Limiting the choice of prime sights to 10 is not an
easy task in a land as rich and varied as Tuscany.
Its storybook landscape is home to medieval hill
towns, fabled wines and an unrivalled collection of
Renaissance artistic masterpieces. Here are the best
of the best.
The Uffizi, Florence
This museum is the ultimate primer on the Renaissance, starting with Giotto and running through Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio and beyond. This historic progression is only fitting, as the building, originally the uffizi (“offices”) of the ruling Medici family, was designed by Giorgio Vasari, who wrote the world’s first art history text. Some 1,700 works are on display, with another 1,400 in storage. Though small, these galleries shelter an embarrassing number of masterpieces that demand at least three or four hours.
Top 10 Paintings
1 Birth of Venus (Botticelli) - Botticelli’s Venus on a half shell, painted in 1486, is the ultimate Renaissance beauty. The pose is a classical Venus, while the face is said to be modelled on Simonetta Vespucci, the girlfriend of Piero de’ Medici, and cousin to explorer Amerigo Vespucci.
2 The Annunciation (Leonardo da Vinci) - One of the earliest works (1475) of that
versatile master Leonardo da Vinci. We can already see his attention to detail in the drapery and flower-bedecked lawn. Leonardo’s patented sfumato landscape creates the illusion of great distance by introducing a hazy atmosphere.
3 Holy Family (Michelangelo) - A rare panel painting (1504) by Michelangelo, the Holy Family owes much to Signorelli, but its twisting figures, exotic saturated colours and lounging nudes predict Mannerism.
4 Maestà (Giotto) - Giotto’s Maestà of 1310 is revolutionary compared with nearby similar scenes by his
older contemporaries Duccio and Cimabue. Here the Madonna has bulk beneath her clothing, and depth is created through the placing of the surrounding figures on solid ground.
5 Bacchus (Caravaggio) - One of Caravaggio’s earliest works (1594) shows he is already marrying an intense attention to detail (evident in the Flemish-style still life of fruit), with earthy naturalism in the boy-like god. Also obvious is his early fascination with playing harsh light off deep shadows.
6 Primavera (Botticelli) - Botticelli’s companion to his Birth of Venus, the Primavera (1478; above) is populated by goddesses and over 500 species of plant. The painting’s exact meaning is not known but it may be a Neoplatonic allegory of spring based around a poem by Poliziano.
7 Frederico di Montefeltro and Battista Sforza (Piero della Francesca) - Piero della Francesca’s intense, psychological style of portraiture unflinchingly depicts his hooknosed patron duke, literally warts and all.
8 Venus of Urbino (Titian) - A great influence on the depiction of the nude all the way through to Manet, Titian’s Venus of Urbino (1538, above) was widely copied in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Venetian master also played with light and shadow, setting a luminous Venus against a dark background.
9 Madonna of the Long Neck (Parmigianino) - Parmigianino’s Madonna of 1534 shows off Mannerism at its twisted, exaggerated, elegant best, with an impossibly sinuous Madonna and a weirdly oversized infant Jesus. Though left unfinished, it would become a touchstone of the Mannerist movement and Parmigianino’s masterpiece.
1 Birth of Venus (Botticelli) - Botticelli’s Venus on a half shell, painted in 1486, is the ultimate Renaissance beauty. The pose is a classical Venus, while the face is said to be modelled on Simonetta Vespucci, the girlfriend of Piero de’ Medici, and cousin to explorer Amerigo Vespucci.
2 The Annunciation (Leonardo da Vinci) - One of the earliest works (1475) of that
versatile master Leonardo da Vinci. We can already see his attention to detail in the drapery and flower-bedecked lawn. Leonardo’s patented sfumato landscape creates the illusion of great distance by introducing a hazy atmosphere.
3 Holy Family (Michelangelo) - A rare panel painting (1504) by Michelangelo, the Holy Family owes much to Signorelli, but its twisting figures, exotic saturated colours and lounging nudes predict Mannerism.
