A small, intimate square that was essentially the private domain of the Doria family — the most powerful family in Genoa — from the 12th to the 18th century. Their palaces line three sides of the square, their coats of arms are above every doorway, and the family chapel of San Matteo contains their tombs and relics. The facades of the medieval houses around the square are decorated with black-and-white striped banding, the Doria family mark.
The Church of San Matteo is open to visitors and contains impressive frescoes and the sword of Andrea Doria, the admiral who commanded the Christian fleet at the Battle of Lepanto. The square itself is one of the most perfectly preserved medieval spaces in Liguria — the scale is intimate, the coherence of the architecture exceptional.