On the corner between Via Garibaldi and the little alley with the exact same name, the building known as Palazzo Vespignani is the result of a series of structural interventions spanning five centuries. The most significant architectural changes date from the 16th Century and the pictorial decorations can be traced and attributed to the Venieri family. The decorative cycle, to be seen mainly on the ground floor, dates from within the last two decades of the 16th Century. Created according to the tastes of the mannerist era, it was commissioned by Giovanni Paolo Venieri, the Pope’s vice legate. From the mid 17th Century until the beginning of the 19th Century the Vespignani family remain owners of the building and this long period justifies today’s name as “Palazzo Vespignani”. Having changed hands on many occasions, the building was purchased in 1919 by four ladies from Imola. Their intention was to use the structure as an educational institute and centre for the welfare of abandoned girls. After the war, the institute was named in honour of Santa Maria Goretti. In 1998 the building was bought by the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Imola. Recently restored in agreement with Bologna University, it now houses the didactic and administrative head offices for seven graduate degree courses based in Imola.