The Arch of Peace
The imposing "Arco della Pace" Milan's major Neo-Classical monument with its two toll houses stands out as a landmark in the centre of the "piazzale" or large square at the top of Corso Sempione. The original scope of creating the monument was to celebrate Napoleon's victories. Construction was begun in 1807 following a project by Luigi Gagnola drawing inspiration from the typology of three "fornici" (arch shaped openings found in classical monumental buildings; as for example the Coliseum in Rome). The Arch of Peace was modelled, in particular, on the triumphal arch of Settimio Severio in the Roman Forum with a central archway between two smaller lateral archways. In 1808 building work had got to the point of the layout of the side arches. After the defeat of Napoleone Bonaparte Francesco 1st Emperor of Austria pressed for work to begin again in 1826. He had the bas-relief subjects changed to commemorate the peace at last restored to Europe in 1815 and at this point the monument was named "Arco della Pace".After Gagnola's death in 1833 work continued and was only terminated five years later when the "Arco della Pace" was inaugurated by Austrian Emperor Ferdinando 1st on the 10th September 1838 for the occasion of his coronation as ruler of the Lombardy-Veneto kingdom. In 1859 it became a monument to the independence of Italy and the inscriptions on the cornice dedicated to Francesco 1st and Ferdinando 1st were substituted by those which can still be seen at the present day exalting the newly won independence of Italy. The exterior of the arch is granite from Baveno dressed with Crevola marble from Creola d'Ossola; four fluted Corinthian columns at regular intervals are a measure of the sides of the façade. On the upper level are personifications of the rivers in the then Lombardy-Veneto kingdom: the Po, Ticino, Adda and Tagliamento. Mounted over the cornice bearing the inscriptions on the front is the huge "Sestina della Pace" (Chariot of Peace) in bronze by Abbondio Sangiorgio surrounded by th four Victories on horseback by Giovanni Putti. The front and sides are richly decorated with bas-reliefs mainly depicting episodes of the Restoration period.
