Palazzo Pubblico - Siena

You are here: Siena > What to see in Siena >

Palazzo Pubblico - Siena

 

The Palazzo Pubblico in Siena is one of the main palaces of the city, built between 1288 and 1342 in the prevailing Gothic style of the time. The Palazzo Pubblico has always hosted the city government, it was the seat of the Government of the Nine, the famous government that in 1300 radically changed the appearance of the city. It was precisely these nine regents who designed and built it, making it last until the present day.

When the city government issued an ordinance, for which, on Piazza del Campo, only palaces could be built that had the same style as the Palazzo Pubblico and none of them had to exceed the size of this place. Today the palace is home to the municipal administration and the Civic Museum. Absolutely to admire is the Salone del Gran Consiglio and the arches that support the entire lower floor of the palace. These are particular arches, typical of Siena, that are embellished by an ogiva.

The façade is made up of four central orders and three orders on the sides and a huge rose window stands out in the centre. This rose window depicts the Trigram of Christ, designed by St.Bernardino of Siena and made in 1425 by Battista di Nicolò. Analyzing the facade it is easy to understand the various periods in which the facade was built, in fact we have a first block up to the triforium, entirely made of stone, then, instead, we find the brick. The windows of the palace are typical of Siena, with three arches resting on small columns, on each window we find a white and black balzana, which is the symbol of the city itself. It is considered by tourists and residents to be one of the most beautiful buildings in our country, very harmonious, despite its greatness.

Top

Facade

Facciata Palazzo Pubblico - SienaOn the façade, the majesty and elegance of the Palazzo Pubblico unfolds, whose front and one of the most celebrated Gothic civil architecture in Italy. Built between 1297 and 1310, perhaps on a project by Agostino di Giovanni and Agnolo di Ventura, it included, at that time, the central part that rose like the towers on the lateral wings perceived from the ground floor and on the first floor of the three-forest, up to the height of the blind arches, still visible today. From 1327 the palace was enlarged with the addition, on the right side, of the prisons, then three 1330s and 1342 of the council hall of the bell three 1680s and 1681 was added the second floor of triphone.

The primitive facade of the Palazzo Pubblico served as a model for many of the following fourteenth-century palaces, and even fifteenth-century of the city Siena. In it, the typical elements of the Sienese Gothic style coexisted: the acute arch including a lowered sixth arch, called the "Sienese arch", which conforms to the windows doors on the ground floor; the triforium with trilobed arches of the windows on the first floor; the use of travertine in the lower area and the terracotta above.

The two extremes of the central tower are surmounted by bell cells now empty: the right cell is the oldest; the opposite one is an eighteenth-century addition. The symbol of St Bernardino of Siena appears on the top floor of the tower: a large copper disc with Christ's monogram, painted in 1425 by the baptist of Nicholas of Padua; at the edges, two wolves are made of stone. The coat of arms of the Medici family, in the middle of the triphone of the first floor was added in 1560, after the conquest of Siena by the Medeghino troops, the cruel Milanese leader sent by Carlo V.

Top

Torre del Mangia

Torre del Mangia a SienaFrom the left corner of the palace, the agile and elegant tower stands out: by Lippo Memmi, brother-in-law of Simone Martini, who designed the profile of the tower in 1341,88 meters high, which was built between 1338 and 1348 by the brothers Minuccio and Francesco di Rinaldo da Perugia; the crowning, which reaches 102 meters, with lightning protection, was carried out (on a project, as has been said, by Memmi) by Agostino di Giovanni. The bell cell that is located in the middle of this crowning, houses a large bell, cast in 1666, called Campanone (big bell) or Sunto, the Sienese abbreviation of the Assumption Virgin to which Siena had voted before the Battle of Monteaperti. The name of the tower's ate comes from Mangiaguadagni, nickname of Giovanni di Duccio, who was initially entrusted with the task of beating the hours, and then became legendary creatures. Later on, until 1780, a machine was used that continued to be called "eat"... Read on the Torre del Mangia.

