Piazza Carignano (Carignano Square), Turin

Historical Carignano Square is not large, it measures only 289 feet by 108 feet. It is near Roma Street and Pietro Micca Street and bounded by the streets of the Academy of Sciences (Academia Delle Science), Cesare Battisti, and Principe Amadeo. Among the Baroque-style buildings on the square, the finely curved facade of the monumental Carignano Palace stands out.

Across from the Carignano Palace are the Carignano Theatre and the watering holes Del Cambio Restaurant and Gelateria Pepino. Behind the palace is the famous Carlo Alberto Square. The presence of prestigious institutions like the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities makes the square a cultural center of the city.

The Carignano Square was opened in a period of urban expansion presided over by Duke Vittorio Amedeo I of Savoy. The Carignano Palace itself was erected in 1679. Intended for Prince Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia-Carignano, it was finished in 1685. In the center of the square stands a statue of the 19th-century radical philosopher Vincenzo Gioberti.

After the Carignano Savoys took their subalpine throne, the square was a scene of dramatic events. The Albertine Statute of King Charles Albert of Sardinia, which became the constitution of the Kingdom of Italy, was announced from the sumptuous balcony of the Carignano Palace in 1848. The palace housed the first parliament of the country.