiftory, prefented to the academy 
by Valil'neri, is of little importance. The fchool for mid¬ 
wifery, founded by D. Aloyiius Calza, of Bologna, which 
is enriched with all the anatomical preparations, &c. of 
John Baptift Morgagni, may be claifed among the firll 
inllitutions of that kind. The botanical garden is not 
very fpacious, but fituated on an agreeable fpot, between 
the churches del Santo and St. Juftina-, on a fmall rivulet. 
It has a circular form, 250 feet in diameter, and contains 
a moll complete collection of plants, both indigenous and 
exotic ; it waslaid-out anno 1545, after a plan of the ar¬ 
chitect Andrew Riccio, and was the firll botanical garden 
in Europe. An obfervatory has been lately ereCted for 
the benefit of aftronomy, on the tower of the old citadel, 
which is 130 feet high, and was formerly the relidence of 
the noted tyrant Ezzelin. Near this obfervatory is the 
new fchool for civil architecture, for the inftruCtion of 
carpenters, mafons, and ftatuaries, the mod diligent and 
Ikilful of whom obtained annually from the old govern¬ 
ment a gold prize-medal of the value of four zechins. 
The chemical laboratory, with an auditory belonging to 
it, was eftablifhed at the expenfe of the Venetian govern¬ 
ment, by the learned count Mark Carban,of Cephalonia. 
A public fchool of agriculture, with a very extenfive 
garden, fituated near the convent of hermits, for the pur- 
pofe of making new experiments, was inftituted in 1761. 
The academy of fciences, founded as early as the year 
1520, was publicly and folemnly confirmed in the year 
1779, under the title of Academia della Scienze, Lettere, 
et Arti, di Padoua. The feminary generally known by 
the name of Academia Delia, is entirely of a military na¬ 
ture: it owes its origin to the commandant of Padua, 
Peter Duodo. Its emblem is the ifle of Delos, with the 
motto, Nunc tandem immota. The academicians mull all 
belong to the nobility of Padua, and their number not 
exceed fixty ; but the academy, at prefent, is on the de¬ 
cline, and has not even a profefi'or of mathematics and 
military architecture. The new theatre is remarkable 
partly on account of its great fize and malterly architec¬ 
ture, and partly on account of its excellent and conve¬ 
nient difpofition, decorations, and paintings. It was 
built by the architect John Gloria, and opened for the 
firll time in the year 1751. Operas are moll frequently 
given herein the fummer-feafon ; for it is as lively here at 
this feafon as it is in winter at Venice, to which place the 
opulent of Padua refort during the winter. A great 
number of the rich and principal inhabitants of Upper 
Italy vi(it Padua during the fair, which lads three weeks, 
beginning on St. Anthony’s-day, in the middle of June. 
Among the principal buildings, including ninety-fix 
churches, twenty-two monalteries, twenty-three nun¬ 
neries, fixfceen hofpitals, and feveral other public oratories 
and charitable corporations, the following deferve pecu¬ 
liar notice; viz. The metropolitan church, which, from 
the year 1524 until 1754 has gradually obtained its pre¬ 
fent form, contains fome good paintings by Giotto (the 
rellorer of the art of painting), by Campagnola, Palma 
the younger, Balfano, &c. Divine fervice is performed 
in this church by twenty-feven noble canons, twelve no¬ 
ble fub-canons, and other inferior ecclefialtics ; its reve¬ 
nues amount to upwards of 100,000 fcudi. The library 
of the canons contains a number of rare editions and 
good manufcripts. The great and rich church of St. 
Anthony of Padua, commonly called II Santo, was built 
with from fix to eight fmall domes or cupolas, in the 
Gothic ftyle, by the celebrated architect Niccolo of Pifa. 
It is indeed only the fecond in rank 5 but, confidering its 
tutelar faint, who is the patron of the city, its riches, its 
numerous paintings and fculpture, with which it is rather 
encumbered than adorned, it may be clafied among the 
mod magnificent churches, not of this town only, but of 
all Italy. In the church we notice the chapels del San- 
tiflimo, of St. Anthony, and of the apollle Jacob, &c. 
