City of Mosaics

The Piazza del Popolo.

A World of Mosaics

This small coastal city full of artistic treasures was once the ‘seat of empires’

By Tim Johnson

Certain destinations in italy are immediately recognizable, with a whole set of colorful and unmistakable images associated. Rome? The curve of the Colosseum, of course, dating back to the first century, plus the Spanish Steps, the flow of the Trevi Fountain, and the soaring dome of St. Peter’s in Vatican City.

But Ravenna? It turns out, this small city on the east coast of the Italic Peninsula has plenty to offer, including truly spectacular mosaics and a rather surprising history. Plus, flamingos and herons, just over there in the wetlands fringing the edge of town.

“This was a very safe place, with the sea on one side, and a big marsh on the other,” the guide said, pointing to the vibrant green spaces just off to the right of the bus. “And thus, this was once the seat of empires.”

Set just inland from the Adriatic Sea, Ravenna is a vibrant city of about 150,000. I arrived on a cruise ship, the Viking Sky, with just a single day to explore. Leaving the ship and riding in from the port, the guide walked us back in history. Settlements uncovered in the area by archaeologists date all the way back to the 5th century B.C., when an ancient people known as the Umbrians built villages on hilltops across the region. Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon near here, and Ravenna was made a federated town in the Roman Empire in A.D. 89.

CENTURIES OF DEVELOPMENT and prosperity followed under the Romans, the port both strategic militarily and a hub for trade with other wealthy places further east. Ravenna grew to a city of some 50,000, and in A.D. 402, Emperor Flavius Honorius made it the capital of the West-

Bologna airport

Ravenna ITALY

Rome

From the Bologna

airport, Ravenna is just about an hour away by car.

Cured meats,

cheeses, and piadina bread at Osteria Passatelli in Ravenna, Italy.

ern Roman Empire, which stretched from North Africa across the Iberian Peninsula, all the way across modern-day France to Britain.

“The city was very elegant and famous,” the guide said.

It didn’t last long. The empire suffered a fatal blow at the Battle of Ravenna in A.D. 476, but the city then became the capital of the Eastern Goths—the Ostrogothic Kingdom—in A.D. 493, and, soon after that, the Italian seat of the Byzantine Empire. Many of the details have become historical trivia, but this heady era, when Ravenna was one of the most important cities on the globe, left behind a number of beautiful sites, including basilicas and the Mausoleum of Theodoric, who ruled both the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths until his death in A.D. 526.

TODAY, RAVENNA BUSTLES. No longer set directly on the coast—the port silted up in the centuries since—its pedestrian center is a pleasant place for a stroll. Boutiques line cobblestone passageways. People gather at the Piazza del Popolo, the city’s main square since the 13th century.

There are plenty of places here for a bite of pizza and pasta, but the nearby Mercato Coperto is even better. Set on a site of trade for fishermen and butchers dating back to the Middle Ages, the current “new” covered market dates to the beginning decades of the 20th century. Today, you can pick up everything from produce and seafood to meat and gelato over two floors, in a light-filled space under one vaulted roof.

But there’s no time to tarry. Today’s destination is one that’s made Ravenna famous among history buffs and art enthusiasts around the world: the mosaics. UNESCO has recognized a collection of eight buildings across the city that feature these intricate creations, together honoring them with World Heritage Site status. They include the Mausoleum of Theodoric, and all date back to that heyday in the 5th and 6th centuries when Ravenna reigned supreme.

THE MOST IMPRESSIVE, perhaps, is the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, set in the courtyard of the Basilica of San Vitale. From outside, it’s not much to look at. Standing in line for a few minutes—the space inside is small, and a particularly interested and enthusiastic group of university students moved slowly ahead of us—I lowered my expectations as I considered the diminutive size and simple, nondescript brick exterior of the building.

But crossing the threshold, I entered another world. Intimate and close, the bright colors and incredibly intricate designs almost overwhelm and consume. A starry sky spreads across the shallow, domed ceiling, gold embedded in a deep-blue background, constellations that seem close enough to reach out and touch. Green grapevines climb the archways. Christ the Good Shepherd and various saints look down from above. Despite the building’s name, Empress Galla Placidia probably was never buried here—her body actually rests in Rome.

The guide said Cole Porter wrote one of his best-known songs, “Night and Day,” after a visit here. And as I proceeded out, back toward the heart of town, my heart was indeed singing. More to see here in Ravenna, and hopefully a visit back soon to enjoy even more. 

Tim Johnson is based in Toronto. He has visited 140 countries across all seven continents.

8

UNESCO

World Heritage monuments, most displaying glorious mosaic art, can be found in Ravenna.

If You Go

Stay: Housed in an 18th-century palace, the fourstar Palazzo Bezzi is within steps of some of the major mosaic sites, with fresh, bright rooms and a terrace overlooking the rooftops of the city. Take Note: One of the best ways to explore Italy is by sea, where you can unpack your suitcase once and let the ancient wonders come to you. Viking Ocean’s week-long Italian Sojourn takes you to a number of ports of call along the Italic Peninsula, around the boot from Rome to Venice.