Square, Plaza sights in Bari
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A
Palazzo Simi
Since 1999 Bari's Archaeological Operations Centre has been housed in Palazzo Simi, and until the new archaeological museum opens its doors in Santa Scolastica, the small archaeological exhibition here provides a reasonable idea of the city's history.
The palace itself is something of museum piece given there are remains of a 9th to 10th century church you can visit in the basement. The three apses are clearly distinguished, as are the remains of the altar and some fragments of fresco depicting the Fathers of the Church. Arranged over the ground floor it takes you through the early days of the city's foundation, from a model of what the initial settlement would have…
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B
Piazza del Ferrarese
Piazza del Ferrarese, named after the Ferrara merchant Stefano Fabri who lived here in the 17th century, provides an elegant entrance to the old town. On your left are the rounded arches of Sala Murat which holds minor contemporary art exhibitions, and on your right is the old indoor fish market. The piazza is lined with bars and cafés, an old section of roman road roped off in the middle. To the north it merges imperceptibly into another set-piece piazza, Piazza Mercantile.
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C
Piazza Mercantile
To the north of Piazza del Ferrarese it merges imperceptibly into another set-piece piazza, Piazza Mercantile, historically the political centre of the old town and an important public space. It contains the Palazzo del Sedile (much altered over time), the medieval headquarters of Bari's Council of Nobles, and the Colonna della Giustizia (Column of Justice), to which debtors were tied and lashed.
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