Giorgio Bassani, the writer, was born in Bologna to a Jewish family with origins in Ferrara. He soon moved to Ferrara at Via Cisterna del Follo 1, where he spent his childhood and adolescence.

Behind Bassani's house lies the Tennis Club Marfisa d’Este, a focal point for the Ferrarese bourgeoisie, where the writer expressed his passion for the game.

One of Giorgio Bassani's favorite places in his youth was the Municipal Library Ariostea, housed in Palazzo Paradiso, a building constructed in 1391 and designed to be the Estense delight.

Another cultural landmark in Bassani's Ferrara is the Jewish school in Via Vignatagliata, opened to provide education to boys expelled following the introduction of racial laws in 1938, where the writer taught literary subjects.

The Estense Castle, located in the city center, often becomes the silent interpreter of Bassani's narrative, especially in the story "Una notte del ‘43" ("One Night in '43").

Gardens are prominent protagonists in Bassani's works. In the renowned novel "Il giardino dei Finzi-Contini" ("The Garden of the Finzi-Continis"), the presence of the garden stands out in the narrative. Although the garden doesn't exist in reality, it is a combination of various spaces in the city, with the largest being Parco Massari.

The walls encircling Ferrara populate Giorgio Bassani's imagination, serving as both protection and a line that separates the city from the world.