Berto Barbarani

---

Berto Barbarani by Novello Finotti, 2004
Via Cappello
Verona, May 2025

“Roberto Tiberio Barbarani was born in the city on 3 December 1872 and died here on 27 January 1945. He was one of the greatest 20th century Italian language and dialect poets. Roberto, known as Berto, was born in the city centre, near the Ponte Nuovo bridge over the Adige river, to a modest family who ran an ironmongers shops. Despite having to drop out of college after his father’s death to help his mother in the shop, the young Barbarani continued with his studies, until enrolling to read law at Padua university. His time at university did not last long but it offered an environment where he could begin to share his talent for poetry, by contributing to the student newspaper, which published a few of his poems that were later included in his first collection El Rosario del Cor, in 1895. He wrote for many local daily papers such as L’Arena and the Gazzetino. His poems represented the spirit and feelings of the Veronese people, thanks in part to his skilful use of the Verona dialect. His verses are alive with the locations and the characters of daily Verona life in the first half of the twentieth century, full of its joys and sorrows. The loves, affections and fleeting moments of happiness in the lives of Verona people punctuate his verses, which are, however, dominated by a melancholy tone and an awareness of the precariousness of life, particularly towards the end of his days, which coincided with the second world war. In the city, we can find a statue of our beloved Berto in Piazza Erbe, at the entrance to Via Cappello, gazing wistfully towards another statue, the symbol of the city, Madonna di Verona.” (Berto Barbarani, VisitVerona)