Bologna's old university palace and its 1637 anatomy theatre
Photo: Comune di Bologna · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Comune di Bologna – Cultura Bologna · source
Why go
Before 1563, Bologna's university taught in scattered buildings around the city. Cardinal Carlo Borromeo and the Vice-Legate Pier Donato Cesi wanted one seat for it, and Antonio Morandi, known as Terribilia, designed the palace behind its 30-arch portico. Walk in and every wall and staircase speaks: inscriptions, monuments, coats of arms and the names of students who studied here, layered over centuries into one of Bologna's most striking interiors.
The highlight is the Teatro Anatomico, the amphitheatre-shaped anatomy hall designed in 1637 by Antonio Paolucci, known as il Levanti, a pupil of the Carracci. The university left the building in 1803 and, after some years as an elementary school, the palace has housed the Biblioteca dell'Archiginnasio since 1838. The library is still in use, so its reading rooms stay closed to tourists and the palace keeps a studious calm.
Gallery
Photo: Comune di Bologna · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Comune di Bologna – Cultura Bologna · source
Photo: Giorgio Bianchi · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Comune di Bologna – Cultura Bologna · source
Photo: Comune di Bologna · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Comune di Bologna – Cultura Bologna · source
Photo: Comune di Bologna · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Comune di Bologna – Cultura Bologna · source
Photo: Comune di Bologna · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Comune di Bologna – Cultura Bologna · source
Highlights
Designed in 1637 by Antonio Paolucci, il Levanti, a pupil of the Carracci, this amphitheatre-shaped hall is the reason most visitors come. It can be visited from 10:00 to 18:00 with mandatory online booking. Stand in the centre and look at the tiers rising around you: this is the hall where the old university taught anatomy.
The former Sala dei Legisti, the hall of the law students, is now also called the Sala dello Stabat Mater. The same online booking that opens the Teatro Anatomico gives access to it, whenever the library is not using the hall for its own activities. Ask at the entrance whether it is open on the day of your visit.
The palace stands behind a portico of 30 arches. Inside, walls and staircases are decorated with inscriptions, monuments, coats of arms and students' names, which the official site describes as thousands of crests. The palace is open Monday to Saturday from 09:00 to 19:00, so take time to read some of the names and crests on your way to the Teatro Anatomico.
Practical information
From the official website:
Palace: Monday to Saturday 09:00–19:00, closed on Sundays. Teatro Anatomico: visits 10:00–18:00 with mandatory online booking, which also gives access to the Sala dello Stabat Mater when the library is not using it. The library itself is not open to tourist visits. Holiday example from the official site, Easter 2026: Saturday 4 April palace 9–19 (Teatro Anatomico 10–18); Sunday 5 April closed; Monday 6 April palace 10–19 (Teatro Anatomico 10–18).
Online booking is mandatory for the Teatro Anatomico and the Sala dello Stabat Mater, through the booking link on the official Archiginnasio page. The official page does not state the ticket price. Entry to the library (for study) is free for people aged 14 and over.
Checked on the official sources in November 2026. Hours can change on holidays: check the official website before you go.
Getting there
Visitors with reduced mobility can enter from Via de' Foscherari 2: ring the bell on the right, or call 051 2196616 or 051 2196622 during library hours. The library on the first floor is reached by the lift of the Museo Civico Archeologico, Via dell'Archiginnasio 2.
Insider tips
Visits to the Teatro Anatomico need an online booking, and the official site makes it mandatory. Book a slot before you set out rather than hoping to walk in, and keep the confirmation at hand; seeing the courtyard does not include the anatomy theatre.
The palace is open Monday to Saturday and closed on Sundays, and some holidays close it too (Easter Sunday 2026 was closed). If you are in Bologna for a weekend, plan the Archiginnasio for Saturday.
The Archiginnasio is still a working library, and the reading rooms are off-limits to tourists precisely to keep them quiet. Talk softly in the corridors and on the staircases, and keep phones on silent while you look at the coats of arms.
On Saturdays from 13:30 to 17:30 the Teatro Anatomico ticket office answers on +39 349 0598282. For general questions at other times, the main switchboard of the Archiginnasio is 051 2196611.
In the centre
Historic-centre restaurants and hotels from the Bologna City Guide, each with its own Holiplanet page.
Historic restaurant
Tortellini in brodo and lasagne verdi since 1909
Discover more →Traditional restaurant
Handmade tortellini and tagliatelle in Bologna since 1948
Discover more →Chef's restaurant
Mario Ferrara's Lucanian-rooted cooking in a 1600s convent
Discover more →Wine bar / osteria
Wine osteria since 1465: bring your own food
Discover more →Hotel
Romantic 3-star hotel in the ancient Quadrilatero
View hotel →Boutique hotel
12th-century building facing San Petronio's Gothic windows
View hotel →Unique stay
Sleep inside a 12th-century tower, sixty metres above Bologna
View hotel →All restaurants on the Bologna map → All hotels on the Bologna map →
Questions
Yes. The official Archiginnasio site states that the Teatro Anatomico can be visited from 10:00 to 18:00 only with mandatory online booking. The same booking gives access to the Sala dello Stabat Mater, when the library is not using the hall.
No. The Palazzo dell'Archiginnasio is open from 09:00 to 19:00, Monday to Saturday, and closed on Sundays. Some public holidays change the hours: at Easter 2026, for example, it was closed on Sunday 5 April and open 10:00–19:00 on Easter Monday.
The Teatro Anatomico was designed in 1637 by Antonio Paolucci, known as il Levanti, a pupil of the Carracci. The palace itself was built in 1562–1563 to a design by Antonio Morandi, known as Terribilia, to bring the university's teaching under one roof.
No. To guarantee silence for readers, tourist visits inside the library are not allowed. Visitors see the palace, the Teatro Anatomico and the Sala dello Stabat Mater; the library is open for study, with free entry for people aged 14 and over.
