Our Blog - Tuscany 2024 Trip - Sienna, Italy

We spent about a day and a half in Siena, which was enough time to take in the sights and take a cooking class. I'll start with some history. There is a legend on how the city was founded, and it goes back to Romulus and Remus (the brothers who were raised by a she-wolf and founded Rome) ... although really, the 2 sons of Remus. Romulus and Remus were twins who were abandoned on the bank of the Tiber river to die by King Amulius, but they were saved by a she-wolf who suckled and raised them. Once they were adults, they decided to build a city of their own, but disagreed on which hill to build it on (Palatine Hill or Aventine Hill). This dispute ended with Remus being killed (either by Romulus himself or one of his supporters). The 2 sons of Remus fled on horseback, Senius on a black horse and Aschius on a white horse. They founded the city of Siena, taking the name from Senius, and the white and black of the horses providing the coat of arms colors. In addition, they brought with them the symbol of the She-wolf (from their father Remus), which became Siena’s symbol: the Sienese She-Wolf. You will see statues all over the city of a She-Wolf with two boys underneath.

However, there is no historical evidence of this, and records would indicate that Siena developed as a military colony (called Sena Julia) during the rule of Rome, at the time of Emperor Augustus, and then later it was transformed into a small trading center. As you will see from some of the pictures, it is a very hilly city, with lots of walking up and down. It is also home to the University of Siena, founded in 1240, making it one of the oldest universities in continuous operation in the world.

As we headed into town, we stopped briefly at the Camollia Gate, which is one of the oldest gates in the city. It gets its name from a commander (Camullio), who was sent by Romulus to capture his nephews, Senius and Aschius (sometimes spelled Senio and Ascani). The commander established a camp where the gate stands today. The current gate structure dates back to 1604 when it was rebuilt after being completely destroyed in 1555 by the Medici army. The exterior arch has a sculpture recording the entrance of the Spanish King Ferdinand I into the city after the Spanish conquest.

The Chiesa di San Pietro alla Magione dates back to the crusades with records showing that the Church existed from 998 AD. It is located near the Camollia Gate, through which pilgrims and crusaders passed on their way to the holy land. It was managed by the Knights Templars and converted to a hospital in the 12th century. After the abolition of the order in 1312, it passed into the hands of the Knights Hospitallers. It is a rectangular church with a nave, a semicircular apse, and a wooden roof. The bell tower has the design of templar churches during the crusades. The frescoes on the walls were painted by the Knights Hospitallers and depict scenes from the Old and the New Testaments.

These are from our balcony, showing some of the houses, along with the hills and a wall. We are outside of one set of walls and inside of another (they are several "rings" of walls). This meant we were a bit further away from the main sites in the city but it also allowed us to have easier parking for the car, which was a valid trade-off in our minds.

Our dinner was at a tiny little Osteria. Originally, an "Osteria" was a place serving wine and simple food, with limited menus and emphasis on local specialities such as pasta and grilled meat or fish. I think this place had 5 tables and no menu ... he came over and explained that the antipasti was meats, cheese, veggies, anchovies ... we said we would have all of them! Then there were 2 types of pasta (we ordered one of each): Pici, which is a very local type of pasta similar to fat spaghetti with a tomato and garlic sauce, and then tagliatelle with a meat sauce. They also had a couple meat dishes, but one was Tripe and the other were sausages. After the HUGE antipasti plate and the pasta, we were stuffed!

The city has quite a few Palazzo's (palaces), and we tried to see the most impressive ones. Our first was The medieval Chigi Saracini Palace, built in the middle of the 12th century. It belonged to several wealthy and influential families who modified the façade several times. Heading inside, there is a courtyard with a loggia and a well. The ceiling of the loggia was quite colorful!

Piazza del Campo is the main square and the symbol of Siena. It has an interesting shell-shape and was built at the intersection of 3 roads leading into the city. The square is paved with a fishtail red brick pattern divided by 10 rows of white travertine to create the shape of a shell with 9 parts. These 9 parts represented the 9 governors governed the city from 1287 to 1355. Hopefully this video gives a good view of the whole square.

The main building on the square is the Palazzo Pubblico, or Public Palace. It was completed in 1308 and is an example of traditional Italian medieval architecture. The first floor is light-colored stone with the upper floors are made of red brick. The facade is slightly curved inwards to reflect the curve of the square. In the center of the facade, you will notice a round bronze plate with a Christogram, which was placed there in 1425 to honor Saint Bernardino, whose sermons eased social unrest. The triforate windows are an architectural specialty unique to Siena. The windows are divided with three arches resting on columns. You will also notice the coat of arms of the Siena Town Council. The Public Palace housed the Council of Nine, who were chosen from the general public by lot. The Council lived in the palace to avoid outside influence and served for 2 months before being replaced by the next set of members. The Torre del Mangia is the tower next to the palace, and it was the tallest structure in Italy in 1348 when it was completed. It was built to be exactly the same height as the Siena Cathedral as a sign that the church and the state had equal power.

