We continue our photographic tour discovering this quiet town immersed in the foggy Po valley and close to the first Apennines foothills.

Popular for its racetrack, Imola shows in its streets an ancient noble culture together with a farmer mood.

[see 1^st part]

A bit of history:
Founded in 82 BC by the Roman dictator Sulla it became an important agricultural and trading centre.
It passed under the Lombard domination and until 6th century it was disputed between the Lombards and the Byzantines.
Then it passed under the papal authority with the exarchate of Ravenna.
This period was followed by incessant wars against the Ravennatese, the Faentines and the Bolognese and continuous struggles between Ghibellines and Guelphs until 1426 when it was restored to the Papal States.
It was later ruled by the Visconti, the Sforza and the Borgia.
In 1800 it was annexed to the Cisalpine Republic and then restored to the Holy See.
In 1859 a plebiscite decided its annexation to the Kingdom of Sardinia and then to the Kingdom of Italy.

A note, maybe a sore point:
Along the way we have stumbled into the Auditorium of the Accademia 'Incontri col Maestro' at palazzo Monsignani and in the entrance hall we noticed some very particular pianos.
We asked for information and we were informed that those were the remains of a large set of 120 piano collected by the Maestro Franco Scala over a 30-years period.
It was a unique collection about the piano and music history linked to one of the most famous piano academy in Europe.
Well: Imola did not accept this collection and create a museum worthy of international resonance so, even if reluctantly, the Maestro Scala ceded his splendid collection.

For more info:
wikipedia: Imola
visitare Imola