History and Structure of the Gate

Porta Santi Quaranta is situated in the west part of Treviso in the way to Padova, Vicenza and Feltre and it was the second gate wich was built in the city.

It was designed in 1517 by the architect Alessandro Leopardi under the authority of N. Vendramin. It was built only in a year after the Cambrai war in which Venice won. It had a celebratory carachter of the victory. Vendramin gave to the gate the name of Vendramina and he engraved his name on the two facade of the construction.

The gate has a squared map, the front was built in stone of Istria, it is divide in for pilaster strip and it is frame by the walling that is treated with plaster. In the middle there is an arch and it is on top of a marcian lion, that was made by the sculptor De Lotto and it sobstitutes the original that was destroyed by the french in 1797. On top of the wicket gate on the right, the only one that is original, there is a commemorative plaque in memory of the chief Vendramin with an epigraph that simbolyze the paternity.

On the other side there is another epigraph that is dedicated to Bartolomeo D’Alviano who was the author of the Treviso’s walls. The pillars of the gate recall the arch of trionfo of the Romans and they are moved in direction of the exterior part of the walling to make the gate a bastion. On the right side there is a gunboat and under the gate there is a bunker. In the higher part there are two openings, called troniere, that were used as emplacement of artillery during the war. 
The central compartment is covered by a daub vault that is supported by littles archs. Otherwise, the space of the attic which you can access by a ladder built inside the wall thickness has a brick pavement, which illustrates the curvature of the underside. The entablature contains the word "Porta de Sancti Quaranta", while the interior facade bears the inscription in Latin "Porta Santorum Quadraginta". Four capitals foliage complement the pillars flanked by four coats of arms: one linked to the mayor, one of Doge Loredan and two to the city of Treviso.

Three big loopholes indicate the presence, in the past, of two drawbridges: one pedestrian and one driveway. The vault is crossed by cracks which highlight that the building has undergone settle slightly. It si accentuated in the part founded near the pit, because for centuries the water has lapped the foundations of the building while the bridge, built in 1873, altered the balance of the land. In the par, the gate had to be equipped with a fireplace placed in the central room and it had an underground gallery, which was used as an air-raid shelter during the two world wars. The gate was renovated between 1995 and 1998 and only after the renovation, people understood the color value of the side strips, which with their brown-red colour exalt the whiteness of the Istrian stone, giving an idea of fortress, power and safe government. The restoration of the plastered walls has showed the presence of fresco decorations, today completely disappeared.

In 1700 was built a palace adjacent to the south side of the gate, which unbalanced the whole building system and the highest building of the gate caused a change in the structure. Now, half of the foundations are on the dry land while the other half has for basis the pit. 
On the same side of the palace, a large underground room has got two corridors that are directed towards the city; one is buried and the other led to a trap door that allowed the walkway.