The Ghirlandina is the bell tower of Modena Cathedral and the symbol of the city, a white marble tower some 86 metres tall rising beside the cathedral's apse on Piazza Grande. It is named after the two marble balustrades, the garlands, around its Gothic spire, and inside it once kept the city's treasures, including a wooden bucket stolen from Bologna in 1325.
The Ghirlandina at a glance
- Where: at the east end of Modena Cathedral, between Piazza Grande and the little Piazza Torre on Via Emilia.
- Built: begun in the 12th century together with the Romanesque cathedral and completed in 1319, when the golden ball was set on the spire.
- By: the cathedral's architect Lanfranco and the Campionese masters; the octagonal spire was designed by Arrigo (Enrico) da Campione.
- What it is today: the cathedral's bell tower and the city's civic tower, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site with the cathedral and Piazza Grande since 1997.
- Time needed: 15 minutes to look at it from the squares, about an hour if you book a visit inside.
A tower built to outdo Bologna
The tower started as the Torre di San Geminiano, a square tower of four storeys raised alongside the cathedral. In 1167 the masters from Campione, the stonemasons from the lakes north of Milan who worked on the cathedral, were called in to finish it. They added a fifth storey by 1179 and later a sixth. In the 14th century, partly out of rivalry with the towers of Bologna, the city added the slender octagonal spire in the new Gothic style, and in 1319 the tower was crowned with its golden ball.
For centuries the Ghirlandina served the commune as well as the church. Its lower hall held the city's strongboxes, documents and war trophies, and higher up was the room of the tower keepers, the torresani. The tower was refaced with Verona marble in the 1890s and restored again between 2007 and 2011. It also holds a sad memory: in 1938 the Jewish publisher Angelo Fortunato Formiggini threw himself from it in protest against Mussolini's racial laws.
What to look for
- The two marble balustrades around the base of the spire, the garlands that give the tower its name.
- The golden ball on the very top, set there when the tower was completed in 1319.
- The storeys of the square tower, which become shorter as they rise, divided by cornices.
- In Piazza Torre on the north side, the statue of the poet Alessandro Tassoni by Alessandro Cavazza, erected in 1860, and the memorial to Modena's fallen partisans.
- Inside, if you visit, the Sala della Secchia with its 15th-century frescoes and a copy of the stolen bucket, and the Sala dei Torresani with its carved Romanesque capitals.
The war of the bucket
In 1325 Modena's troops defeated Bologna at the Battle of Zappolino, chased the enemy back to their city and carried off a wooden bucket from a fountain in Bologna as a trophy. The bucket was kept in the Ghirlandina, and three centuries later Alessandro Tassoni turned the episode into a mock-heroic poem, La secchia rapita, the stolen bucket. A copy is shown in the tower today, and the old rivalry with Bologna is still a favourite joke in Modena.
Tips for your visit
- Visits inside are by booked time slot, and you can climb as far as the Sala dei Torresani on the fifth floor; the top is closed for safety.
- For the best view of the whole tower, stand at the corner of Piazza Grande or walk a little way along Via Emilia.
- Come early in the day or in the evening, when Piazza Grande is quieter and the marble glows in the low light.
- Combine it with the cathedral, the Palazzo Comunale and the cathedral museums, all around Piazza Grande.
Nearby
- Modena Cathedral: the Romanesque cathedral by Lanfranco and the sculptor Wiligelmo, with its carved façade and crypt.
- Piazza Grande: the main square with the Palazzo Comunale and the Preda Ringadora, the old speakers' stone.
- Via Emilia: the Roman road that crosses the old town, lined with arcades and cafés.
- Mercato Albinelli: Modena's covered market, a few minutes' walk south, good for local produce.
See Modena with World City Trail
Our Modena scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 2 hours, with about 23 minutes of walking. It takes you to places such as the Ducal Gardens and the tribute to Luciano Pavarotti. You can play in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish or Dutch.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Modena.
Play the Modena scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Modena →
Play the outdoor escape game in Modena →
Facts checked in October 2026.