Piazza Goldoni, in the heart of Trieste, is one of the city's most important urban and social hubs. Its history is closely tied to the urban and commercial development of Trieste between the 18th and 20th centuries, mirroring the social, economic and cultural changes that shaped the city.
From its origins to Piazza della Legna
Until the 18th century, the area where Piazza Goldoni now stands was a flat stretch of land rich in vegetable gardens, vineyards and fruit trees, fed by the abundant water of the streams flowing down from the hill of Montuzza. In this clearing, crossed by carters heading towards Istria, stood an old fountain known as the San Lazzaro fountain, near a small leper hospital that gave the square its first name: Piazza San Lazzaro.
During the 19th century, the area was gradually transformed into an urban space, with the construction of buildings and the opening of new streets.
- From 1820 the square took the name Piazza della Legna ("Firewood Square") because of a lively timber market, supplied by the trees of the Montuzza hill, which was excavated to provide materials for the expanding city.
- The market, animated by the famous venderigole (the women who sold fruit, vegetables and other foodstuffs), became a landmark of Trieste's popular life.
- At the centre of the square stood an old well, converted in 1774 into a fountain that supplied water to both residents and traders.
Urban and architectural transformations
Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, Piazza della Legna was the stage for significant changes.
- Construction of the main buildings:
- Casa Caccia (1875)
- Palazzo Tonello (1801)
- Palazzo Sordina
These buildings marked the shift from a rural space to an urban centre.
In 1856 the Teatro Armonia (later Goldoni) was inaugurated, lending further prestige to the square, but it was demolished in 1912 for safety reasons. The square also became an important public-transport node, crossed by trams, trolleybuses and, later, the main bus lines.
At the beginning of the twentieth century the square changed face once again: between 1904 and 1905, with the labour of 350 miners, the Montuzza tunnel (today Galleria De Sandrinelli) was excavated, connecting Piazza Goldoni to the district of San Giacomo and allowing trams to pass through. To frame its portal the monumental Scala dei Giganti was built, designed by Ruggero and Arduino Berlam and completed in 1907: a scenic neoclassical double staircase rising from the square towards the hill of San Giusto.
From market to city centre
The timber and venderigole market remained active until 1936, when the Covered Market (Mercato Coperto) was opened, gathering commercial activity into a more modern and hygienic building.
Meanwhile, the square had taken the name Piazza Goldoni (from 1902), in honour of the celebrated Venetian playwright Carlo Goldoni, thanks to the presence of the theatre dedicated to him. During the First World War, between 1915 and 1918, the name was temporarily reverted to Piazza della Legna for political reasons, but from 1919 it permanently became Piazza Goldoni again.
Curiosities and symbols
Piazza Carlo Goldoni is also rich in anecdotes and symbols:
- The clock turret of Palazzo Tonello, which since 1959 has always shown the same time (10:45), has become a curious civic emblem.
- The square has been the setting for markets, popular festivals, parades, rallies and, in the post-war period, a lively social and commercial life.
Today it is a meeting point between the working-class Trieste of the Barriera district and the historic centre, a crossroads of transport and cultures, and it remains a vital and dynamic space, despite the renovations that have altered its original appearance.
Piazza Goldoni thus remains a place of memory and identity for Trieste, a witness to the transformations of the city and its people: from the firewood market to the modern bus lines, from the venderigole to the new generations of Triestines.