Lamberti Tower (Torre dei Lamberti)

At the heart of Verona is the Piazza delle Erbe and at the heart of this piazza is the Torre dei Lamberti. Rising high above the square, the narrow tower dates from the 12th century, although it has been added to and changed since then. Not least of all because a lightning strike knocked its top off in 1403. Some decades after this, the tower was restored and made even higher. It's now the tallest in Verona at 84 meters. The clock was added in the 18th century.

The tower was built to keep an eye on Verona and warn the city of impending disasters such as fire or attacks by the Venetians. Two bells were installed in the tower: the smaller, the Marangona, was used for fire alerts; the larger, the Rengo, was used to call the citizens to arms or to call the city council to meetings. Unfortunately, the Venetians got control of Verona anyway but the views from the tower make having built it still worthwhile.