Palazzo De Blasio is an important Liberty-style building in Reggio Calabria, standing on the city's seafront and today home to the Tommaso Gulli state lyceum.
What to see
Built in 1911 to a design by the engineer Domenico Genoese Zerbi, it was the first public building constructed after the earthquake of 1908; the works contract was awarded in September of that same year, with the «Comitato Lombardo» contributing to the costs, having already overseen the institute — then the Girls' Teacher Training School — since its founding.
The building, two storeys tall with an irregular C-shaped plan around an inner courtyard used for the students' recreational activities, has its main façade facing the seafront, with the two corner blocks set further forward than the central one and the entrance raised above street level; two flights of steps with iron balustrades encircle the whole structure. On the ground floor of the central block, three large iron-and-glass doors of original craftsmanship mark the main entrance, while the other openings, with wide windows framed in iron strips, are arranged symmetrically on both floors beneath an eaves cornice decorated with floral friezes.
Visiting
The building is a school: the interior is not normally open to visitors, but the exterior can be admired while walking along the seafront.
Our editors' tip
Look at the three large iron-and-glass doors of the central block: they are one of Reggio's rare examples of original fittings that have survived almost intact after more than a century of daily school use.
