Tourist information: Turin

Historical Outline: Turin and outside

Turin, stern and regular with its crisscrossing of avenues, still maintains the traces of its regal past, appearing as an elegant salon of historical squares and places, where coffee is a rite and the aperitif a cult. The first capital of Italy, a triumph of Baroque architecture, it is a city where 19th century atmosphere is still palpable in the air, yet it looks way ahead to the future with its alternative art galleries and the ateliers of the most popular designers.

Visit Turin

The Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista is one of the few buildings left from Turin's renaissance past. Built towards the end of the 15th century, it contains the Sindone chapel, built by Guarino Guarini. The Sheet was moved after the devastating fire in 1997 and is now in the Museo della Sindone, set up in the crypt of the Chiesa del SS. Sudario.
The Galleria Sabauda is the result of the Savoy family's passion for art, and in 1860 they presented the State with a large part of their collection. A visit to the Galleria's halls allows you to admire masterpieces by Mantegna, Beato Angelico, Giovanni Bellini, Guido Reni and Flemish masters.
The Egyptian Museum is definitely one the feathers in Turin's hat, its collections one of the most prestigious in the world, together with Cairo's and London's. It contains more than 30.000 remains, between papyri, objects of art and tools, and it retraces the history of the Egyptian civilization from the origins until the 6th century AD.
Among royal palaces, Palazzo Madama, now the seat of the Museo civico di arte antica, is definitely worth a visit. A baroque masterpiece, its origin is in fact extremely ancient, as it was one of the gates of the Roman Augusta Taurinorum. The palace owes its name to the fact of having hosted two royal "madames", Marie Christine of France and Maria Giovanna Battista of Savoy-Nemours, who heavily influenced its appearance.
Finally, the city's symbol par excellence, the Mole Antonelliana, a 19th century building which today contains the National cinema museum.

Events

Turin offers a truly enviable programme of cultural events. Offers are really many and they can satisfy even the most particular palates. If you need to appease your eyes' craving, every year Artissima, the fair of modern Art, is an excellent opportunity to evaluate the International modern artistic landscape. For lovers of sounds on the other hand there is Settembre musica which has been continuing for more than twenty years and offers a very full calendar of concerts over a whole month.
Finally, for lovers of printed paper, the book fair is one of the sector's most eagerly awaited events and is practically unmissable. In the month of May, in the exposition halls of the Lingotto, large and small editors meet and exhibit the latest novelties.