Top

Cappella di Piazza (Chapel Square)

Cappella di Piazza - Piazza del Campo a SienaUnder the Torre del Mangia, leaning against the public palace is the Cappella di Piazza, erected by the Sienese as the dissolution of a vow made during the plague of 1348. Originally between 1352 and 1376, Domenico di Agostino and then Giovanni di Cecco had erected only the pillars covered by a flat roof. About a century later, from 1463 to 1468, Antonio Federighi gave a more monumental appearance, adding the Renaissance arches is a new covering. The statues of the saints placed in the niches hollowed in the pillars were executed by Mariano di Angelo and Bernardino di Tommè except for St. Bartholomew, in the left pillar below, modelled by Lando Di Stefano. The sides of the thirteenth-century marble chapel, with reliefs of Pisan taste, others more recent, placed in 1848 are by Enea Bacheroni close the front. The fourteenth-century wrought iron gates made by Pietruccio di Betto is by Conte di Lello Orlandi.

In ancient times, in the Chapel of the Square, the daily mass was celebrated and at the Sanctus (Saint, saint, holy the Lord God of the universe | The heavens and the earth are full of your glory | Osanna at the top of the heavens | Benedict the one who comes in the name of the Lord | Osanna at the top of the heavens), As Michel de Montaigne recalls, a trumpet was played to solicit the devotion of those present. For one of the doors that flank the Cappella di Piazza, you enter the Courtyard of the Podestà, so arranged around 1325. From here, like a dolomitic spire, the Tower of the Eat, looming on the structures. The walls bear the coats of arms of ancient regiments of the city. One of them is joined by the mutilated statue of Mangia, more or less like the statue of Pasquino in Rome, which was said to be joking jokes. On the wall behind the statue, 14th century frescoes in a poor state of preservation are on display.

From the courtyard is the access to the Teatro Comunale dei Rinnovati (Municipal Theatre), originally Sala del Gran Consiglio della Repubblica (Grand Council of the Republic Hall), originally adapted to the ground theatre by the Sienese Bartolomeo Neroni known as Il Riccio (The hedgehog) in 1560, but renewed, after fires, by the famous Antonio Galli known as the Bibiena in 1753.

Top

Interior

Cortile del Podestà  - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaThe entrance to the Palazzo Pubblico is through the right-hand portal embellished with a foliage frieze surmounted by a statue, near which a column bears a copy of the Golden She-wolf pond by Giovanni and Lorenzo Torino, the original of which is located inside. You enter the atrium where are on display two bracelets with bronze bells from the Palazzo del Magnifico, executed by Giacomo Cozzarelli. From the atrium you pass to the vestibule (the vestibule is a room or passage between the entrance door and the interior of a building) divided into four bays, whose walls are placed two stone wolves and showers (or ornamental motifs) perhaps by Giovanni Pisano or his school of the fourteenth century, flanked by a statue of Moses of the Federighi. On the right wall of the third span, there is a fresco by Sano di Pietro in 1446, Pietro Alessandrino and the blessed Sienese Ambrogio Sansedoni and Andrea Gallerani.

The rooms on the sides of the vestibule are offices and therefore difficult to visit (only with special permission). Also decorated with plastic paintings, they welcome, among other things, one of the most spectacular compositions by Sano di Pietro, the Coronation of the virgin and saints of 1445, in the Biccherna Room, as well as paintings of Vecchietta, of Siena masters of the 300 and 400 and in particular, of the Sodoma of the XVI century that excels in a meditated Resurrection of 1535, ornament of the hall of the Secretary General.

Top

Sala del Mappamondo (Globe Hall)

Sala del Mappamondo - SienaOn the first floor of the Palazzo Pubblico there is the large hall where the Council of the Republic of Siena, known as Sala delle Balestre or more commonly known as Sala del Mappamondo, met. The name derives from the ancient presence in the hall of a rotating disc, the globe, probably in parchment wood and depicting possessions of the Sienese State, painted in 1344 by Ambrogio Lorenzetti and dispersed in the eighteenth century. On the wall in front of Simone Martini's Majesty, in the upper part, there is a famous civil theme fresco, also linked to the name of the great Sienese artist, who represents Guidoriccio da Fogliano, captain of the Sienese army, to the siege of Montemassi, a Maremma castle conquered by the city in 1328... Continue reading on the Sala del Mappamondo.

