Palazzo Liviano and Hall of the Giants

The Milanese architect Gio Ponti, who was already working closely with the rector Carlo Anti on the renovation of Palazzo Bo, in 1934 won the competition for the construction of the new campus of the Faculty of Letters in Piazza Capitaniato. Thus began, on the spaces of pre-existing buildings, the construction of a palace connected to the Hall of the Giants, a future hall for ceremonies and conferences. Giò Ponti designed and built a building that faithfully reflects the demands of the competition: not "the imitation of past styles, but a simple and balanced expression of modern art (...). To be luxurious, but to receive decoration from the lines and material of the strictly indispensable decorative elements."

The Milanese artist, in addition to taking care of the design of the building, also decided to personally take care of the furnishing elements: benches, desks, desks, coat racks thus bear his imprint, giving the interiors the same recognizable and coherent style that can be found in some rooms of the rectorate of Palazzo Bo, also furnished by Ponti.

The large fresco in the atrium of Palazzo Liviano is also the result of a competition held in 1937: the result was to be a grandiose commemoration of Titus Livius, a celebration of Roman continuity in modern life. At the suggestion of Gio Ponti, the painters Guido Cadorin, Ubaldo Oppi, Mario Sironi and Massimo Campigli were invited to participate. The latter prevailed, creating the fresco between 1939 and 1940. The work represents archaeology as a source of Italian culture, the heritage of scholars and, at the same time, of ordinary people. In a portion of the vast fresco, Campigli portrays Carlo Anti, Gio Ponti, himself and his wife, Giuditta Campigli.

Among the works of art kept inside the Palace, the statue of Tito Livio, created by the sculptor Arturo Martini  in 1942, stands out in the atrium. The Latin historian is depicted in a collected and meditative attitude, "a child who kneels and writes for life", as the artist himself liked to call him.

On the third floor of the Palace has campused, since 1937, the Museum of Archaeological Sciences and Art, which preserves a rich heritage of ancient and Renaissance sculptures and ceramics, as well as Greek, Etruscan and Roman finds and a precious collection of casts of classical sculptures.

On the ground floor, Palazzo Liviano houses the "Liviano" Library of Antiquity, Art and Music Sciences, which provides a vast collection of books and documents, as well as spaces dedicated to study, reading and consultation, equipped with modern computer stations.

Connected to Palazzo Liviano, the Hall of the Giants, beautifully frescoed, has always been linked to the life of the university and is now open to the public on the occasion of special events and concerts, and guided tours.

The Sala dei Giganti, originally one of the representative spaces of the Reggia Carrarese in the late Middle Ages, was part of the palace of the lords of Padua until 1405. In that year, with the fall of the Carraresi and the submission of Padua to the Republic of Venice, the palace became the campus of the Capitanio, the military authority of the city.

In the sixteenth century, the hall, in a state of decay, was restored between 1539 and 1540 under the guidance of Girolamo Corner with architectural and decorative interventions, including extensions in width and height. The windows, on the east and west sides of the hall, were opened during this period by the architect Michele Sanmicheli.

The Hall of the Giants has always been linked to the history of Padova. During the first two centuries of Venetian rule, it was used as an assembly and meeting place for the troops that garrisoned the city. In addition, it had specific functions related to the University. From 1632 to 1912, it housed the first nucleus of the University Library, later moved to Via San Biagio.