Genoa: Le Strade Nuove and the system of the Palazzi dei Rolli

When Genoa's merchant bankers were financing half of Europe, they built themselves streets fit for the purpose. The Strade Nuove, laid out from the late 16th century, gather Renaissance and Baroque palaces whose owners were obliged — under a Senate decree of 1576 — to host visiting dignitaries by rota, the famous rolli lists. UNESCO inscribed the ensemble in 2006 as an early landmark of planned urban development, and many palazzi now open their frescoed halls as museums.