It is an exceptional six-column structure of Doric order, almost reminiscent of a Greek-Roman temple surrounded by greenery, which stands solemnly on the Seriola canal, one of the waterways that bathes the historic center of Vicenza.
On the opposite side we find another type of structure, in Palladian style and built by Baldassare Longhena in 1649, complementary to the Valmarana Loggia. It is located inside the Salvi gardens, also called Valmarana Salvi gardens, a few steps from the ancient walls of Porta Castello, in the city center.
The garden was bought in the sixteenth century by the Valmarana family, after becoming owners of the nearby old Scaliger castle. The idea was to transform this green area into a beautiful Italian garden, typical of the late Renaissance order, characterized by the subdivision of the spaces obtained with rows of hedges, vegetable sculptures, bodies of water, fountains and statues.
The gardens were inaugurated in 1592 by Leonardo Valmarana, equipped with a small bridge for crossing the public, in the area between Corso Palladio and Roggia Seriola. A few years later, during the period owned by the Salvi family, the park was transformed into an English garden, and closed to the public.
It was only reopened to everyone in the following century, in June 1909. Furthermore, inside the park, the seventeenth-century Loggia Longhena, with three arches, built by Baldassare Longhena, stands on the western side.
