A few steps from the Duomo, in the charming Piazza dei Mercanti, stands the medieval Palazzo della Ragione. Its construction dates back to 1228 and over the centuries has often changed name and destination: from the Town Hall to the court, from notarial archives to arengo, to become the home of important temporary exhibitions after the restoration work of the eighties.

The building has a rectangular plan and is composed of a large hall of nearly a thousand square meters and the majestic portico on the ground floor. Palazzo della Ragione is an important place in the history of the city of Milan: here are preserved remnants of age od Medieval communes, the Signoria and the Spanish domination.