Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II (Rome) also called Magic Gate or "Porta Magica"), the entrance to Villa Palombara, former residence of the alchemist Marquis Palombara. In Vittorio De Sica's Bicycle Thieves (Ladri di biciclette), it was in Piazza Vittorio that the protagonist Antonio Ricci and his young son Bruno seek desperately to recover his stolen bicycle, but realise the futility of their task as the vast square is filled with countless bicycles and bicycle parts that resemble his own. List of city squares by size Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II (Rome) Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II, also known as Piazza Vittorio, is a piazza in Rome, in the
Piazza Cordusio delle Poste (Palace of the Post Office), former Borsa di Milano" (former Milan Stock Exchange). Piazzale Cordusio hosts the Cordusio metro station and is the starting point of the elegant pedestrian Via Dante which leads to the imposing medieval Castello Sforzesco, or Milan Castle. Opposite to Via Dante, Cordusio borders onto Piazza Mercanti, former city centre in the Middle Ages, which leads directly to Piazza del Duomo, today's city centre. This palace is the main one in the square, and was built by architect Luca Beltrami from 1897 to 1901. It is the main headquarter of the mega-finance corporation Assicurazioni