The Gaia Fountain sits behind a metal fence and was designed by a local sculptor in 1419. It consists of a rectangular basin surrounded by walls on 3 sides, covered with bas reliefs. Water comes out of the mouths of 2 She-Wolves. The panels are not the originals .. these fell into disrepair in the 19th century and were reproduced (the originals are on display in the Palazzo Pubblico).

The Piccolomini Palace is a Renaissance-style palace built by Giacomo and Andrea Piccolomini, nephews of Pope Pius II, between 1460 and 1495. The palace resembles the Medici Riccardi and Ruccellai Palace in Florence, with the rough ashlar block surface and mullioned windows.

The Palazzo Tolomei is one of the oldest private palaces in Siena, built in 1208 for a wealthy banking family with Egyptian origins. They were descendants of the kings of Egypt and came to Italy with Charlemagne. The family was driven out of the city in 1267 and their residence was damaged, then restored between 1270 and 1272. It has a well-preserved Gothic stone façade that was typical of palaces in the 13th century. On the top 2 floors are rows of elaborate windows. The symbol of the Tolemei family, consisting of three upright crescents and an upturned triangle, is carved on the façade above doorway.

San Cristoforo church looks like it should be a bank or court, with the 4 large columns on the front. The brick Neoclassical temple façade was added in 1800, after an earthquake in 1798. I grabbed a single picture from the back because there were services going on, and then cropped all the people out of the bottom (so it looks a bit awkward).

The Salimbeni Palace is a 14th century fortress that dates back to the 12th century. The original structure was remodeled into Neo-Gothic style in 1879. It was the residence of the Salimbeni family until they were driven out of the city in 1419 and the city council took over the building. It was sold in 1866 to be the headquarters for what I am told is the oldest bank in the world, the Monte dei Paschi bank, which has been operating continuously since its founding in 1472.

The Basilica of San Francesco was built in the 13th century in Romanesque style and expanded in the 14th and 15th centuries. The original exterior was covered with white and green marble stripes, which was changed in the 19th century to be this really bland brick exterior. The only bright spot is the 15th century portal and rose window.

The inside is a large open rectangle, with white-and-black-striped walls and a pitched timber roof. There are some frescoes and paintings around the church, and a 14th-century marble statue of St Francis that was originally on the façade.

Across the back are a set of chapels, all with the same white-and-black-striped walls but with painted vaults.

There hasn't been that much stained-glass in the Italian churches so far, and this one had a few interesting ones. Most of them date from 1885-1890 and were done by a glassworks factory in Munich. You will notice a few look much more recent ... 25 of the windows were remade by the same German factory after WWII due to them being destroyed in bombing raids. There is one that looks VERY recent, but I'm not sure of the date on that one.

We were trying to get a few good pictures of Lucy with the Tuscan countryside or Tuscan cities in the background, so you'll see a few of these here and there in the blog.

The original Ovile Gate dates back to 1246 and was part of the city wall. The gate was rebuilt and enlarged several times over the years and is among the best preserved city gates in Siena. It is built entirely of brick, with a massive rampart for protection behind it.

Inside the city walls near the Ovile Gate is this fountain, built between 1303 and 1323. It has a double pointed brick arches and two large basins. These had two purposes ... one basin (the first one) was used to get water from while the 2nd one was used for washing (since it would get dirty and you didn't want to drink that).

A couple city-views ... one with one of the churches up on the hill, the next showing the Duomo (behind the pine tree), and finally the Torre del Mangia in the Piazza del Campo.

Originally built in 1265, the Basilica of San Domenico was expanded in the 14th century with a Gothic façade. I didn't get a good picture of the simple brick exterior and bell tower. But the bronze work over the entry door was very nice, although I assume it was somewhat recent based on the design.

Inside, the walls are lined with small altars with paintings from various artists. The church memorializes Saint Catherine of Siena, who was part of the Dominican order before being canonized. The church also houses some relics, specifically the saint's mummified head and thumb, which were smuggled out of Rome so that Saint Catherine could rest in her hometown. I took a picture of the thumb but the chapel with her head had a sign that said no pictures. Then a couple additional pictures of the interior.

A couple pictures from a hill overlooking town, where I could get a picture of the Basilica of San Domenico again, this time you can see it a bit better. You can also get an idea of how hilly the area is!

Another thing that seems quick typical of the regions are Loggia's, or arched galleries. While we see them in France as well, the ones in France are nothing like these! Many are 2-stories tall and the ceilings are magnificently painted. This one is the Loggia della Mercanzia, from the 15th century.

You are probably wondering why I haven't shown more than a single picture of the Duomo. This is because there are multiple buildings for the complex, so I felt it better to separated it out into a Duomo complex blog.