Torna su

Sala della Pace (Peace Hall)

Sala della Pace - SienaNext to the Sala del Mappamondo, in the Palazzo Pubblico of Siena, there is the equally beautiful Sala della Pace (Peace Hall), which was the historic public seat of the Government of the Nine, to which we have already mentioned in these pages of our guide of the city. The walls of this room are entirely covered by the most famous cycle of frescoes in the city, the Allegoria del Buono e del Mal Governo (Allegance of the Good and Bad Government), painted by Ambrogio Lorenzetti between 1338 and 1340. A universal masterpiece...Read more about the Sala della Pace.

Top

Sala dei Pilastri (Pillars Hall)

Sala dei Pilastri - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaIn the room of the pillars, from the left there is a fresco with St. Bernardino that frees an ostessa and St. Bernardino who preaches in the field, diptych of Neroccio di Bartolomeo Landi. Then a beautiful Scyola sense triptych of the 13th century with Saints Stephen, Magdalene and Anthony, probably by Martin of Bartolomeo of about 1465, and the Cross painted by Massarello of Gilio in 1306 together with a rare fragment of glass with a San Michele Arcangelo attributed to Ambrogio Lorenzetti. Following a 14th century Annunciation, a Madonna and child is a painting by a thirteenth-century master. In the shop windows there are precious examples of Sienese art history since 400 600. From here you go back to the globe hall and pass to the room called the old chapel.

Top

Anticappella

Affreschi Anticappella - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaThe room called Anticappella, so called because it precedes the Chapel of Palazzo, was once used as an antechamber of the Consistory, a formal meeting of some governing bodies of the Sienese republic, hosting its offices. Precisely for these functions, Taddeo di Bartolo was commissioned in 1415, to build a cycle of paintings that began with the depiction of Allegories of Virtue necessary for the good exercise of power (Justice, Magnanimity), Strength, Prudence and Religion) under which he proposed a gallery of characters who for their deeds and their history had contributed to the formation of Ancient Rome, such as Cato, Muzio Scevola, Scipione and others. On the arch at the entrance to the Sala del Mappamondo, Taddeo then depicted the plan of Rome of the time, still surrounded by the most imposing characters of ancient culture. The recovery of classical culture in the Enlightenment period had brought important fruits to Siena so much so that the city was reconstructed through the suppositions of some brave scholars, a history as illustrious as it was unlikely that was rooted in the very origin of the Eternal City, as evidenced by the choice as a symbol of the city of the Roman She-wolf.

On the elevation of the opposite side to the entrance there is a monumental San Cristoforo, always the work of Taddeo. The representation of this saint was customary, especially in cities that were the destination of pilgrims, because his sight had to give them security and protection. For this reason, but also because of the tradition that wanted it to be of gigantic proportions, it was usually painted in large format, because its view was easy even for the most distracted. In our case, probably, the grandeur of the representation is also due to a sort of debt that the City Council paid to the Saint who had long hosted in his Church, placed right in the center of the city, activities and public meetings, before the construction of the Palazzo Pubblico. In the showcase there are some sacred furnishings used over time for religious ceremonies that took place here, the most important of which is certainly the Gold Rose, work by Simone da Firenze, masterpiece of the Renaissance goldsmith's art, donated by Pope Pius II Piccolomini to the city in 1458.

Top

Cappella di Palazzo (Palace Chapel)
 

Affreschi Cappella di Palazzo - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaThe gate placed at the entrance to the Cappella del Palazzo in wrought iron and tinned, in boxes, each containing nine quadrilobles, is a work of 1437 by the Sienese Giacomo di Giovanni and his son Giovanni di Giovanni. Also in this environment continues the series of frescoes by Taddeo di Bartolo of 1407 that in the vault, on the left wall, on the lunettes, evoked Episodes of the life of the Virgin, including Death and Assumption. The small bronze stoup with small figures of the Savior and angels is the work of Giovanni di Turino of 1434; the rich gothic wooden chandelier, gilded and painted, sculpted by Cecco di Nanni del Ciucca and painted by Cristoforo da Cosona in 1370.

