Arche Scaligere (Scaliger Tombs)

The Arche Scaligere, or Scaliger Tombs, are a group of Gothic funerary monuments in a small walled enclosure on Via Arche Scaligere in the historic centre of Verona, Italy, just a two-minute walk from Piazza dei Signori. They commemorate members of the Della Scala family, who ruled Verona from the late thirteenth to the late fourteenth century and are remembered as patrons of Dante during his exile. The tombs stand beside the small Romanesque church of Santa Maria Antica, which served as the family's chapel, and are enclosed by a wrought-iron fence whose pattern repeats the ladder, or scala, that forms the family emblem. The monuments include simple sarcophagi for earlier rulers and three larger tombs for the most important figures: Cangrande I, Mastino II and Cansignorio. Cangrande I's sarcophagus is placed above the church doorway and is topped by a statue of the ruler on horseback with a smiling expression, a copy of the original now kept in the Museo di Castelvecchio. The tombs of Mastino II and Cansignorio are elaborate free-standing canopies of marble, with spires, pinnacles and statues of saints and warriors, reflecting the wealth and ambition of their patrons. Visitors usually view the monuments from outside the fence on the street, since interior access varies by event and season. A visit takes about 15 to 20 minutes, which is enough to study the carving, the iron grille and the statues. Good photo angles are from the corner of the lane, where the tombs and the church doorway can be framed together, and from the side that reveals the Cansignorio canopy. Daytime is best for seeing the iron details, and crowds are modest, apart from groups passing through on walking tours. The location is next to the Palazzo del Governo and the Casa dei Mercanti, so the tombs combine easily with a walk through Piazza dei Signori and Piazza delle Erbe.