4 Maestà (Giotto) - Giotto’s Maestà of 1310 is revolutionary compared with nearby similar scenes by his
older contemporaries Duccio and Cimabue. Here the Madonna has bulk beneath her clothing, and depth is created through the placing of the surrounding figures on solid ground.
5 Bacchus (Caravaggio) - One of Caravaggio’s earliest works (1594) shows he is already marrying an intense attention to detail (evident in the Flemish-style still life of fruit), with earthy naturalism in the boy-like god. Also obvious is his early fascination with playing harsh light off deep shadows.
6 Primavera (Botticelli) - Botticelli’s companion to his Birth of Venus, the Primavera (1478; above) is populated by goddesses and over 500 species of plant. The painting’s exact meaning is not known but it may be a Neoplatonic allegory of spring based around a poem by Poliziano.
7 Frederico di Montefeltro and Battista Sforza (Piero della Francesca) - Piero della Francesca’s intense, psychological style of portraiture unflinchingly depicts his hooknosed patron duke, literally warts and all.
8 Venus of Urbino (Titian) - A great influence on the depiction of the nude all the way through to Manet, Titian’s Venus of Urbino (1538, above) was widely copied in the 18th and 19th centuries. The Venetian master also played with light and shadow, setting a luminous Venus against a dark background.
9 Madonna of the Long Neck (Parmigianino) - Parmigianino’s Madonna of 1534 shows off Mannerism at its twisted, exaggerated, elegant best, with an impossibly sinuous Madonna and a weirdly oversized infant Jesus. Though left unfinished, it would become a touchstone of the Mannerist movement and Parmigianino’s masterpiece.
10 Battle of San Romano (Uccelo) A master of perspective, Uccello experimented with it to the detriment of his scenes. The broken lances in this third of his masterpiece (1456; other thirds are in Paris and London) over-define a perspective plane. Also, the background tilts at a radically different angle to the foreground.
The Duomo Group, Florence
Florence’s gorgeous cathedral offers two panoramic perches, one atop Giotto’s lithe and lovely belltower, the other at the summit of Brunelleschi’s robust and noble dome. The interior of the cathedral contains some Uccello frescoes but otherwise is oddly barren and less interesting than clambering up between the layers of the dome. The nearby Baptistry is also more rewarding with its glittering Byzantine mosaics and Gates of Paradise, while inside the Museo are statues by Michelangelo, Donatello, Ghirlandaio and Andrea Pisano.
2 Torre Grossa - You can climb all 54 m (175 ft) of the tallest tower in town for one of Italy’s most stupendous views, across the surrounding towers and terracotta roofs to the rolling hills all around.
3 Museo Civico - San Gimignano’s best museum is situated on the first floor of the Palazzo del Popolo, beneath the lofty Torre Grossa. The collection includes works by Pinturicchio (whose Madonna with Saints Gregory and Benedict, 1511), Filippino Lippi and Benozzo Gozzoli, and a Maestà by Lippo Memmi. The frescoes (by Memmo di Filuppucci) of a couple’s marriage and wedding night are unusually erotic for the 14th century.
4 Piazza della Cisterna - This triangular piazza, ringed with 13thand 14th-century towers and centred on a 1237 stone well, will be familiar as a setting for such films as Where Angels Fear to Tread and Tea with Mussolini.
5 Sant’Agostino - Most tourists miss this little church with its Piero di Pollaiuolo altarpiece (1483) and Benozzo Gozzoli’s quirky, colourful apse frescoes on the life of St Augustine (1465). Benedetto da Maiano carved the tomb of San Bartolo (1488) against the west wall.
6 Museo della Tortura - A grisly array of torture instruments occupies the Torre della Diavola (She-devil’s Tower). The explanatory placards make for grim reading, pointing out which of the devices are still used around the world today.
7 Museo Archeologico - The small collection of Etruscan artifacts housed here includes a curious funerary urn topped by a reclining effigy of the deceased, his cup holding a coin to pay for entry into the afterlife.
