Plaza Italia, Buenos Aires

Plaza Italia is a small park in the city of Buenos Aires in the barrio of Palermo on the confluence of Santa Fe Avenue and Avenida Sarmiento.

Next to the plaza are the main entrances to the Zoo and the Botanical Gardens, and the la Rural Expo Center.

In the center of the park there is an equestrian statue to Giuseppe Garibaldi, which opened on 19 June 1904 in a ceremony attended by Presidents Julio Argentino Roca and Bartolomé Mitre.

Before that the area was called Plaza de los Portones (Plaza of the Big Gates), due to the big gates existing at the entrance to present-day Sarmiento Avenue.

This is commemorated in a small mosaic placed on the northeast side on Santa Fe Avenue.