Description
The Navigli are Milan's canals, the water district around the Darsena, in the Porta Ticinese area. They once formed a system linking the city to Lake Maggiore and Lake Como, the Ticino and the Po; today what remains are the stretches around the Darsena, with their railing houses, bars and little markets on the banks.
The starting point is the Darsena, a long curved basin dug in 1603 by the Spanish, the city's old port. Here the Naviglio Grande enters and the Pavese leaves: it is the center of everything, with the banks full of people on summer evenings.
The Naviglio Grande leaves the Darsena in the direction of the Ticino. Born from a military canal of 1152, it became navigable in the 13th century. It was the road of Milanese trade and, with its 116 irrigation outlets, it also watered the surrounding countryside.
The Naviglio Pavese, ordered by Napoleon and finished in 1819, leads instead toward Pavia. It was meant to link Milan to the sea: with steamships, in the mid-19th century a regular line ran all the way to Venice and Trieste.
The Conca di Viarenna, built by the Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo between 1551 and 1558, was the first water step between the Naviglio Grande and the inner ring. A plaque from 1497 recalls the decree that exempted the Duomo's boats from tolls.
What remains today is only a part. Milan, which has no great river, dug its water for itself: the Cerchia dei Navigli, which ran around the medieval walls in the center, was covered between 1928 and 1930 because of stagnant water and traffic.
Its course can still be recognized in the streets: Via Senato, Via Visconti di Modrone, Via Francesco Sforza, Via Carducci. Every now and then there is talk of reopening it; the Politecnico has even studied a project.
When something is free in Milan, people say it is "a ufo". The expression comes from the Navigli: the boats carrying marble for the Duomo bore the letters AUF, "ad usum fabricae", and for them there were no tolls.
The Candoglia marble made a journey of about 105 km from Lake Maggiore to the building site. A landing place, the little lake of Santo Stefano, received the boats near the Duomo.
With the covering of the canals, boat traffic ended and the Darsena changed its life. In 1953 it was still the thirteenth port in Italy for goods received; today it is a place for strolling, with bars, restaurants and little markets on the banks.
Don't miss
• The Darsena.
• The Naviglio Grande.
• The Vicolo dei Lavandai.
• The Conca di Viarenna.
Did you know?
• Leonardo, who studied Milan's waters from above, designed a canal to link Milan to Lake Como, getting past the rapids of the Adda: for the time it was too bold.
• The Naviglio Grande carried the Duomo's marble from Lake Maggiore to the building site.
The starting point is the Darsena, a long curved basin dug in 1603 by the Spanish, the city's old port. Here the Naviglio Grande enters and the Pavese leaves: it is the center of everything, with the banks full of people on summer evenings.
The Naviglio Grande leaves the Darsena in the direction of the Ticino. Born from a military canal of 1152, it became navigable in the 13th century. It was the road of Milanese trade and, with its 116 irrigation outlets, it also watered the surrounding countryside.
The Naviglio Pavese, ordered by Napoleon and finished in 1819, leads instead toward Pavia. It was meant to link Milan to the sea: with steamships, in the mid-19th century a regular line ran all the way to Venice and Trieste.
The Conca di Viarenna, built by the Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo between 1551 and 1558, was the first water step between the Naviglio Grande and the inner ring. A plaque from 1497 recalls the decree that exempted the Duomo's boats from tolls.
What remains today is only a part. Milan, which has no great river, dug its water for itself: the Cerchia dei Navigli, which ran around the medieval walls in the center, was covered between 1928 and 1930 because of stagnant water and traffic.
Its course can still be recognized in the streets: Via Senato, Via Visconti di Modrone, Via Francesco Sforza, Via Carducci. Every now and then there is talk of reopening it; the Politecnico has even studied a project.
When something is free in Milan, people say it is "a ufo". The expression comes from the Navigli: the boats carrying marble for the Duomo bore the letters AUF, "ad usum fabricae", and for them there were no tolls.
The Candoglia marble made a journey of about 105 km from Lake Maggiore to the building site. A landing place, the little lake of Santo Stefano, received the boats near the Duomo.
With the covering of the canals, boat traffic ended and the Darsena changed its life. In 1953 it was still the thirteenth port in Italy for goods received; today it is a place for strolling, with bars, restaurants and little markets on the banks.
Don't miss
• The Darsena.
• The Naviglio Grande.
• The Vicolo dei Lavandai.
• The Conca di Viarenna.
Did you know?
• Leonardo, who studied Milan's waters from above, designed a canal to link Milan to Lake Como, getting past the rapids of the Adda: for the time it was too bold.
• The Naviglio Grande carried the Duomo's marble from Lake Maggiore to the building site.