The finely worked altar was designed by Lorenzo di Mariano Fucci called Il Marrina, and preserves the table of the Holy Family with San Leonardo del Sodoma of 1530, one of the most happy compositions, here transferred from the Duomo in the seventeenth century. The very fine wooden choir, carved and inlaid, the culmination of Sienese wooden art was performed by Domenico di Niccolò between 1415 and 1428 and counts 21 stalls running along the walls. For this work the artist was nicknamed "dei Cori".

To the right, under the arch, is the organ embedded in beautiful carvings of Giovanni Di Pietro and Igino da Antonio from 1524. Set on the walls, 21 carved choir stalls with inlaid backrests, making up the head of the opera chief of the art work Sienese line, was author Domenico di Niccolò called since then in honor of his marvelous master of choirs.

Close to the altar, there is the recessed pipe organ, in beautiful carvings by Giovanni di Pietro and Igino da Antonio. The rogano in itself was the work of Giovanni di Antonio called Il Piffaro, built between 1519 and 1525, has a richly carved case, with decorations by Giovanni di Pietro and Ghino d'Antonio. The instrument, with its fully mechanical transmission, has a single 44 note keyboard and a 12 note pedalboard, constantly combined with the manual.
 

Top

Sala dei Cardinali (Cardinals Hall)

Sala dei Cardinali- Palazzo Pubblico - SienaEntering the Sala dei Cardinali, or Anticamera del Concistoro, above the entrance we find a crucifix on board of three hundred; on the pillar, a tabernacle of Guidoccio Cozzarelli (or Matteo di Giovanni). This room is decorated with various frescos detached from the' 300 and' 400 that come from external walls or other rooms of the palace. On the right wall there are two statues in wood, the saints Ambrose and Anthony Abbot, judged (with some doubt) by Antonio Federighi, along with a fragment of frescoes perhaps by Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Tre Santi and the client. Further up, on this wall and on the opposite side there are other frescoes with figures of saints painted "ex voto" by the Sienese in the 14th and 15th centuries. A showcase at the centre contains some relics of the ancient activity of the Municipality, including carved and inlaid boxes, boxes for votes and the picca (pike) of the Capitano del Popolo.

Top

Sala del Concistoro (Consistory Hall)

Sala del Concistoro i- Palazzo Pubblico - SienaThe entrance portal of the Sala del Concistoro is an elegant work in marble with gilding by Florentine Bernardo Gambarelli known as Rossellino (who was also an architect); the wooden doors with inlays perhaps come from Domenico Niccolò. The Sienese rulers gathered here at the time of the Republic. The frescoes that decorate the vault, illustrated illustrating episodes of civic virtue taken from Greek and Roman history, are admirable works of the maturity of Domenico Beccafumi executed between 1529 and 1535. Very beautiful the radiance of colors, the richness of shades, the mastery of architectural perspectives (in the centre of the vault there are Justice, Brotherhood and Amor Patrio). Three large seventeenth-century tapestries of the Manufacture of Gobelins (Earthly Allegories, of the area of fire) and five smaller ones of Florentine manufacture (other allegories) adorn the walls; above the portal, Giudizio di Solomone, considered by Luca Giordano of the seventeenth century.

Top

Sala di Balia

Sala di Balia - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaLa Sala di Balia e detta così perché era sede dei magistrati di balia. Divisa da un arco, alle pareti interamente ricoperte dagli affreschi eseguiti nel 1407 da Spinello Aretino e da suo figlio Parri. Questi affreschi illustrano, in 15 riquadri, i più importanti episodi della vita di Papa Alessandro III, il senese Rolando Bandinelli, che fu Papa da 1159 al 1181, è che fu fiero nemico di Federico Barbarossa, alleato dei comuni lombardi, fondatore di Alessandria, crudele repressore dei Catari. L'opera ha un interesse, più che per qualità estetiche, per la documentazione sui costumi, sulle attività, e sugli artigiani del tempo. Nella volta della sala si trovano le Allegorie di 16 virtù di Marino di Bartolomeo del 1408. La porta destra è stata intarsiata da Domenico di Niccolò mentre il balcone in legno e opera di Barna di Turino del 1410.

