The “Parterre” as a public garden was designed by the architect Pasquale Poccianti and realized between 1830 and 1854 near the “Cisternone”.
It become a zoo almost by chance, even lacking any structure, when a couple of wild boars were sent to Livorno as a gift by the mayor of Sassari, Sardinia. With WWII most of the animals were transferred to the zoo of Salsomaggiore and the park was then commandeered by the Allied Command.
In the 50's the “Parterre” was opened again as a public park and some animals were back in the cages. In the 90's the zoo was gradually closed and an area of the nearby former Pirelli factory was included in the park.
The cages are now empty or hosts palm trees as decoration and not for protection, as falsely described in my April Fool's post: Cages & Palm Trees.
At the entrance of the park was placed a pillar which was part of a fountain designed in 1838 by the Poccianti himself and once located at the crossing of “Via Garibaldi” and “Via Galilei”. The female figure at the top represents Hygieia, the Greek goddess of health.See also: Parterre - Bowl of Hygieia - More Hygieia - The Gate of the Parterre
External links: Hygieia (Wikipedia)
16 comments:
Splendid park with all those beautiful trees. Looks very well maintained. As the details' and gates' fan I like mostly last two photos of course:)
have a nice week!
It's a beautiful park with such wonderful trees and so interesting sculptures to see. I think it's very appropriate to have Hygieia at the entrance. Spending time here would definitely be good for the body and the soul.
Looks like an interesting place. I like "designer" gardens. The first photo in particular looks pretty amazing.
Il posto ideale per camminare, specialmente in giorni caldi :-)
Looks like a great park to walk around in. The gate is very impressive.
Wonderful trees and Statue!!
Great place and very fine photos. It reminds a little bit The Parc de la Ciutadella in Barcelona!
Regards,
m_m
This was such a beautiful virtual walk. My park here is so bare compared to yours.
Babooshka is right. It feels as if I've just taken a stroll through the park with an informative friend. Thank you. These are beautiful images.
Beautiful gardens. Thanks for taking us on the tour!
A very beautiful park. It seems like the perfect place to take a stroll or enjoy a cool drink and a nice book.
Great commentary, VP. I found myself wishing to be there walking about while you were narrating.
It is truly a beautiful spot and I'm pleased that the powers-that-be decided to set it up so that everyone could enjoy its beauty...
Love the statues, too!
It looks like a nice park. I'm glad I could see it! Thanks for visiting my Astoria blog.
Lovely post. I wish I could have a pre-dinner stroll right now!
It looks like a really nice place. I love the statues.
I'm glad to see that throughout it's ever changing history, that people appreciated its beauty and did not replace it road and buildings. It looks to be a lovely place for a peaceful stroll.
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