Palatium Vetus (Palazzo del Governatore)

Behind Piazza della Libertà stands one of Alessandria's most ancient palaces: the Palatium Vetus, medieval seat of the commune, later a military headquarters for two centuries, and today home to the Fondazione CrAL's art collection, its walls still bearing frescoes and the first known rendering of the city's coat of arms.

Why it matters

A city founded in 1168 keeps few buildings from its first centuries, which makes the Palatium Vetus precious. Built at the turn of the 13th century — a "domus consulum" is documented by 1191 — it served as the broletto, the centre of the medieval commune's political, administrative and judicial life. Stripped and repurposed as a military command from 1856 until 1995, it was rescued by a restoration completed in 2012 with advice from architect Gae Aulenti, which uncovered the Lombard-style facade of the broletto, walled-up trifore and a cycle of frescoes spanning the 13th to 17th centuries. Following its restoration, it became the seat of the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Alessandria, bringing art and archaeology into a medieval civic setting.

What to notice

• The rediscovered broletto facade in Lombard style, with its ground-floor portico and the great hall above, revealed when later plaster layers were removed during the 2007–2012 restoration.
• The courtyard portico with its pointed arches, the medieval skeleton beneath a building whose outward aspect is largely 19th-century.
• Inside the aula, the walled-up three-light windows and frescoes painted between the 13th and 17th centuries — including what is considered the first representation of Alessandria's coat of arms, a red cross on a white field.
• The plaque and cannon on the facade corner recalling the subscription of the "Cento Cannoni" that funded the Cittadella's works, with the last surviving cannon set at the building's north angle.
• The Fondazione CrAL art collection includes works such as "La Chitarra", sculptures by Giò Pomodoro and the Argenti di Marengo silver.

• Archaeological remains uncovered during restoration, which form part of the palace's layered history.

Context and history

The palace rose when the young commune needed a seat: the broletto of the 13th and 14th centuries housed the consuls' and later the commune's business at the core of the medieval town. In 1856 the municipality ceded it to the State, and for nearly 140 years it lodged the guard corps, the Presidio and the military district — hence the name Palazzo del Governatore that still attaches to it. Its return to civic life came through the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Alessandria, which bought and restored the building between 2007 and 2012, with Gae Aulenti consulting, and made it its headquarters from 1 September 2012. The restoration exposed the medieval structure and painted walls and created a museum area for archaeological finds uncovered during the works.