Town Hall 9
viale Affori / corner of via Astesani
How to get: M3 Affori Center | Bus 70 | Cycle path: via Pellegrino Rossi / via Astesani
Viale Affori is home to an imposing tree, which raises its foliage to over 20 meters in height. It is a plane tree more than 250 years old, probably one of the oldest trees in the city.
It is a majestic specimen, judging from the trunk. Measured 1,30 meters above the ground, it exceeds 2 meters in diameter. On its west side, a metal bracket with a porcelain support is still visible: a reminder of when the tree was used as a living support for the electrical cables that served the neighborhood.
One of the tree's cavities once housed an owl; today its memory is celebrated through a sculpture, created by Luigi Bonanomi and placed at the base of the tree.
According to an old urban legend, the tree was planted in that position to pay homage to the residence of a Milanese noblewoman, Napoleon's lover. The bond between the large tree and the inhabitants of the neighborhood has lasted for some time and is underlined by the nickname attributed to it: the Plant.
Some areas of the inside of the trunk are degraded and are periodically checked to verify their stability and state of health.
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