Descrizione
The building retains its majestic nature. On the four sides are represented the heraldic coats of arms of the Ampezzo families, of the six sestieri and of the eleven regole and the coat of arms of the Municipality.
Don Pietro Alverà writes in his “Cronaca di Ampezzo nel Tirolo”: “The old municipal house was where the present one is and in itself consisted of three houses and the one towards the Manaigo was the rectory of the beneficiaries of s. Catherine and later the primissary. The popular schools were also there for a long time. For a long time, there had been the need to build a new one, but they did not get along well on the spot. Most wanted it where Hotel Cortina is now; all the more so since the Manaigo del Posta, the Godinis and Giuseppe Verzi, host of the White Cross, would have paid a lot if a square had been made instead of the old house. Gaetano Ghedina, host of the Black Eagle, who had been head of the municipality since 8 June 1850, was against it. When the deal was brought into session in 1852, the majority was to make the square in that place, but the head of the municipality left talking all before noon without coming to a resolution. At noon he invited two representatives, who were in the square, to lunch and there he worked and handled them so much that they changed their minds. So in the afternoon the head of the municipality had the majority and an even larger house was built there than the first one ”.
Richebuono claims that the project for the expansion of the old Town Hall is dated 1826 signed by Eng. Ducati, but that the restructuring took place in 1851-1852, as Don Pietro Alverà says. Then the building took on its current appearance, after the closure of the zeleres or arcades with shops towards the square (which can be seen in a painting by Angelo Ghedina from around 1850). Richebuono also states that after 1921, when the municipal offices were moved to their current location, the post office and various associations settled in the old town.
The coats of arms of the families, which currently decorate the walls of the building, were painted in 1928 by Giorgio Wenter Marini. Richebuono claims that they are almost all invented, with the exception of the de Zanna, Ghedini, de Bigontina (Fabrizi?), Since no Ampezzo family had a coat of arms granted by the sovereign. However, after 1928, they became the official coats of arms of the Ampezzo families. On the facade of Corso Italia, above the entrance door of the Library, you can also see the coats of arms of the Regole d'Ampezzo, while on the opposite side, the first at the bottom is the coat of arms of the Municipality of Cortina d'Ampezzo.
The Comun vecio has been the seat, since 1972, of the Civic Library, which has a book heritage of 27,000 volumes and is a public place frequented by the citizens of Cortina d'Ampezzo and Cadore, and by many tourists in every season. Here the Musical Corps of Cortina d'Ampezzo has a large room available for rehearsals and other musical activities. Since 2011 it has housed the offices of the Unesco Dolomites Foundation. At street level there are also numerous shops.
Historiographic sources:
- Chronicle of Ampezzo in Tyrol from ancient times to the twentieth century, Pietro Alverà, Regole d’Ampezzo 2002.
- History of Ampezzo, Giuseppe Richebuono, The Cooperative of Cortina, 2008, third edition.
- Construction of the new Municipal House, from the collection of Illuminato De Zanna in Due Soldi, Year VIII, n.2, February 1972.