8 Museo d’Arte Sacra - This modest museum of liturgical art (below) stands on a pretty piazza off the Collegiata’s left flank. Highlights of the collection are a Madonna and Child by Bartolo di Fredi and 14th-century illuminated choir books.
9 Rocca - The 14th-century fortress has long since crumbled to a romantic ruin, and is now planted with olives and figs. Scramble up its ramparts for a picture-perfect view of the town’s towers.
10 Façade of San Francesco - The Romanesque façade of a long-vanished church remains wedged between later medieval buildings. Behind it is a local vineyard’s cantina, offering wine tastings, and, beyond, a pretty, shaded terrace with fine country views.
2 Baptistry - Italy’s largest Baptistry started life as a Romanesque piece (1153) but has a Gothic dome. The acoustically perfect interior houses a great Gothic pulpit.
3 Baptistry Pulpit - Niccola Pisano’s Gothic masterpiece (1255–60; above) depicts religious scenes based on pagan reliefs decorating Camposanto sarcophagi.
4 Duomo Façade - A Pisan-Romanesque triumph (above) of blind arcades, stacked open arcades and coloured marble decorations. Mannerist artist Giambologna cast the bronze doors to replace those destroyed by fire in 1595.
5 Duomo’s San Ranieri Doors - The architect Buscheto sculpted the only remaining Romanesque bronze doors of Pisa’s cathedral in 1180. He populated them with minimalist biblical scenes and swaying palm trees.
6 Duomo Pulpit - Niccola Pisano’s son, Giovanni, carved this in 1302–11. The Gothic naturalism of its tumultuous New Testament scenes probably reflects the influence of Giotto, who was a contemporary of the artist in Padua.
7 Camposanto - This former cemetery, containing recycled ancient Roman sarcophagi, once boasted frescoes to rival those in the Sistine Chapel. They were largely destroyed in World War II, but a few sections are preserved in a back room.
8 Camposanto Triumph of Death fresco - This fresco by Buffamalcco is the best of those that survived the bombs of World War II. Its scene of Death riding across an apocalyptic landscape inspired Liszt to compose his Totentanz concerto.
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9 Museo dell’Opera del Duomo - This rich collection includes an 11th-century Islamic bronze hippogriff
(half horse, half griffin, above) – Crusade booty that once topped the cathedral dome. Good Leaning Tower views, too.
10 Museo delle Sinopie - In trying to salvage the Camposanto frescoes, restorers discovered earlier preparatory sketches. These offer a unique insight into the creative process of these medieval artists.
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2 Palazzo Pubblico: Guidoriccio da Foligno (Simone Martini)
3 Piazza il Campo
4 Torre del Mangia
5 Cappella della Piazza
6 Fonte Gaia
7 Palazzo Pubblico
8 Loggia della Mercanzia
9 Palazzo Piccolomini
10 Palazzo Sansedoni
Chianti
The 50 km (30 miles) between Florence and Siena is a storybook landscape straight out of a Renaissance painting’s background: steeply rolling hills terraced with vineyards and olive groves, crenellated castles and bustling market towns. The seductive beauty of this Tuscan Arcadia has drawn people since Etruscan times; indeed, today it is so popular with the English that it has earned the nickname Chiantishire.
Chianti Vineyards
Castello di Brolio - The estate that invented modern Chianti Classico is back in the Ricasoli family’s hands. Book tours in advance • 0577 7301
• www.ricasoli.it
Monsanto - This estate makes a 100 percent Sangiovese Chianti. Call in advance to tour the cellars
• 055 805 9000 • www.castellodimonsanto.it
Fonterutoli - Highly regarded estate in the Marquis Mazzei family since 1435. Excellent Chianti Classico, Badiola Sangioveto and Belguardo (a Morellino). Tastings available.• 0577 741 385 • www.mazzei.it
Castello di Ama - You can’t tour the estate, but you can taste and buy their wines at Rinaldi Palmira’s enoteca in nearby Lecchi. • www.castellodiama.com
Castello di Volpaia - Visit the 13th-century village around an imposing central tower, and taste wines, oils and vinegars. Book tours a week ahead. • 0577 738 066 • www.volpaia.it
Cortona
One of Tuscany’s most rewarding hill towns, Cortona is a little-known haven of Etruscan tombs, medieval alleyways, Renaissance art, sweeping views and small-town ambience. It was probably settled even before the Etruscans, and later became an important member of that society, as the tombs in its valley attest. Fra Angelico’s home, Cortona also gave birth to Renaissance genius Luca Signorelli, Baroque master Pietro da Cortona and 20th-century Futurist Gino Severini.
