The Post and Telegraph Office of Reggio Calabria is one of the city's finest neoclassical buildings and occupies the entire block bounded by corso Vittorio Emanuele III and via Miraglia, via Valentino and via Foti.
What to see
The building stands on the site where, before the earthquake of 1908, the convent of the Dominican Fathers once stood, itself rebuilt to a design by the engineer Alfredo Ferretti after the earthquake of 1783. Because of the sloping terrain, the post office building rises over three storeys on the corso Vittorio Emanuele III side and two on the main side facing via Miraglia, where the entrance is located, formed by three horizontal-lintel portals with wrought-iron gates leading into the richly decorated public counter hall.
The exterior façades, divided horizontally by string courses, have a base of coarse rusticated mortar simulating roughly split stone, while the upper walls are finished in faux travertine; the lower-floor windows, either lintelled or slightly arched, follow one another rhythmically along all the façades, while those on the upper floors, single or mullioned, are framed by pilasters or columns with Ionic or Corinthian capitals. Beneath the eaves runs an entablature marked by small columns, interrupted at some windows by triangular pediments with bas-reliefs of human figures; at the corners of the façade on the corso, two identical, symmetrical detached blocks echo the same architectural elements as the main front.
Visiting
The building still houses the post office: the public areas can be visited during opening hours, while the exterior can be admired at any time.
Our editors' tip
Look up at the triangular pediments above some of the windows: the bas-reliefs of human figures carved into them are a decorative detail often overlooked by those rushing in to run an errand.
