BASILICA OF SAN ZENO, Exterior

Hi, my name’s Jill, and I’m your personal guide. Along with MyWoWo, I’d like to welcome you to one of the Wonders of the World: the medieval Basilica of San Zeno.

The Basilica of San Zeno is the most beautiful church in Verona.

Originally built outside the city walls, on the burial site of the bishop and patron saint of Verona, the Basilica of San Zeno is one of the purest masterpieces of Romanesque architecture in Italy, and its noble presence is the signature feature of the whole neighborhood, with a number of medieval buildings surrounding it.

Near the church is the small, deconsecrated thirteenth-century church of San Procolo, an imposing tower that belonged to the ancient Benedictine monastery, and above all, the high bell tower, which rises above a garden to the right of the Basilica. This 72-meter-high construction was begun in 1054 and completed after about a century of work, with the pointed spire surrounded by four pinnacles. The distinctive chromatic effect is created by the alternating rows of red bricks and light tufa stone slabs....