Lying in the middle of the Po Valley, Ferrara still has the atmosphere of the past, which blends in harmoniously with the lively atmosphere of the present. Ferrara's most famous image is certainly that of its grand Renaissance, the age of splendour of the Estense court, which has left indelible signs everywhere. From 1995 on, UNESCO has included the historical centre of Ferrara in the list of World Cultural Heritage as a wonderful example of a town planned in the Renaissance and still keeping its historical centre intact. The town planning criteria expressed in Ferrara had a deep influence on the progress of town planning in the following centuries.