 

Sala di Balia (Balia Hall)

Sala di Balia - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaThe Sala di Balia is so called because it was the seat of the magistrates of the nanny. Divided by an arch, the walls are entirely covered with frescos painted in 1407 by Spinello Aretino and his son Parri. These frescoes illustrate, in 15 boxes, the most important episodes of the life of Pope Alexander III, the Sienese Rolando Bandinelli, who was Pope from 1159 to 1181, is that he was proud enemy of Frederick Barbarossa, ally of the Lombard municipalities, founder of Alexandria, cruel repressive of the Catarians. The work has an interest, rather than for aesthetic qualities, in the documentation of costumes, activities and craftsmen of the time. The vault of the hall contains the Allegories of 16 virtues of Marino di Bartolomeo in 1408. The right door was inlaid by Domenico di Niccolò while the wooden balcony and work of Barna di Turino from 1410.

Torna su

Sala del Risorgimento

Sala del Risorgimento - Palazzo Pubblico - SienaNella Sala del Risorgimento troviamo gli affreschi di pittori senesi e toscani del tardo ottocento che narrano episodi salienti della vita di Vittorio Emanuele II, dall'incontro con Radetzky, dopo la sfortunata Battaglia di Novara, alle esequie del Pantheon. Inoltre: busti in marmo di personalità politiche e artistiche del secolo passato sempre opera di scultori senesi.

Attigua alla Quadreria del Palazzo Pubblico, che comprende dipinti appartenenti principalmente all'arte senese tra i secoli XVI e XVIII, la Sala del Risorgimento, un tempo Sala delle Udienze del Podestà, costituisce l'ultima grande impresa decorativa eseguita all'interno dell'edificio comunale. L'esecuzione fu eseguita sul finire del XIX secolo, e affidata alla scuola del cosiddetto "purismo senese", fondato da Luigi Orsini, figura di punta del movimento, allora a capo dell'Istituto di belle arti di Siena. Gli esponenti del purismo sono gli autori di una vera e propria rifioritura delle imprese pittoriche di grande respiro a Siena eseguendo molte opere su commissione pubblica ed ecclesiastica. Il movimento purista, avviato all'inizio dell'ottocento a Roma con il movimento dei "Nazareni", si distingue per il costante rifarsi alla tradizione del quadro di storia, dando vita a grandi composizioni, principalmente a tema storico o sacro, ineccepibili dal punto di vista della tecnica pittorica, ma che non sfuggono alla freddezza, generalmente caratteristica dell'opera di stampo accademico. Le scene celebranti episodi della vita di Vittorio Emanuele II, sono dipinte da Amos Cassili, Pietro Aldi, Cesare Maccari; Alessandro Franchi ha dipinto sulla volta l'Allegoria dell'Italia libera. Nella sala sono stati conservati anche altri dipinti e sculture ottocentesche, tra cui opere di Tito Ciarrocchi, Luigi Mussini, Giuseppe Sabattelli e Giovanni Dupré.

Top

La Loggia (The Lodge)

Palazzo Pubblico e Loggia vista de Piazza del Mercato  - SienaFrom a staircase decorated by the fresco of a Madonna di Neroccio di Bartolomeo Landi in 1481, we arrive at three rooms on the second floor, where the originals of the Fonte Gaia di Jacopo della Quercia were once exhibited and which are now in the Complex of the Museum of Santa Maria della Scala. From here you climb up to the Loggia, with its four pillars, which has an extraordinary view of the market square and the southern half of the city. Beautiful panorama from the Loggia.

Copyright © Informagiovani-italia.com

Where is it located?

 

Top

 

Ostelli Siena  Ostelli Italia   Auberges de Jeunesse Italie  Hotel Siena

Carte de Sienne   Karte von Siena Mapa Siena Map of Siena

 Carte de la Toscane   Karte von Toskana   Mapa Toscana   Map of Tuscany

Carte d'Italie  Karte von Italien  Mapa Italia   Map of Italy

 
FacebookTwitterYoutubeScrivi a Informagiovani Italia