Lucca
Lucca is a genteel city of opera and olive oil, Romanesque churches and hidden palace gardens. Its historic centre is contained within massive 16th-century redbrick bastions. The street plan first laid down by the Romans is little altered – in the Middle Ages the ancient amphitheatre was used as a foundation for houses. Composers Boccherini (1743–1805) and Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) were born here, and are celebrated in concerts at the 19th-century Teatro del Giglio and in the sumptuous villas north of town.
Top 10 Sights
1 Duomo
2 San Michele in Foro
3 The Walls
4 Tomb of Ilaria
5 Piazza Anfiteatro
6 Museo della San Frediano
7 Torre Guinigi
8 Museo Nazionale di Palazzo Mansi
9 Museo Nazionale Villa Guinigi
10 Santa Maria Forisportam
The Duomo Group, Florence
Florence’s gorgeous cathedral offers two panoramic perches, one atop Giotto’s lithe and lovely belltower, the other at the summit of Brunelleschi’s robust and noble dome. The interior of the cathedral contains some Uccello frescoes but otherwise is oddly barren and less interesting than clambering up between the layers of the dome. The nearby Baptistry is also more rewarding with its glittering Byzantine mosaics and Gates of Paradise, while inside the Museo are statues by Michelangelo, Donatello, Ghirlandaio and Andrea Pisano.
Top 10 Features
1 Duomo: Dome
The Duomo’s crossing was thought unspannable until Brunelleschi came up with this ingenious double shell construction in 1420. Forget the mediocre frescoes inside; the thrill is to climb up between the layers to the marble lantern at its peak.
The Duomo’s crossing was thought unspannable until Brunelleschi came up with this ingenious double shell construction in 1420. Forget the mediocre frescoes inside; the thrill is to climb up between the layers to the marble lantern at its peak.
2 Baptistry: Gates of Paradise
Lorenzo Ghiberti’s gilded bronze panels (1425–53) showcase his mastery at depicting great depth in shallow relief (right). Michelangelo was reportedly so moved he proclaimed they would “grace the very gates of Paradise”, and the name stuck; the originals are housed in the Museo.
Lorenzo Ghiberti’s gilded bronze panels (1425–53) showcase his mastery at depicting great depth in shallow relief (right). Michelangelo was reportedly so moved he proclaimed they would “grace the very gates of Paradise”, and the name stuck; the originals are housed in the Museo.
3 Baptistry: Mosaics
The swathe of 13thcentury mosaic panels tells stories from Genesis and the lives of Jesus, Joseph and St John the Baptist.
The swathe of 13thcentury mosaic panels tells stories from Genesis and the lives of Jesus, Joseph and St John the Baptist.
4 Museo dell’Opera: Michelangelo’s Pietà
Michelangelo created three Pietàs, this middle one in 1548–55 before angrily attacking it with a hammer.
Michelangelo created three Pietàs, this middle one in 1548–55 before angrily attacking it with a hammer.
5 Duomo: Campanile
Giotto designed only the lowest level of the “Lily of Florence”, which was continued by Andrea Pisano (who added statue niches) and finished by Francesco Talenti. It is 85 m (276 ft), or 414 steps, to the top.
Giotto designed only the lowest level of the “Lily of Florence”, which was continued by Andrea Pisano (who added statue niches) and finished by Francesco Talenti. It is 85 m (276 ft), or 414 steps, to the top.