Farther, the bronze girandole eleven feet high, (landing 
upon a pedeflal of white marble four feet high, and con¬ 
taining an univerfal colledtion of fculpture; it was com¬ 
pleted in a (pace of ten years by the architect and lculp- 
tor Andrew Riccio, who obtained for it 3720 Venetian 
lires. It has likewife fplendid altars and monuments ; 
and in the church-fquare Hands the llatue of the cele¬ 
brated Venetian general Erafmus de Narni, called Gatta- 
melata, on horfeback, and deferves peculiar attention. 
This flattie, which the Hate caufed to be erected in ho¬ 
nour of the general for his eminent fervices, Hands on a 
pedeHal ot bronze, and is the work of Donatello, an artifi 
of Florence. 
The fchool of St. Anthony, as it is called, contains fome 
elegant paintings alfrej'co by Titian. The next in rank, 
but fuperior with regard to architeflure, is the church of 
Santa Juftina, which belongs to the nuns of the order of 
St. Benedict, and was built by Andrew Riccio, properly 
called Andrew Crifpus Briofcus. In the year 1501 the 
old building began to be demoliftied ; and in 1515 the 
foundation of the prefent church was laid. Interior mag¬ 
nificence has been united with noble fimplicity ; and, not- 
withHanding the brilliancy of its external ornaments of 
metal, paintings, and fculpture, yet the main pdrpofe of 
the whole, and the character of a fanbtuary of the Divi¬ 
nity, have not been loft fight of; fo that at the entrance 
of this fabric no conf'ulion of objefts obftrudts a general 
furvey of its Hrufture. It is 368 feet in length, 252 in 
breadth, and 133 feet high. Exclufively of all this, it 
pofiefles a whole well of very profitable jewels, namely, 
the bones of martyrs who were executed in the fquare 
before the church ; and of thefe jewels the French did not 
think proper to rob them; nor, of courfe, have their new 
mafters, the Auftrians. Among thefe precious relics are 
to be reckoned the luppofed or pretended corpfes of the 
evangelift Luke and the apoftle Matthew. Equally 
fplendid and tafteful are the abbey of the Benedidtines, 
and the convent, with its fix court-yards, provided with 
covered paftages and colonnades. This building pofiefles 
alfo paintings of great value. The library contains up¬ 
wards of 52,000 volumes, and is remarkable for its elegant 
faloon, and fculpture in wood; yet the monks vifit it by 
far lefs frequently than they do their cellars, which are 
filled with the choiceft wines. In the above-mentioned 
church-fquare, which contains four fields, the fair is kept, 
together with horfe-races and a market for cattle. It is 
all round adorned with ftatues of celebrated perfonages, 
natives of Padua. The church of the Hermits of St. 
Auftin was the firft in Padua; it was roofed with tiles in 
the year 1306. This church pofiefles a real trealure in 
paintings by the greateft mafters; viz. by Guido Reni, 
Femicelli, Trevifo, Stephen dall’Arzere, Guariento, An¬ 
drea Mantegna, Niccolo Pizzolodi, &c. The monks of 
this church pofl'efs a good library, confilting chiefly of 
rare manufcripts. The church St. Annunziata nell’Arena 
was painted entirely al frefco, about the year 1306, by 
Angelotto, under the direction of Dante the poet, who 
at that time arrived in Padua. In the fpacious and oval 
area before the church Hands the elegant palace of the 
Venetian family Fofcari, the outer walls of which are the 
remains of an ancient amphitheatre. The church of the 
Dominicans is extremely ill built, but pofiefles fome va¬ 
luable paintings and fculpture. Farther, the churches of 
St. Andrew, of St. Giorgio nel Cimeterio di St. Antonio, 
of St. Sebaftian, of St. Battifta dalle Nani, of St. Gio¬ 
vanni di Verdara, appertaining to the knights of Malta, 
of Santa Magdalena, of St. Mafllno, the church of the 
feminary Santa Maria di Vanzo, the convent St. Fran- 
cifco, the church of St. Michael, and that of the aflbcia- 
tion of St. Rocco, all contain valuable remains of excel¬ 
lent paintings. But the houfe Camillo, in the parifh of 
St. Daniel, pofiefles the molt important collection of 
paintings in Padua. The library of the Olivetan convent, 
near St. Benedetto Novcllo, is remarkable only for having 
been founded by the poet Tafi'o. 
Of the feven gates of the town, three only, which were 
•built 
