On the (rail)road again ...

Last year we visited Ferrara, where we heard about a book described as the  "zenith of Ferrarese miniature painting and one of the highpoints of Italian Renaissance manuscript illumination" .  It is a bible commissioned in around 1450 by the Duke of Ferrara, Borso d'Este, and now residing in the Biblioteca Estense in Modena.  With a two-day weather window appearing, we set off northwards by train on Wednesday for a night in Parma, which we visited last year, and then on to Modena.

At the biblioteca, we had to wait at the security door of the library room, while the bible was carefully removed from its metal safe and placed in its glass display case.  As well as the bible, there were on display early editions of works by Dante (the Inferno, of course) , as well as works by Petrarch.  Fascinating.

Each city seems to have its own personality, and we warmed to Modena a lot.  Calm atmosphere, and friendly people.  

The baptistery in Parma, built in the pink marble from Verona

The finale to our meal in Parma - a soft warm chocolatey thing and coconut ice cream - yum ...

The ducal palace Modena

A man pedals his giant bike (it had stabilisers) in Modena's carnaval parade

A double reef knot in Verona marble on the facade of the duomo in Modena - how did they tie it? 

The Este bible in all its glory - still glittering after all these years ...

Wonderful decoration on the Este bible ...

... and again

Piazza Grande, Modena with duomo - yes, it is actually leaning to the right ...

Just warm enough to have our lunch outside - we only wanted salad after our meal of fatty sucking pig the night before!