Park Gardino Scotto - Pisa

The Giardino Scotto represents the latest use of an area in Pisa that has undergone continuous transformation, as evidenced by the results of recent archaeological excavations carried out here. The area was probably already partially inhabited in Roman times, as it borders the route of the Via Aemilia Scauri. Abandoned in the early Middle Ages, it was chosen in 1095 for the foundation of the Church of St. Andrew in Chinzica. In the 13th century it distinguished itself as an artisan area associated with the production of ceramics, hence the medieval name Baractularia, while in the 14th century a series of factories were installed here for the casting of bronze bells, an activity in which the Pisan masters excelled.
In the 15th century, after the conquest of the city, the Florentines decided to build a fortified Citadel (1440-75), designed with the collaboration of Brunelleschi and intended to restrain the citizens of Pisa. The construction, of which the two semicircular towers and the stone wall with entrenchment on the west side remain, part of the medieval city walls was reused and the pre-existing quarter was completely destroyed.
In 1495 the rebellious Pisans partially destroyed the fortress; between 1509 and 1512, after the second Florentine conquest, Antonio da Sangallo used part of the previous fortress and built a new star-shaped fortress to the south, still visible from Piazza Guerrazzi, and a bastion on the Arno.
The fortress was dismantled in 1785 and an aristocratic palace was built on the site of the bastion, which soon became the property of Domenico Scotto, after whom it was named, who used the part behind the fortress as a private garden. In 1936, when the palace became Regia Questura (headquarters of the Royal Police), the park was donated to the citizens by the last heirs.

Willem Vandenameele