Covered market – Trieste

Description

The covered market in Trieste was established thanks to a gift by Sara Davis, daughter of a wealthy English merchant. Sara had noticed the hard life of the venderigole (market traders) in the outside market of piazza Goldoni, at the mercy of the sun and the Bora wind. With money from her bequest, the Municipality built the current market, designed by the architect Camillo Iona.
Inaugurated in 1936, it is still extremely modern and functional, with large bright windows. The two storey building stands on a triangular area with a large open central hall in the style of Trajan's markets. The low dividing arches make a visual reference to the lounges of the Victoria, an example of advanced ship design launched by Lloyd Triestino in 1931.
The spiral ramp connecting the first and second floors was intended for the circulation of goods carts: a solution whose historical roots lie in the Vignola-designed ramps of Caprarola, "reinvented" by Mattè Trucco for the Fiat Lingotto in Turin (1926) and subsequently used in every multistorey garage in Europe and America. The ramp is contained in a corner turret, designed by Iona to solve the problem of the angle formed at the confluence of the two streets where the long sides of the building were built.
Strip windows follow the upwards trajectory of the turret to the top which is marked by an illuminated luminous clock placed as a pivot of the building.
The prototype of a shopping mall, commercial activities are arranged on the 2 floors: on the ground floor there are all the foodstuffs such as fruit and vegetables, meat, fish, bread while the first floor is dedicated to men's and women's clothing, fashion accessories and footwear.

Position on map