Ospedale Maggiore, also known as Ca' Granda, is a large beautiful building located in the southeast of Milan's historic center. It was built in the XV century, commissioned by Francesco Sforza as the home of one of the first public hospitals.
Work on the project was entrusted to the architect Antonio Filarete. The building's plan included two wings joined by a large courtyard. Filarete's work was one of the first examples of Renaissance architecture in Lombardy.
A few years later, the construction work was led by the architects Solari and Amadeo, yet they were not the last to bring their ideas to life in the building. Work on this monument of Milanese architecture stretched over several centuries.
Conceived as a hospital for the poor, Ospedale Maggiore eventually became the center of Milan's medical life. However, at the beginning of the XX century, it was decided to move the hospital elsewhere and establish the University of Milan in the Ca' Granda building, where it remains to this day.
Today, in the former building of the Great Hospital, you can visit the famous art gallery that once belonged to the hospital and see a digital reproduction of an ancient Egyptian papyrus reproducing the famous Book of the Dead.
