The Tower and the Alicorno Canal in Santa Croce

The events following the siege suffered by Padua in 1509 and the construction of the Alicorno Tower outside the city to the west of the Bacchiglione river, first temporary and then in masonry from 1513, resulted in a modification of the watercourses in the southern area: the riverbed of the Tronco Comune is moved westward, moving it away from Santa Croce, and the Santa Giustina canal, extended westward takes a new name from the nearby Alicorno Tower.
The 'building at the canal's incile also preserves inside it the old system of controlling the entrance of water with the large wheel driven by the weight of a person. While from the outside of the circular wall surface of the Alicorno Tower it is possible to see the restoration work carried out after the partial collapse in 2009, inside, the multiple entrances and two-level casemates constitute one of the most fascinating hypogeal complexes in the entire Paduan fortified city wall. 
Walking along the patrol route, here still preserved on the top of the inner embankments up to Piazzale Santa Croce, other present episodes will also be noted such as the curtain casemates for the defense of the keep from the outside and the Meridian Scope, erected in 1842 to exactly calibrate the south from the telescope placed on the Specola. 
The Alicorn Bastion is also one of the stations of Mura Vive, the multimedia storytelling museum that with the help of technology and the magic of images brings the history of the place to life.
In addition to the rococo interior of the Church of the Holy Cross, it is possible to visit the adjacent hall of the Confraternity of the Redeemer frescoed with a cycle of 16th-century frescoes by Girolamo dal Santo and Domenico Campagnola.

Duration: 2 hours

Excursion in collaboration with the Padua Walls Committee Association.