Skip menu

Classense Library

Overview

It is the Ravenna institution that has collected the city's manuscript and printed heritage. Having liquidated the religious orders and their patrimony in 1798 by Napoleon, the Classense became the civic library a few years later, taking its name from the library of the Camaldolese monks that had been brought here from the abbey of Classe, but also taking over the library collections of the other major cenobia. Among the most important collections were and are codices, incunabula, valuable printed editions, autographs, music manuscripts, correspondence, drawings, woodcuts, copperplates and lithographs.

Special funds acquired later include that of the 18th-century architect Camillo Morigia, the builder of Dante's Tomb, and the Raccolta Dantesca assembled by the bibliophile-publisher Leo Olschki, the most comprehensive collection of rare editions focusing on Dante's work.

Another interesting Dantesque initiative one encounters while walking around the city is Camminare Ravenna con la Divina Commedia (Walking Ravenna with the Divine Comedy), a project of the local Lions Clubs. One hundred plaques were affixed in the streets, not necessarily all in places specifically linked to the memory of Dante, each dedicated to a canto of the Divine Comedy. Each plaque has a QR-code, through which one can view the text of the canto, listen to it recited and find it framed in Dante's cosmology, as well as have its summary and a simplified summary available

Hours

Sunday
Closed
Monday
02:00 pm-07:00 pm
Tuesday - Saturday
09:00 am-07:00 pm
Classense Library

Via Alfredo Baccarini, 3, 48121 Ravenna RA, Italia

Call +390544482112 Website

Related articles

Lakes
The Valleys of Comacchio

The Valleys of Comacchio

Cycling tourism
Emilia Romagna by bike: sea, hinterland and Sangiovese

Emilia Romagna by bike: sea, hinterland and Sangiovese

UNESCO
Ravenna with its early Christian monuments, a perfect mix of art, culture and entertainment

Ravenna with its early Christian monuments, a perfect mix of art, culture and entertainment

Art and culture
Emilia Romagna, where hospitality, entertainment and good food will seduce you

Emilia Romagna, where hospitality, entertainment and good food will seduce you

Cycling tourism
Emilia Romagna cycling between art and culture

Emilia Romagna cycling between art and culture

Spirituality
Jewish ghetto in Romagna

Jewish itinerary: in Romagna among ghettos and synagogues

Cultural cities
Rimini: from ancient Rome to Renaissance splendour

Rimini: from ancient Rome to Renaissance splendour

Cultural cities
Parma, city with theatre, music and excellent cuisine

Parma, city with theatre, music and excellent cuisine

Museums and monuments
Musei Ferrari: from Modena to Maranello, on the road with the "reds"

Musei Ferrari: from Modena to Maranello, on the road with the "reds"

Food and wine
Emilia: all the goodness of Parma Ham

Emilia: all the goodness of Parma Ham

Food and wine
Parma Food Museums

Parma Food Museums

Cultural cities
Travelling to Ferrara: precious time walking through history

Travelling to Ferrara: precious time walking through history

Spirituality
Emilia Romagna: where the Via Francigena becomes culture

Emilia Romagna: where the Via Francigena becomes culture

Cultural cities
Piazza Maggiore and  Basilica of San Petronio - Bologna, Emilia-Romagna

Bologna: young, cultured and welcoming

Cultural cities
Modena: city of art, land of motors and taste

Modena: city of art, land of motors and taste

Villages
Castell'Arquato, veduta dall'alto della fortezza

3 picturesque villages in Northern Emilia

Relax and wellness
Getaways for couples in the Wellness Valley of Emilia Romagna

Getaways for couples in the Wellness Valley of Emilia Romagna

Relax and wellness
Emilia Romagna: the heritage of historic spas

Emilia Romagna: the heritage of historic spas

Relax and wellness
Terme di Riolo: on the Apennines amid mud springs and treasures of the land

Terme di Riolo: on the Apennines amid mud springs and treasures of the land

Leisure
Mirabilandia: Italy's first amusement park in Emilia Romagna

Mirabilandia: Italy's first amusement park in Emilia Romagna

Ops! An error occurred while sharing your content. Please accept profiling cookies to share the page.