6 Duomo: Fresco of Giovanni Acuto
Master of perspective Paolo Uccello painted this trompe-l’oeil fresco (1436) of an equestrian statue as a memorial for John Hawkwood, an English condottiere (mercenary commander) long in Florence’s employ.
Master of perspective Paolo Uccello painted this trompe-l’oeil fresco (1436) of an equestrian statue as a memorial for John Hawkwood, an English condottiere (mercenary commander) long in Florence’s employ.
7 Museo dell’Opera del Duomo: Habakkuk
One of several prophets that Donatello carved for the campanile. Florentines nicknamed this one Lo Zuccone – “Pumpkinhead”.
One of several prophets that Donatello carved for the campanile. Florentines nicknamed this one Lo Zuccone – “Pumpkinhead”.
8 Duomo: New Sacristy
The bronze doors and glazed terracotta lunette are 15th-century works by Luca della Robbia. The interior, sheathed in wood inlay, was where Lorenzo de’ Medici took refuge after an assassination attempt in 1478.
The bronze doors and glazed terracotta lunette are 15th-century works by Luca della Robbia. The interior, sheathed in wood inlay, was where Lorenzo de’ Medici took refuge after an assassination attempt in 1478.
9 Museo dell’Opera del Duomo: Altar Front
This pile of silver and gilt statuary for the Baptistry took over 100 years to craft (1366– 1480), by Verrocchio, Antonio Pollaiuolo, Michelozzo and other sculptors.
This pile of silver and gilt statuary for the Baptistry took over 100 years to craft (1366– 1480), by Verrocchio, Antonio Pollaiuolo, Michelozzo and other sculptors.
10 Baptistry: North Doors
Lorenzo Ghiberti won the 1401 competition to cast these 28 bronze panels, and spent 21 years creating what art historians consider the first proper Renaissance work.
Lorenzo Ghiberti won the 1401 competition to cast these 28 bronze panels, and spent 21 years creating what art historians consider the first proper Renaissance work.
Pitti Palace, Florence
This one-time residence of the Medici family is a treasure trove: there are royal apartments, galleries of modern art, costume, silverware and porcelain. But above all there is the Galleria Palatina, frescoed by Pietro da Cortona, and second only to the Uffizi. It contains one of the world’s best collections of Raphaels and Titians. The paintings are still hung 19th-century style, when “Does that Tintoretto match the room’s decor?” or “Let’s put all the round ones together” mattered more than any didactic arrangement.
San Gimignano
Souvenir shops notwithstanding, this pedestrianized hilltop town is the most evocative of the Middle Ages of any in Tuscany. Its full name is San Gimignano delle Belle Torri, or San Gimignano of the Beautiful Towers. More than 70 of these towers once attested to this medieval Manhattan’s wealth; 14 still spike its skyline today. The town boasts, for its size, an amazing wealth of 14th- and 15th-century art. Modern art, too, is tucked into unexpected corners, and there is an excellent local white wine.
Souvenir shops notwithstanding, this pedestrianized hilltop town is the most evocative of the Middle Ages of any in Tuscany. Its full name is San Gimignano delle Belle Torri, or San Gimignano of the Beautiful Towers. More than 70 of these towers once attested to this medieval Manhattan’s wealth; 14 still spike its skyline today. The town boasts, for its size, an amazing wealth of 14th- and 15th-century art. Modern art, too, is tucked into unexpected corners, and there is an excellent local white wine.
Top 10 Sights
1 Collegiata - The plain exterior belies an interior swathed in frescoes. Lippo Memmi executed those on the right wall (1333–41), Bartolo di Fredi the left wall (1367), Taddeo di Bartolo the gory Last Judgement in the nave (1410), and Benozzo Gozzoli the entrance wall’s St Sebastian (1464). The town’s pride are the Domenico Ghirlandaio frescoes (1475) in the Chapel of Santa Fina.
2 Torre Grossa - You can climb all 54 m (175 ft) of the tallest tower in town for one of Italy’s most stupendous views, across the surrounding towers and terracotta roofs to the rolling hills all around.
