“... Non ho mai strillato tanto in vita mia!”. Marcello Piacentini e la ricostruzione del palazzo della Ragione di Ferrara (1946-1957)

This essay retraces the history of the Palazzo della Ragione in Ferrara, a key public building with medieval origins which was rebuilt during the postwar years according to a project by Marcello Piacentini. The research will specifically focus on the aesthetic and political debates generated by the building and on the pivotal role played by Piacentini, thanks to the extensive body of documents collected at the Biblioteca di Scienze Tecnologiche of the University of Florence and at the City Archives of Ferrara. By following the steps which led to the final design and the construction, the essay highlights the role of the building in larger debates concerning the restoration of historical monuments after the destruction caused by the Second World War and the contribution of architecture in the definition of a national identity after the divisions caused by the fall of the fascist regime.