Asolo

Infobox CityIT
img_coa = asolo.png

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official_name = Comune di Asolo
name=Asolo
region = Veneto
province = Treviso (TV)
elevation_m = 210
area_total_km2 = 25.24
mapx=45.92
mapy=11.93
population_as_of = October 31 2007
population_total = 9,056
population_density_km2 =
timezone = CET, UTC+1
coordinates = coord|45|48|N|11|55|E
frazioni = Casella, Pagnano, Villa d'Asolo
telephone = 0423
postalcode = 31010
gentilic = Asolani
saint = San Prosdocimo from Padoa
day = november 7
mayor = Daniele Ferrazza
website = [http://www.comune.asolo.tv.it www.comune.asolo.tv.it]

Asolo is a town in the Veneto Region of Northern Italy. It is known as "The Pearl of province of Treviso", and also as "The City of a Hundred Horizons" for its mountain settings.

History

The town was originally a settlement of the Veneti, and was mentioned as Acelum in the works of Pliny.

In the early Middle Ages it was under the jurisdiction of the Bishops of Treviso and a possession of the Ezzelino family.

Later Asolo was the capital, and seat of the court, of the fiefdom of Asolo, which was granted by the Republic of Venice (to which it belonged) to Caterina Cornaro, the former Queen of Cyprus; in 1489 it was granted to her for life, but in 1509 when the League of Cambrai conquered and ransacked Asolo, Caterina fled to exile and died in Venice a year later. Under her reign, the painter Gentile Bellini and the humanist Cardinal Pietro Bembo were part of the court. Caterina's personal theatre was later purchased by Ringling (of Ringling Circus fame), crated up and shipped to Sarasota, Florida, where it was reassembled. The Asolo Theatre remains there today, where it enjoys a renaissance of theatre performances.

The town was also home to the English poet Robert Browning, the actress Eleonora Duse, the explorer Freya Stark, the violinist Wilma Neruda and the composer Gian Francesco Malipiero.

Main sights

*remains of an amphitheatre (in the "Villa Freya") and of an aqueduct.
*"Rocca" (castle, late 12th-early 13th centuries).
*The Castle of Caterina Cornaro, now home to the Eleonora Duse theatre.
*"Palazzo della Ragione", housing the city's museum.
*The Cathedral, built in 1747. In the interior is the "Assunta" altarpiece by Lorenzo Lotto.

Atop the town sits a converted monastery that now houses a university: CIMBA (Consortium International for Management and Business Analysis) [http://www.cimbaitaly.com] . Students from all over the world live/work/study in Asolo while earning their MBA. CIMBA has a sister campus for undergraduates in Paderno.

"Frazioni"

* Casella (Asolo)
* Pagnano (Asolo)
* Villa d'Asolo

External links

* [http://www.asolo.com/ Asolo Boots & Shoes]
* [http://www.asolofestival.com/]
* [http://www.cimba.it CIMBA]

References

* [http://icarus.umkc.edu/sandbox/perseus/pecs/page.18.a.php Richard Stillwell, ed. "Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites", 1976:] "Acelum (Asolo), Italy"
*Leslie E. Ellis, Ph.D. "The Early History of the Asolo Theatre" (Florida State University, Disseration available through www.lulu.com)