Visiting the Italian University Town of Padua with Savvy Mom Ruth Paget
When my
husband Laurent and I visited northern Italy, the city that topped my list of
places to visit was Padua for its university.
The
University of Padua was founded in 1222 and is the second oldest in Italy. (The University of Bologna was founded in
1088.) According to our Italie du Nord Michelin touring guide,
Galileo (1564-1642) taught at Padua and Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543),
Giovanni Pico della Mandorla (1463 – 1494) and Torquato Tasso (1544 – 1595)
were students there.
The
astronomer Galileo had to stand trial before the Inquisition in Rome in 1633
for teaching that the earth rotated around the sun. According to Stephen Hawking’s On the Shoulders of Giants: The Great Works
of Physics and Astronomy which records Galileo’s renunciation of his
teachings and book Dialogue Concerning
the Two Chief World Systems: Ptolemaic and Copernican, Galileo is reported
to have said “Eppur si muove” in a mutter as he stood up from kneeling. (“Eppur si muove” is loosely translated as
“yet it moves.”)
Law and math
were the main subjects of study for Copernicus at Padua a generation before
Galileo supported Copernican theory that is laid out in De Revolunionbus Orbium Coelestium by Copernicus.
One of the
University of Padua’s most distinguished students was Giovanni Pico della
Mandorla. Pico della Mandorla wrote Oration on the Dignity of Man, which is
one of the reference texts for Renaissance Humanism. Torquato Tasso, a poet and leading figure of
the Renaissance, studied law and philosophy at the University of Padua as well.
As we walked
through Padua’s streets, I wanted to imbibe some of the insight that Padua
seems to foster, but Padua’s red buildings retain scorching heat well. The medieval town has narrow streets, no
arcades, and very few piazzas. I was
dripping wet when we visited. Padua’s
scholars must have taken summer semester off I thought.
The walk in
the heat to the Church of the Eremitani (Church of the Hermits) was worth the
effort, though, despite our not having reservations to the Scrovegni Chapels
with its mural paintings by Giotto (1267-1337).
I wanted to
see Andrea Mantegna’s (1431 – 1506) paintings in the Church of the
Eremitani. These paintings were his
first major work and date from 1488 according to the National Gallery of
London’s website.
When we arrived his
work was being restored, so we could not see most of it. However, what was visible of his Martydom of
Saint James, the Assumption, and the Martyrdom of Saint Christopher show how he
achieved the sensation of grandeur in viewers through several technical
devices, especially perspective.
When you
look at Mantegna’s paintings of figures, you feel like you are looking
upward. He achieves this effect by
tapering and angling his figures. He
seems to have lighter colors at the top of his paintings as well and darker
colors below to enhance the upward flow of his paintings. He also uses architecture in his paintings to
create upward momentum by positioning his arches at angles. These technical devices all give his work a
dramatic impact.
The heat had
worn me out and ruled out further touring.
Getting out of Padua was tricky.
Medieval Italian cities like Padua have a circular pattern, which seems to throw
off GPS systems. We circled around a bit
until we could decode the “veer right, then turn left” instructions.
(Tangential instructions?)
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| Laurent Paget Photography |
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| Laurent Paget Photography |
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| Ruth Paget Selfie |
