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Civico Museo Archeologico Sezioni Preistorica ed Egizia
Piazza CastelloAbout
Building work on the castle went on from 1450 to 1550 under the authority of the Sforza family of Milan. In obedience to the will of Franceso Sforza the reconstruction and extension of the old fortress called 'di Porta Giovia' was carried out, erected between the walls of the city and the canals, by what is Rocchetta today. The fortress is a square shape, about 200 metres each side, with four angular towers and a dividing moat. It has been transformed over a number of years with the addition of other, mostly richly decorated, towers to satisfy the demands of the residents, the most important being the Filarete. At the end of the 1440's Ludovico il Moro involved Leonardo and Bramante in the building works. When the Sforzo family lost power in the 1500's the castle was taken over by the military, and after being used for several purposes eventually fell into ruin. In 1893, thanks to the architect Beltrami and ten years of work, the castle was restored and various cultural objects and paintings were gathered here and put on display. It was renovated after the war by the BBPR studio (the architects Banfi, Barbiano Peresutti and Rogers) as part of an initiative to restore public museums. Entrance Fee: Free.
