Siena (how to reach it) is an elegant city, for which much credit must go to the city authorities in the medieval period who were particularly attentive to the aesthetics of the urban plan.
Piazza del Campo: theatre of the famous Palio surrounded by 16 palaces and dominated by the Palazzo Pubblico it was cited for the first time in a document of 1169; its current configuration is that of the 1300s when both the piazza and the palaces which face onto it were remodelled and put in order. The most important, the Palazzo Pubblico was derived from the adaptation of the customs house in 1284; it was enlarged around 1295 and again in 1327, and later with the annexation of the prison. In 1500 the great Council Chamber was transformed into a theatre. On the left of the Palazzo Pubblico the Torre del Mangia was abutted around 1340, symbol of the municipal authority, which took the name of he who in that time sounded the hours. The first stones placed for its construction were sculpted with Hebrew, Greek and Latin letters so that the Tower “should not be hit by a thunder bolt or a storm” At the foot of the Torre del Mangia is the Cappella di Piazza, constructed by Giovanni de Cecco on the design of Domenico di Agostino, in 1465 Antonio Federighi made some modifications to it. The Palazzo Pubblico hosts the Civic Museum, which boasts precious frescoes and paintings on wood by famous artists from 1300 to 1500.
The Cathedral dell’Assunta, in Romanic-Gothic style it was constructed between the XII and XIII centuries. Pope Alessandro III from Siena consecrated the Cathedral on 18 November 1179. The work progressed until 1339 when it was decided to erect, adjacent to the preceding one, a new construction, very lavish, done to compete with the Firenze Cathedral. Successively, for reasons of the plague which had brought the city to its knees, the new project was abandoned, and the work was reopened to complete the Cathedral. The structure of the Cathedral is not perfect in that the initial project had numerous interruptions and diverse people in charge of the construction, however, it is considered to be one of the most beautiful Medieval churches in Italy. Its interior is rich with works of art exercised by more than 40 artists, among whom Pinturicchio, Urbano da Cortona, Antonio Federighi, Domenico Beccafumi realized 35 paintings of Biblical subjects; Baldassarre Peruzzi realized the main altar. The bell tower, of Romanic structure was built up on an ancient tower of the Bisdomini family. There is no exact date for its construction, however it is indicated as being later than 1265 the year of the construction of the dome of the Cathedral. |
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