Palazzo Toaldi Capra

Palazzo Toaldi Capra was the seat of the Municipality from the 18th century until 1913 and, between the two wars, of the 44th National Volunteer Security Legion, while in the post-war period it hosted some high schools. On June 17, 1512, the Palace is mentioned as the property of the Da Pozzo brothers, Venetian citizens. Subsequently, the property passed to the heirs of Cesare Toaldi. The Toaldi family, documented since the end of the 13th century, was for centuries one of the most important families in the City. Originating from Cogollo del Cengio, where they were involved in iron processing, the Toaldi family in Schio became among the major merchants trading with Venice and other cities in the Veneto region. Around the mid-17th century, due to various divisions and sales, the family declined, and in this sense, it can be interpreted that, around the mid-1600s, the building was owned by a prominent representative of the Vicentine nobility: Count Giovan Battista Capra, who sold the palace in 1668. During the renovation works carried out by the Municipality in the 1980s, frescoes from the early 15th century, attributed to late-Gothic painting, emerged on the noble floor. On the façade, we find, on the right, a plaque commemorating those who died for independence and freedom and, on the left, a bronze bust set in a marble frame dedicated to Giuseppe Garibaldi (work by Carlo Lorenzetti, 1882), known for being the first monument created in homage to the hero of the two worlds. At the top left, the Carrara marble bust of Nicolò Tron, sculpted by Pietro Danieletti in 1772, testifies to the importance this Venetian patrician had for the development of the textile industry in Schio. Currently, the palace is the venue for exhibitions, conferences, and performances, as well as being the home of local associations.