3 Museo Civico - San Gimignano’s best museum is situated on the first floor of the Palazzo del Popolo, beneath the lofty Torre Grossa. The collection includes works by Pinturicchio (whose Madonna with Saints Gregory and Benedict, 1511), Filippino Lippi and Benozzo Gozzoli, and a Maestà by Lippo Memmi. The frescoes (by Memmo di Filuppucci) of a couple’s marriage and wedding night are unusually erotic for the 14th century.
4 Piazza della Cisterna - This triangular piazza, ringed with 13thand 14th-century towers and centred on a 1237 stone well, will be familiar as a setting for such films as Where Angels Fear to Tread and Tea with Mussolini.
5 Sant’Agostino - Most tourists miss this little church with its Piero di Pollaiuolo altarpiece (1483) and Benozzo Gozzoli’s quirky, colourful apse frescoes on the life of St Augustine (1465). Benedetto da Maiano carved the tomb of San Bartolo (1488) against the west wall.
6 Museo della Tortura - A grisly array of torture instruments occupies the Torre della Diavola (She-devil’s Tower). The explanatory placards make for grim reading, pointing out which of the devices are still used around the world today.
7 Museo Archeologico - The small collection of Etruscan artifacts housed here includes a curious funerary urn topped by a reclining effigy of the deceased, his cup holding a coin to pay for entry into the afterlife.
8 Museo d’Arte Sacra - This modest museum of liturgical art (below) stands on a pretty piazza off the Collegiata’s left flank. Highlights of the collection are a Madonna and Child by Bartolo di Fredi and 14th-century illuminated choir books.
9 Rocca - The 14th-century fortress has long since crumbled to a romantic ruin, and is now planted with olives and figs. Scramble up its ramparts for a picture-perfect view of the town’s towers.
10 Façade of San Francesco - The Romanesque façade of a long-vanished church remains wedged between later medieval buildings. Behind it is a local vineyard’s cantina, offering wine tastings, and, beyond, a pretty, shaded terrace with fine country views.
Campo dei Miracoli, Pisa
Pisa’s “Field of Miracles” is one of the most gorgeous squares in Italy, its green carpet of grass the setting for the Pisan-Romanesque gemstones of the Duomo, Baptistry, Camposanto and Campanile – that Italian icon better known as the Leaning Tower. The east end of the square is anchored by the old bishop’s palace, now home to the Duomo museum. Souvenir stalls cling like barnacles to the long south side of the square; a doorway between two of them opens into the Museo delle Sinopie, housing the giant preparatory sketches on plaster for the lost Camposanto frescoes.
Top 10 Sights
1 Leaning Tower - This belltower in the Pisan-Romanesque style was begun in 1173 and started leaning when builders were only on the third level. By 1990, the tower was 4.5 m (15 ft) out of vertical, and it was closed until 2001 for engineers to reverse the tilt. In 2008, they announced that it had been stabilized. Entrance is accompanied (30 people admitted every half hour).
1 Leaning Tower - This belltower in the Pisan-Romanesque style was begun in 1173 and started leaning when builders were only on the third level. By 1990, the tower was 4.5 m (15 ft) out of vertical, and it was closed until 2001 for engineers to reverse the tilt. In 2008, they announced that it had been stabilized. Entrance is accompanied (30 people admitted every half hour).
2 Baptistry - Italy’s largest Baptistry started life as a Romanesque piece (1153) but has a Gothic dome. The acoustically perfect interior houses a great Gothic pulpit.
3 Baptistry Pulpit - Niccola Pisano’s Gothic masterpiece (1255–60; above) depicts religious scenes based on pagan reliefs decorating Camposanto sarcophagi.
4 Duomo Façade - A Pisan-Romanesque triumph (above) of blind arcades, stacked open arcades and coloured marble decorations. Mannerist artist Giambologna cast the bronze doors to replace those destroyed by fire in 1595.
