VIGEVANO

town, Pavia province, Lombardia (Lombardy) region, northern Italy, on the right bank of the Ticino River, southwest of Milan. An old silk-manufacturing town, it was the site during the Renaissance of a hunting villa of the Sforza family, who built the arcaded Piazza Ducale (1494) and enlarged the former Castello Visconti (1492). A bishopric, it has a notable cathedral (15321606). Industry has grown steadily in Vigevano during the 20th century, and the town is widely known as a shoe-manufacturing centre with an annual International Shoe Fair and Market. It also has textile and leather industries. Pop. (1981 prelim.) mun., 65,355.