Milano attraksjoner

Step inside Pinacoteca di Brera, a historic 17th century palace, to see one of Italy’s most impressive collections of medieval and Renaissance artworks.

The Pinacoteca di Brera's star is The Dead Christ by Andrea Mantegna, a Renaissance/Mannerist excursion into weird perspective. You’ll also see works by Raphael, Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Van Dyke. The baroque Palazzo di Brera has a lovely neoclassical cloister lined with arches, and a suitably grand interior.

There are many important churches in Milan besides its famous Duomo, including the Chiesa di San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore, also known as Chiesa di Milano. As the name suggests, it was once associated with a major convent, but that building is now used as Milan's archaeological museum. The church is still used as a house of worship, as well as a venue for concerts.

The church of Saint Maurice al Monastero Maggiore (in English) was built in the early 1500s, and it contains what is believed to be the oldest pipe organ in Milan. The organ was built in 1554 and has been unused for many years, so a new effort is underway to restore the organ to working order. There are also frescoes on the walls that date back to the 16th century, including a series that covers the life of the saint for whom the church is named – San Maurizio.

The Romanesque Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio is dedicated to Milan's patron saint, Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, who founded the church in the 4th century. Dressed in his bishop's finery, the saint's skeleton is displayed in the basilica's crypt.

The church embraces a mix of styles, having been rebuilt in the 11th century and much restored since then. The building has a squat, medieval Lombard facade thanks to its elongated atrium dating back to the year 1098.

Byzantine reliefs crown the 6th century capitals, and a graceful loggia lined with arches leads to the basilica's entrance. Two towers of different heights flank the atrium.

The highlight of the restrained interior in white and terracotta is the apse mosaic of Christ. You’ll also see carved pulpits and tombs, including the final resting place of Emperor Louis II.

The Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio was heavily bombed during the Second World War and has been extensively restored.

We’re all familiar with the canals of Venice - but did you know Milan has canals, too? Most of the city’s canals have long since been paved over, but a district to the south of the city center still has two that are visible. A canal in Milan is called a “naviglio,” so this neighborhood is the Navigli District.

Many years ago, the Navigli District was known as a gritty neighborhood with cheap rent. The low cost of living attracted artists, who set up galleries and shops, and now the neighborhood is no longer affordable for many of the artists who once called it home. The overall vibe of an artsy district that’s still a little rough around the edges remains, however. In addition to the galleries and art shops, the Navigli District is known now for its plethora of funky cafes, restaurants, and night clubs. It’s one of the best nightlife areas in the city, and on weekend nights it can get extremely busy.

Many churches in Italy are built on older worship sites. What makes the Church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro in Milan different is that the old church was incorporated into the new one, both in design and name.

The original church on this site was dedicated to San Sitiro (Saint Satyrus), built in the 9th century. In the late 15th century, the church was also dedicated to Mary. The name "Church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro" indicates that the new church was "staying with" (presso) the old one.

When the church got its additional dedication, it also got a bit of a redesign. The artist Bramante played a role in the renovation. One of the most interesting pieces of artwork at the church is Bramante's wonderful trompe l'oeil behind the altar; it looks like there's a series of columns that recedes into the distance, but it's just paint.

If 10 Corso Como sounds like an address, it is. It also happens to be one of Milan's most fasionable addresses, home to a number of attractions and shops.

10 Corso Como (it's Dieci Corso Como in Italian, as "dieci" is the word for 10) was originally an art gallery and bookstore, opened in a traditional Milanese building 1990 by Carla Sozzani. The complex grew over the years to include a cafe, a fashion boutique, a roof garden, and even a tiny hotel (with only three rooms) - all at the same address. The courtyard cafe at 10 Corso Como is particularly popular for aperitivo, and getting a table can be incredibly difficult. You can enjoy the "see and be seen" atmosphere simply by browsing the shops, however.

Some cemeteries are like small cities, such as the Monumental Cemetery in Milan. It's the second-largest cemetery in Milan, and its paths are adorned with a fantastic array of sculptural tombs. Milan's Monumental Cemetery (Cimitero Monumentale in Italian) was opened in 1866, originally built to consolidate the large number of smaller cemeteries around the city. Two new and very large cemeteries were created: one for the wealthy (Cimitero Monumentale) and one for everyone else (Cimitero Maggiore). Because it has been the final resting place for so many wealthy and famous people over the years, the tombs and mausoleums are often works of art.

Argentina's Eva Peron was secretly buried in this Milan cemetery until 1971 because of anti-Peron sentiments in her home country, and Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi was buried here for about a month before his body was moved. Today, the main draw for non-Italian visitors is the way the cemetery resembles an outdoor sculpture garden.

