This shopping center, or galleria, is located between Milan's two main tourist attractions, the cathedral and the museum. Duomo di Milano in Piazza Duomo and the Opera House La Scala in Piazza della Scala. Inside the mall, which is shaped like a tunnel, you will find lots of shops, restaurants, bars and cafes also many fine paintings which, combined with beautiful architecture, create a fascinating atmosphere.
47 meters into the sky, in the middle of the tunnel intersection, stretches an octagonal dome made of iron and glass, a structure that at the time was the first of its kind.
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is named after Victor Emmanuel II, the first king of unified Italy from 1861 to 1878. The gallery was designed by Giuseppe Mengoni already is 1861 construction began in 1865 and was completed 12 years later in 1877. At that time, the large triumphal portal at the southern entrance was also added.
But Mengoni never got to see the opening of the mall because he unfortunately fell to his death from the glass dome two days before the opening, while carefully examining the dome's decoration.
The floor in the center of the dome was restored in 1966 with a rare marble mosaic depicting four coats of arms from four Italian cities: the Wolf of Rome, the Cross of Milan, the Lily of Florence and the Ox of Turin.
The myth says that rotating the image of Taurus three times on one leg brings good luck.
Visitor information about Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
Beautiful and interesting to walk and see the contrasts among the visitors.