5 Duomo’s San Ranieri Doors - The architect Buscheto sculpted the only remaining Romanesque bronze doors of Pisa’s cathedral in 1180. He populated them with minimalist biblical scenes and swaying palm trees.
6 Duomo Pulpit - Niccola Pisano’s son, Giovanni, carved this in 1302–11. The Gothic naturalism of its tumultuous New Testament scenes probably reflects the influence of Giotto, who was a contemporary of the artist in Padua.
7 Camposanto - This former cemetery, containing recycled ancient Roman sarcophagi, once boasted frescoes to rival those in the Sistine Chapel. They were largely destroyed in World War II, but a few sections are preserved in a back room.
8 Camposanto Triumph of Death fresco - This fresco by Buffamalcco is the best of those that survived the bombs of World War II. Its scene of Death riding across an apocalyptic landscape inspired Liszt to compose his Totentanz concerto.
9 Museo dell’Opera del Duomo - This rich collection includes an 11th-century Islamic bronze hippogriff
(half horse, half griffin, above) – Crusade booty that once topped the cathedral dome. Good Leaning Tower views, too.
10 Museo delle Sinopie - In trying to salvage the Camposanto frescoes, restorers discovered earlier preparatory sketches. These offer a unique insight into the creative process of these medieval artists.
Siena’s Duomo
Siena’s hulking Gothic cathedral is a treasure house of late Gothic sculpture, early Renaissance painting and Baroque design. The early architects dressed the edifice in striking Romanesque stripes, but the form is firmly Gothic, one of the best examples of the style in Italy. Equally fascinating are the Duomo’s outbuildings: the Baptistry, the Museo Metropolitana and the Santa Maria della Scala hospital across the square, where 1440s frescoes on the walls of the wards depict medieval hospital scenes.
Pisano Pulpit - Niccola Pisano’s son, Giovanni, and pupil Arnolfo di Cambio helped create this masterpiece of Gothic carving. Similar to Pisano pulpits in Pisa and Pistoia, this one depicts scenes from the Life of Christ.
Piccolomini Library - The library was built to house manuscripts belonging to the humanist Pope Pius II, born to Siena’s Piccolomini family. His life is celebrated in masterly frescoes (1507) by Pinturicchio.
Floor Panels - All 59 panels are on show in early autumn (usually September), but some are visible all year. From 1372 to 1547 Siena’s top artists created these scenes, including Pinturicchio and Matteo di Giovanni, whose Massacre of the Innocents is masterful.
Façade - Giovanni Pisano designed the façade in 1285. His original timeworn statues, replaced
with copies, are in the Museo Metropolitana. The glittering mosaics decorating the top half are by 19th-century Venetian craftsmen.
with copies, are in the Museo Metropolitana. The glittering mosaics decorating the top half are by 19th-century Venetian craftsmen.
Piccolomini Altar - Andrea Bregno’s 1480 marble altar incorporates a Madonna and Child (1397–1400) by Jacopo della Quercia and four small statues of saints (1501–4) by the young Michelangelo.
Chigi Chapel - Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini designed this chapel in 1659. The 13th-century Madonna del Volto altarpiece is Siena’s guardian: officials have placed the city keys before her in times of crisis, including during Nazi occupation, and Siena has always been delivered from harm.
San Giovanni Chapel - Giovanni di Stefano’s Renaissance baptismal chapel (1492) is decorated with Pinturicchio frescoes and a bronze St John the Baptist (1457) by an ageing Donatello.
Duccio’s Stained Glass Window - Italy’s earliest stained glass (1288) decorates the apse’s round window. Designed by Siena’s great early Gothic master Duccio di Buoninsegna, it underwent a thorough cleaning in the 1990s and the original has now been placed in the Museo Metropolitana.
Choir - The intarsia wood choir stalls are by various master craftsmen (1362–1570), the marble altar by Baldassare Peruzzi (1532) and the candelabras by Beccafumi, who also painted the apse fresco of the Ascension (1548–51).
Belltower - The campanile was added only in 1313, but the design is pure Romanesque dramatic black-and-white stripes.
