The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II - one of the oldest shopping centers in the world. It is located in a four-storey double arcade in Milan, and received its name by the name of Victor Emmanuel II, first king of United Italy. The gallery was designed in 1861 and built by architect Giuseppe Mengoni in the years 1865-1877.

The shopping centre comprises two passage with glass arches that form the octagon and "covering" the street that connects Piazza del Duomo and Piazza della Scala. The Central part of the gallery is topped by a glass dome. Milan gallery was once larger than its predecessors in the different countries of the world, and its construction was an important step in the improvement of construction technologies.

On the floor of the Central octagon, you can see four mosaics depicting the coats of arms of the three capitals of the Kingdom of Italy (Turin, Florence and Rome) and the coat of arms of Milan. They say that if you stand right heel on the genitals of the bull depicted on the coat of arms of Turin, and three times to turn around, it will bring good luck. This belief played a bad service for an ancient mosaic on the spot bullish genitals already a hole.

The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is often called the "living room" of Milan due to the fact that it is an important place for meetings and walks for residents. To date, the gallery presents the boutiques of luxury goods, selling clothing, jewelry, books and paintings. There are also restaurants, cafes and bars. Interestingly, some local eateries are some of the oldest in Milan. For example, Biffi caffè, founded in 1867, the year of the Royal pastry chef Paolo Biffi, restaurant Savini or classic Zucca Bar.