Piazza della Scala is a pedestrian central square of Milan

Milan

Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, connected to the main square of Milan, Piazza del Duomo

Piazza del Duomo, Milan

Piazza del Duomo is the main piazza of Milan, Italy. It is named after, and dominated by, the Milan Cathedral . The piazza marks the center of the city, both in a geographic sense and because of its importance from an artistic, cultural, and social point of view...

, by the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II

The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is a double arcade in the center of Milan, Italy. The structure is formed by two glass-vaulted arcades intersecting in an octagon covering the street connecting Piazza del Duomo to Piazza della Scala....

 passage. It is named after the renowned Teatro alla Scala opera house

Opera house

An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...

, which occupies the north-western side of the square; the building actually includes both the opera house and the Museo Teatrale alla Scala

Museo Teatrale alla Scala

The Museo Teatrale alla Scala is a theatrical museum and library attached to the Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. Although it has a particular focus on the history of opera and of that opera house, its scope extends to Italian theatrical history in general, and includes displays relating, for...

 (La Scala Museum), dedicated to the history of La Scala and opera

Opera

Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...

 in general. On the opposite side to "La Scala", to the south-east, is the facade of Palazzo Marino

Palazzo Marino

Palazzo Marino is a 16th century palace located in Piazza della Scala, in the centre of Milan, Italy. It is Milan's city hall since 9 September 1861. It borders on Piazza San Fedele, Piazza della Scala, Via Case Rotte and Via Tommaso Marino....

, Milan's city hall

City hall

In local government, a city hall, town hall or a municipal building or civic centre, is the chief administrative building of a city...

. Another relevant building on the square, on the north-eastern side, is the Palazzo della Banca Commerciale Italiana

Palazzo della Banca Commerciale Italiana

The Palace of the Banca Commerciale Italiana is a historic building of Milan, Italy, located in Piazza della Scala, in the city centre...

. The south-western side of the square has the entry to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele as well as Palazzo Beltrami. Most of the architecture of the square is due to architect Luca Beltrami

Luca Beltrami

Luca Beltrami was an Italian architect and architectural historian, known particularly for restoration projects. He was a student of Camillo Boito at the Brera Academy...

, who designed the eponymous palace, the facade of Palazzo Marino, and the Banca Commerciale Italiana building. The centre of the square is marked by the monument of Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...

 by sculptor Pietro Magni

Pietro Magni

Pietro Magni may refer to:*Pietro Magni , nineteenth century Italian sculptor*Pietro Magni , Italian footballer and football manager*Pietro Magni , Italian aeronautical engineer...

(1872).

History

Piazza della Scala is a relatively recent addition to the plan of Milan's centre. The oldest building on the square, Palazzo Marino, dates back to the 16th century (completed in 1563); at the time, nevertheless, the square did not exist (the area was occupied by buildings). In fact, the main facade of Palazzo Marino was originally the one facing Piazza San Fedele, to the south-east (i.e., exactly opposite to Piazza della Scala). Likewise, when La Scala was built (in 1778), it was facing a street rather than a square. It was only in the late 19th Century that the authorities of Milan initiated a thorough renovation of the area, which involved the creation of the square. Luca Beltrami first contributed with Palazzo Beltrami (1886), then with the new facade of Palazzo Marino (1888-1892), and, much later, with the Banca Commerciale building (1923-1927).