Siena’s Campo & Palazzo Pubblico
The Piazza del Campo is often referred to affectionately as Il Campo. It is one of Europe’s loveliest squares, where crowds turn out to stroll, gossip or picnic. It has been the centre of Sienese public life since it was laid out atop the city’s Roman Forum in 1100. The governmental Palazzo Pubblico, with its graceful tower, was added in 1297, and the curve of brick buildings opposite built to match. The Palazzo houses the Museo Civico. Twice a year the Campo is packed with crowds for the bareback Palio horse race.
The Piazza del Campo is often referred to affectionately as Il Campo. It is one of Europe’s loveliest squares, where crowds turn out to stroll, gossip or picnic. It has been the centre of Sienese public life since it was laid out atop the city’s Roman Forum in 1100. The governmental Palazzo Pubblico, with its graceful tower, was added in 1297, and the curve of brick buildings opposite built to match. The Palazzo houses the Museo Civico. Twice a year the Campo is packed with crowds for the bareback Palio horse race.
Top 10 Sights
1 Palazzo Pubblico: Fresco Cycle2 Palazzo Pubblico: Guidoriccio da Foligno (Simone Martini)
3 Piazza il Campo
4 Torre del Mangia
5 Cappella della Piazza
6 Fonte Gaia
7 Palazzo Pubblico
8 Loggia della Mercanzia
9 Palazzo Piccolomini
10 Palazzo Sansedoni
Chianti
The 50 km (30 miles) between Florence and Siena is a storybook landscape straight out of a Renaissance painting’s background: steeply rolling hills terraced with vineyards and olive groves, crenellated castles and bustling market towns. The seductive beauty of this Tuscan Arcadia has drawn people since Etruscan times; indeed, today it is so popular with the English that it has earned the nickname Chiantishire.
Chianti Vineyards
Castello di Brolio - The estate that invented modern Chianti Classico is back in the Ricasoli family’s hands. Book tours in advance • 0577 7301
• www.ricasoli.it
Monsanto - This estate makes a 100 percent Sangiovese Chianti. Call in advance to tour the cellars
• 055 805 9000 • www.castellodimonsanto.it
Fonterutoli - Highly regarded estate in the Marquis Mazzei family since 1435. Excellent Chianti Classico, Badiola Sangioveto and Belguardo (a Morellino). Tastings available.• 0577 741 385 • www.mazzei.it
Castello di Ama - You can’t tour the estate, but you can taste and buy their wines at Rinaldi Palmira’s enoteca in nearby Lecchi. • www.castellodiama.com
Castello di Volpaia - Visit the 13th-century village around an imposing central tower, and taste wines, oils and vinegars. Book tours a week ahead. • 0577 738 066 • www.volpaia.it
Cortona
One of Tuscany’s most rewarding hill towns, Cortona is a little-known haven of Etruscan tombs, medieval alleyways, Renaissance art, sweeping views and small-town ambience. It was probably settled even before the Etruscans, and later became an important member of that society, as the tombs in its valley attest. Fra Angelico’s home, Cortona also gave birth to Renaissance genius Luca Signorelli, Baroque master Pietro da Cortona and 20th-century Futurist Gino Severini.
Lucca
Lucca is a genteel city of opera and olive oil, Romanesque churches and hidden palace gardens. Its historic centre is contained within massive 16th-century redbrick bastions. The street plan first laid down by the Romans is little altered – in the Middle Ages the ancient amphitheatre was used as a foundation for houses. Composers Boccherini (1743–1805) and Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924) were born here, and are celebrated in concerts at the 19th-century Teatro del Giglio and in the sumptuous villas north of town.
Top 10 Sights
1 Duomo
2 San Michele in Foro
3 The Walls
4 Tomb of Ilaria
5 Piazza Anfiteatro
6 Museo della San Frediano
7 Torre Guinigi
8 Museo Nazionale di Palazzo Mansi
9 Museo Nazionale Villa Guinigi
10 Santa Maria Forisportam
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