Bologna is world-famous for being the city of porticos, almost all of which are very old and have served for centuries to protect the Bolognese from rain and sun during their walks.
The Cassero di Porta Saragozza is one of the twelve ancient city gates and is evidence of the mighty stone walls erected to protect Bologna in the 14th century, replacing the wooden ones.
The walls were demolished in 1902 as a result of the urban expansion of the time. Right at Porta Saragozza, after crossing the avenues, the longest portico in the world begins, leading up to the top of the Colle della Guardia and the Basilica of San Luca. There are no less than 3,796 metres of covered and well-paved walkway, made up of 316 arches for the walk on the plain from Porta Saragozza to the Meloncello arch, and 350 arches for the hilly stretch from Meloncello to the sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca, for a total of 666 arches.
The number of arches has a profound symbolic meaning: 666 is the devil’s number, and the long, winding portico recalls the serpent, or devil, and ending at the foot of the sanctuary recalls the iconography of the devil defeated and crushed under the foot of the Madonna.
The walk up to the top of Colle di Guardia is a tradition that began in the 12th century, when the first church was built to house and protect an icon of the Byzantine school depicting the Madonna and Child, which religious tradition attributes to St Luke.
Photo by Paolo Desario
