WHAT TO SEE IN THE MURATTIANO QUARTER:
Via Sparano (foto) is the main streets in the heart of the city, a pedestrian street more than half a kilometer long that starts near the historic center, Bari Vecchia, and ends at the railway station of the capital, as well as Piazza Aldo Moro. Via Sparano is defined as the "living room of Bari", in fact, after the restyling project completed in 2018, this street now enjoys an even more elegant appearance thanks to the creation of 7 living rooms, each with its own name and related characteristics. Each block of Via Sparano corresponds to a different living room, specifically: old door living room, fashion living room, cult living room, liberty living room, literary living room, Piazza Umberto living room and finally music living room. Another aspect undoubtedly worth mentioning is that relating to commercial activities, i.e. the presence of numerous shops that attract the interest of locals and tourists every day; in fact, during your walk you may come across clothing shops of a certain prestige and international scope, as well as several historic shops that have also marked an era in Via Sparano.
In Via Sparano is the majestic Palazzo Mincuzzi (foto). Inaugurated in 1928, its project, in delicate and extremely refined Liberty Style, is due to the architect Aldo Forcignanò, who devised an extremely scenographic effective corner solution. The facade of the building consists of a dense succession of columns, ashlar pilasters, Ionic capitals and masks; above the monumental emblem of the family. The interior, one of the most evocative examples of Liberty Style in Southern Italy, features a monumental staircase and is illuminated by the glass dome that dominates the building. Over time, Palazzo Mincuzzi has become the symbol of Bari and one of the most prestigious shops in Bari. In 2001 the Mincuzzi family decided to close an era and to rent their building to the clothing company of Luciano Benetton.
The Petruzzelli Theater (foto) is the most prestigious cultural container of Bari and Puglia and is the fourth largest Italian theater, as well as the largest private theater in Europe. Located in the heart of the city, on Corso Cavour, it is not far from the Palazzo dell’Acquedotto Pugliese (foto). Inaugurated in 1903, it was destroyed by arson in 1991, only to be rebuilt and returned to its former glory in 2009. The Umbertine style of the building is in harmony with the rest of the Murattian village, the new part of the city. The Theater can accommodate up to 1,500 spectators and the rich artistic programming is entrusted to the Petruzzelli Opera-Symphonic Foundation.
Corso Vittorio Emanuele (foto) II marks the border between the old city and the elegant 19th century Murattian quarter. The main city thoroughfare is for the most part embellished with tree-lined flowerbeds, beyond which there are shops, restaurants and shops of all kinds inside historic buildings. At Piazza Libertà, you can admire the Teatro Piccinni (foto), with its neoclassical facade, and the Palazzo della Prefettura (foto), with a facade characterized by a geometric succession of windows.
Along the way there is a monumental bronze work by Mario Ceroli, famous Italian sculptor and set designer, the "Horse with saddlecloth" (foto). Made in 1985, it rests on a composition of colored marble and granite and on a high base in Trani stone.
Towards the end of the Corso, near Piazza Garibaldi, you can admire the spectacular Palazzo Fizzarotti, in Venetian-Gothic style built between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the last century, based on a project by talented architects such as the well-known architect Bernich and the architect Corradini, who made use of the work of fine craftsmen and artists such as painters, sculptors, decorators, mosaicists, blacksmiths and glassmakers for its construction.