HIDDEN CITY
IL GIARDINO DELLE VERGINI Largo Agostino Gemelli, 1 Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Hidden away in the ancient cloisters of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore is a secret garden, the Giardino delle Vergini (Virgins’ Garden). It was created in 1928 for Santa Caterina d’Alessandria, Christian saint, virgin and patron of studies. To this day, entry to this lush garden is permitted only to women.
CA’ DE L’ORÈGGIA VIA GABRIO SERBELLONI
Via Gabrio Serbelloni, 10
The elegant Art Nouveau Palazzo Sola-Busca in Via Gabrio Serbelloni is known as Ca’ de l’Orèggia , which translates as ‘house of the ear’ in Milanese dialect. The building has a bronze ear-shaped intercom created by Italian sculptor Adolfo Wildt. It is said that if you whisper a wish into the ear, it will come true.
THE CHESSBOARD OF SANT’AMBROGIO AND THE DEVIL’S COLUMN Piazza Sant’Ambrogio, 15 +39 02 8645 0895 basilicasantambrogio.it The Basilica di Sant’Ambrogio is shrouded in mystery. On the left of the portico is the Colonna del Diavolo (Devil’s Column) – legend says it was here that the demon stabbed Saint Ambrogio with his horns during a fight. At the top right of the Basilica’s façade, a small chessboard was probably designed to keep evil spirits away, and may well recall the passage of the Templars, as suggested by a second large chessboard inside the church.
IL CORTILE DEGLI SCULTORI
IGLOO HOUSES IN THE JOURNALISTS’ VILLAGE
Via Mac Mahon, 14
Among the modern buildings by the Monumental Cemetery is a nondescript 1960s block harbouring a lovely hidden courtyard. The “Cortile degli Scultori” (Sculptors’ Courtyard) is lined with brick houses, former homes and workshops of stonemasons and stone carvers. Today, one shop remains, that of sculptor Mauro Baldessari. It’s a peaceful, leafy spot that comes alive in spring, when banana trees, cherries and maple trees are in bloom.
Via Lepanto
North of the city lies the Villaggio dei Giornalisti (Journalists’ Village), home to eight striking igloo-shaped houses built in the 40s. These unusual cement buildings, which also feature private gardens, are among the area’s most distinctive sights, together with Villa Mirabello and the famous Casa Palafitta (House on Stilts).
IL CHIOSTRO DELLE UMILIATE
GIARDINO PEREGO Via dei Giardini 7/9 +39 02 0202
CASA 770 VIA POERIO
Via Cappuccio, 7
Via Carlo Poerio, 35
In the heart of the historic centre lies the Chiostro delle Umiliate , beautiful 15 th century cloisters that are all that remains of the Monastery of Santa Maria Maddalena al Cerchio . Demolished by Napoleon in 1801, the building was subsequently bought and restored by Carla and Guido Ucelli. Today, it features a double arcade that opens onto a luxuriant garden with beautiful centuries-old plants that once adorned the monastery gardens.
Steps away from Porta Venezia, at 35 Via Poerio , is Casa 770 , a striking red-brick building with three gabled roofs that serves as a meeting point for the Milanese Jewish-Orthodox community. It’s one of sixteen such constructions around the world, built to recall the building that Rabbi Rav Yoseph Yitzchak Schneerson purchased in Brooklyn when he moved to New York to escape Nazi persecution.
The smallest English landscape garden in the city, Giardino Perego once belonged to the Perego di Cremnago family. Designed at the end of the 18 th century, the gardens were originally characterised by a rectangular parterre, a neo-Gothic greenhouse and a pond. In 1940, the gardens were opened to the public, and to this day retain a charming, secluded feel.
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