Piazza dei Cavalieri

Piazza dei Cavalieri, located in the Santa Maria district, was known in the Middle Ages as Piazza degli Anziani or Piazza delle Sette Vie. This square, the beating heart of Pisa’s political life, witnessed crucial moments in the city’s history, including the proclamation of the end of the Republic and Pisa’s independence. It was also the site of the tragic death of Count Ugolino della Gherardesca and his sons, an event that took place in the Torre della Fame and was recounted by Dante Alighieri in Canto XXXIII of the Inferno. In the early 17th century, the tower was incorporated into the north-east side of the Palazzo dell’Orologio, adjacent to the Palazzo della Carovana.

After Piazza del Duomo, Piazza dei Cavalieri is the most renowned and visited square in Pisa. Historically, it symbolized the center of civil power, in contrast to the religious authority represented by the platea episcopalis. From the second half of the 16th century, it became the headquarters of the Order of the Knights of Saint Stephen, established by Grand Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici. Today, the square is an important cultural and academic hub, home to the main headquarters of the Scuola Normale Superiore.

The main challenges in developing the portal were:

• Creating a coherent and effective visual brand identity capable of accurately representing the historical and cultural heritage of Piazza dei Cavalieri.
• Designing a portal that, from both a user interface and user experience perspective, could host and enhance the extensive body of scientific and cultural content related to the square. Each individual building featured numerous connections and subsections, enriched with in-depth content, multiple image viewing modes, reconstructions, biographical profiles, historical insights, bibliographic references, editorial and scientific validation levels, as well as a guided tour booking system.
• Organizing content in a logical and accessible way, taking into account its complexity and layered structure, to make the portal usable by a broad and diverse audience, both on desktop and mobile.

Zaki addressed these challenges with creative and innovative solutions, across the various areas involved:

• Following a thorough strategic analysis, we developed a fresh and modern visual identity that remains closely connected to the historical essence of the square, fully aligned with the objectives of Fondazione Pisa and the Scuola Normale. The logo, inspired by the square’s geometries, echoes its unique architecture, offering a “rich and easily accessible bird’s-eye view” of Piazza dei Cavalieri and its buildings, in line with the project guidelines. The color palette evokes the atmosphere of the place.

Subsequently:

• Through an integrated process of design and development, we created a web portal with a solid and flexible architecture, capable of organizing the vast amount of content in a logical, intuitive and scalable way. The clean and modern user interface guides visitors through the different sections, facilitating access to information, while engaging visual elements — such as customized image galleries and videos — make the browsing experience complete, immersive and compelling.

To manage the complex hierarchy of information, we devised a particularly effective and ingenious solution: an innovative navigation menu capable of handling up to five levels without compromising clarity. This structure, adaptable to any device, ensures a simplified browsing experience, allowing users to explore content in an intuitive and seamless way.