Palazzo della Pilotta, Parma

Palazzo della Pilotta is the dominant landmark of central Parma, a vast unfinished Farnese palace begun in 1583 under Ottavio Farnese and continued by successive dukes through the 17th century. Its name derives from the game of pelota (pilotta) played in one of its courtyards by Spanish soldiers stationed in the ducal court. The palace was never completed — its bare brick exterior and missing corner towers give the building a deliberately raw quality — but the interior houses some of northern Italy's most important cultural institutions. The Galleria Nazionale di Parma occupies the first floor and contains masterworks by Antonio da Correggio, Parmigianino, Leonardo da Vinci, Fra Angelico, and El Greco, with the Correggio collection being the most complete outside the artist's own frescoes in Parma's churches. The extraordinary Teatro Farnese (1618), built entirely of wood by Giovan Battista Aleotti, occupies an entire wing of the palace. Modelled on Palladio's Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, it is the oldest surviving proscenium theatre in the world and was used for spectacular court entertainments including water spectacles in the partially flooded orchestra pit. Badly damaged in World War II bombing in 1944, it was painstakingly restored and reopened in 1956. The Museo Archeologico Nazionale and the Biblioteca Palatina (Palatine Library) also share the palace complex; the library's most notable treasure is the Palatine Virgil, an illuminated manuscript from the 4th–5th century. A single ticket allows access to all collections. Allow 2–3 hours for a thorough visit. The palace is a 5-minute walk from the Parma Cathedral and the Baptistery.