Palazzo Rasponi poi Bellenghi: home to Ca' De Vin

Palazzo Rasponi poi Bellenghi: home to Ca' De Vin in the centre of Ravenna. Hotels near Palazzo Bellenghi.

Photo: 1/2/3/4)Palazzo Rasponi Bellenghi, entrance into Ca' de Ven and entrance into Circolo Ravennate e dei Forestieri

"The city is fairly large, poor, deserted, not well built: there are, however, houses that bear the name of palazzos...". This is how, in March 1715, Philippe de Caylus, French scholar of ancient art, recorded his first impression of Ravenna in his Voyage d' Italie. "I stayed at the Corona - terrible", he continues. "Ravenna bored me; having seen everything there was to see, I left after lunch".

The Osteria della Corona was in this very building, which has existed almost from the end of the 14th century.

It was renovated from 1541 onwards - taking on the stateliness of a palazzo - by Giovanna Fabri, Teseo Rasponi's wife, and her son Cesare, who gave it an austere fort-like appearance, with a powerful tower on one side and little towers supported by buttresses; these can only be seen today on the corner balcony.

This was why the palazzo was also known as the Tower of St Francis. The Rasponis owned it throughout the 18th century but only lived there until the end of the 17th century, when the Osteria della Corona was opened in the building.

In 1877, after various changes and renovations, Giuseppe Bellenghi opened his grocer's shop here, after having purchased the building the year before.

For more than half a century this was the best supplied and most renowned shop in the city. In 1975 the Tribunate of Wines of the Romagna Region transformed the premises into the "Ca' de' Ven", a wine cellar and restaurant, which preserves the old grocer's furnishings and offers wine tasting in a welcoming environment with typical Romagna dishes.

Next to the Ca' de' Ven entrance is the RAVENNA CITIZENS AND FOREIGNERS CLUB that was founded in 1860.

Prof.Gianni Morelli

The pleasure of sleeping in Ravenna's city centre: we recommend the following hotels for your stay: Fabbri Hotels:

the Hotel Central Byron, 3 star hotel, in Ravenna's city centre, is near to Palazzo Rasponi poi Bellenghi, where the wine cellar and restaurant Ca' de' Ven is;

the Hotel Bisanzio, 4 star hotel, in Ravenna's city centre, is near to Palazzo Rasponi poi Bellenghi where the wine cellar and restaurant Ca' de' Ven is;

Once you have driven to the hotel and parked, forget the car and walk... everything is just a few steps away.  
Even the station is nearby, at walking distance from the hotel.

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