There are many things to see in Ravenna. The city has a dedicated page on the Unesco Site thanks to its majestic early Christian monuments. But if you want to go looking for something unique this is the post for you!
Capanno Garibaldi
A few kilometers from Ravenna, on via Baiona, is “CAPANNO GARIBALDI“. It is a faithful reproduction of one of the main sites of the trafila garibaldina, a shed that was built in 1810 for hunting purposes and then immediately rebuilt by the company that has been looking after it since 1882.
Following the fall of the Roman Republic in 1849, Garibaldi fled by boarding a boat near Cesenatico with 250 of his men, headed directly for Venice.
Discovered by the Austrians, he had to take shelter by landing in Magnavacca (today Porto Garibaldi), where the 14 days of the trafila garibaldina began, an operation that involved patriots from Ravenna and Ferrara with the goal of protecting the general and his wife Anita, a courageous fighter who met her death in Ravenna.
The shed is located along the road that leads from Ravenna to the sea, towards Porto Corsini and Marina di Ravenna, immersed in the charming landscape of the Pialassa della Baiona. Its location makes for an easy visit if you intend to spend a day at the beach or in the valleys of Ravenna.
More information on the official website.
MAS – National Museum of Underwater Activities
The MAS- NATIONAL MUSEUM OF UNDERWATER ACTIVITIES is the perfect destination for lovers of the sea and watersports. The museum is located in Marina di Ravenna and can be visited all year round upon reservation. The exhibition was created by The Historical Diving Society Italia, a historical association of underwater activities.
Opened in 1998, it is the first and only example of its kind in Italy.
Visitors can admire a varied collection of materials, equipments and prints through illustrative panels that explain the various aspects of diving. The museum is divided into sections dedicated to the Navy, to the Cristo degli abissi, to underwater work, and underwater images and videos, as well as thematic exhibitions.
In the museum there is also a rich library dedicated to the underwater world available to students and researchers.
Davide Rivalta’s urban zoo
DAVIDE RIVALTA’S SCULPTURES are among the most interesting contemporary works of art to see in Ravenna. Beneath these paragraphs, you can see the Gorillas (Occulti latices), installed in 2002 in front of the Palazzo di Giustizia of Ravenna: these massive bronzes surprise the patrons with the realism of the figures and the out-of-placeness in this otherwise formal context. The effect is surprising and ironic.
In addition to these, Ravenna hosts two other works by Rivalta. Since 2008, the outlines of rhinos have stood out on a wall in one of the rooms of the Port Authority: the artist’s graphic traits give his drawings the same scenic presence as his sculptures.
In front of the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe, large bronze buffaloes loom over the grass, while inside the National Museum, on the other hand, you can find wolves.
The House of Marionettes
THE HOUSE OF MARIONETTES hosts the Monticelli Collection, which is a collection of marionettes, puppets, sceneries, manuscripts and much more that the Monticelli family has handed down from father to son for five generations.
It was the family members themselves who created many of the marionettes, from the first half of the 19th century to the present day. The collection includes about fifty marionettes, about a hundred puppets, about two hundred sceneries and numerous paper materials. A section of the museum is dedicated to the last decades of work of the Teatro del Drago (Theatre of the Dragon), founded in 1979 by Andrea and Mauro Monticelli, who belonged to the last generation of the family.
For more information on the activities of Casa delle Marionette and to obtain information related to the opening days or how to book a tour, visit the museum’s website.
