(anc. Vercelle),** a town of the kingdom of Sardinia, capital of a province of the same name, in the division and 13 miles S.W. of Novara, on the Sesia, which is here crossed by a bridge. The walls that formerly enclosed it have been thrown down, and their place is now occupied by fine boulevards, from which a beautiful view of the Alps is obtained. The houses are, for the most part, well built; but the streets, with the exception of a few that are broad and regular, are narrow and winding. The cathedral is a fine edifice of the sixteenth century, in the Italian style; and it has a library attached, containing, among other valuable MSS., one of the most ancient copies of the New Testament in Latin, said to have been written by Eusebius, who was bishop of this see in the fourth century. The church of St Andrew is also a fine building; and Vercelli has many other churches and convents, a royal palace, clerical seminary, gymnasium, and hospital. Silk and woollen cloth, leather, hardware and jewellery, are manufactured here; and a considerable trade is carried on in rice, the extensive fields of which, round the town, render the atmosphere somewhat unhealthy. In the neighbouring plains the Cimbri were defeated by Marius in 101 B.C. Pop. 18,253.