This place has been representing the main gateway to the commercial area of Bergamo for a very long time. Today, it is still the main junction around which the main streets and monuments of the Lower City are located.
In 1837, the old wicket gate nestled in the “Muraine”, the massive XV Century walls that used to surround the hills and go down to the Lower Town and the old districts, was replaced by an iron gate opening a breach in the defensive walls: the so-called Porta Nuova (“New Gate”).
The “Ferdinandea” street was inaugurated in 1838 on the occasion of the visit of the Austria Emperor Ferdinand I, and it’s currently called Viale Vittorio Emanuele II: along with Viale Roma and Viale Papa Giovanni XXIII, it represents the main road leading from the Lower Town to the Upper Town. Originally, it was surrounded by fields originally, but it soon became one of the most relevant roads of the town, where beautiful palaces were built, both public and private. The modern town developed itself around this street and Porta Nuova, featuring an ever-changing and industrious beauty, deeply related to work, shopping and everyday life.
From Porta Nuova, you have the best view over the district built on the Città Alta hill. The skyline of palaces, towers, belfries, domes and walls strikes you with its beautiful harmony.
The neoclassical twin-buildings located on both sides of Porta Nuova are called “propylaeums”, that means “what stands in front of the gate”. Till 1901, in fact, they were used as a Customs House, which controlled the entrance of goods and assets to town: an iron gate used to block the way. Those who wanted to enter the town had to pay a tax on good, just like modern customs.