Ferrara
[key], city, capital of Ferrara prov., in Emilia-Romagna, N Italy. It is a
rich industrial and agricultural center, located on a low-lying, marshy
plain that has much reclaimed land. Manufactures include chemicals,
machinery, food products, metals, and refined petroleum. In the early 13th
cent. the Este family
founded in Ferrara a powerful principality, and during the Renaissance
commerce, learning, printing, and the arts flourished about the brilliant
court. The 15th-century painters Cossa and Tura and the 16th-century writers
Tosso and Ariosto lived in Ferrara, and the religious reformer Savonarola
was born there (1452). The city was incorporated into the Papal States in
1558. Among Ferrara's many noteworthy buildings are Este castle (14th
cent.), the cathedral (begun 1135), Schifanoia palace (14th–15th
cent.), and the Palazzo del Diamanti (15th–16th cent.). The city has
a university (founded 1391).
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