Milan is known for its opera, fashion, and banking – not its ruins. And yet the city has Roman ruins – including the Colonne di San Lorenzo. These well-preserved ruins all date from the 2nd century, when they were part of a Roman building (experts aren't sure whether it was a bath house or a temple). They were likely moved to their current location in the 5th century.

The 16 columns line one side of a piazza in front of the fifth-century Basilica di San Lorenzo, one of Milan's oldest churches. They were brought to the piazza when the church was complete.

In addition to fine artwork, great libraries are the mark of high society – so in the early 17th century Cardinal Federico Borromeo founded the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana in Milan (the Ambrosiana library and picture gallery, in English).

Cardinal Borromeo stocked his library with more than 15,000 manuscripts and 30,000 books that he and his employees had picked up all over Europe. The contents of the library included ancient Greek and Roman works, as well as some from the middle east. The first reading room of the Ambrosiana library was opened to the public in 1609.

Celebrity visitors to the Ambrosiana library included the poet Lord Byron and the novelist Mary Shelley, who came to see famous manuscripts like Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Atlanticus, the love letters of Lucrezia Borgia, and works of Petrarch.

Milan's fashion sense is world famous, and one of the streets to visit to see where the locals buy their designer brands is Via della Spiga. Along with other nearby streets such as Via Monte Napoleone, Via della Spiga is considered to be part of the Quadrilatero della Moda, or “fashion quarter.” Via della Spiga forms the northeastern border of the quarter.

Some of the designer names you'll see along Via della Spiga are Prada, Bulgari, Tod's, Armani, Hermes, Tiffany, Dolce & Gabbana, Roberto Cavalli, and Moschino. It's a pedestrianized street, making it a pleasure to wander – even if you're not planning to buy.

Milan is world-famous for its fashion industry, much of which is located in one small section of the city – including along the Via Manzoni. The Quadrilatero della Moda, or “fashion quarter,” sits northeast of the Duomo, with Via Manzoni serving as its northwestern border. Unlike some of the other streets in the quarter, Via Manzoni is not pedestrianized – it's a relatively major street leading from the Teatro della Scala almost to the Giardini Pubblici in the northeast of the city.

In addition to the shops on Via Manzoni – Armani Casa and Paul Smith among them – this street is also home to the Armani Hotel, the Grand Hotel et de Milan (where Verdi died in 1901), and the Museo Poldi Pezzoli (with a collection of artists from northern Italy, the Netherlands, and Flanders).

The word "palazzo" may make you think of an historic building, but in the case of the Palazzo Lombardia in Milan, it's a brand-new award-winning skyscraper.

The Palazzo Lombardia was completed in 2010, and serves as the headquarters for the government of the Lombardy region. For a little over a year, it reigned as the tallest building in all of Italy at 529 feet, until another skyscraper in Milan was completed in the fall of 2011. The design for the skyscraper won an architectural award in 2012. It's located in the Porta Nuova district north of Milan's city center, a newly-renovated business district.

A visit to the historic Bagatti Valsecchi house museum in Milan is a step back in time to when every Italian palazzo was a private home. As a bonus, it also houses a nice art collection.

The Bagatti Valsecchi Museum is in the Montenapoleone area of central Milan, and was once the home of the Bagatti Valsecchi brothers – Fausto and Giuseppe. They died in the early 1900s, and the palazzo stayed in the family until 1974, when one of Giuseppe's sons sold the palazzo to the region of Lombardy for use as a museum to house the brothers' impressive collection of decorative arts and paintings. Among the items in the collection are furniture, tapestries, glassware, ivory, and ceramics. The paintings include works by Donatello and Bellini. The intention of the Bagatti Valsecchi Foundation was to create a reproduction of a 16th-century Italian nobleman's home, including period furnishings and décor.

This peculiar Milan church has a fascinating history, beginning with the fact that it is decorated by 3,000 skulls, tibias, femurs, and other human bones. The bones are arranged in organized designs and are integrated in all the chapel walls and doors. The name of the church itself “alle Ossa” translates to “with bones,” which were supposedly imported from various cemeteries.

The church’s origins date back to the 12th century when a hospital and cemetery were built in front of its basilica. Though there was once a separate room built to house bones, the bones began to become part of the church itself. Though it looks ordinary from the exterior, it is one of the most unique chapels in the world. There are also beautiful 16th-century paintings, including the ceiling fresco Triumph of Souls and Flying Angels, and Baroque-style decorations lining the eerie walls.