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Home > Travel to Italy > Tuscany > Siena
Siena ::.
 Travel and Tourism Information
SIENA
This enchanting medieval town is divided in 17 contrade (neighborhoods). It is world famous for the Palio, a twice-yearly horse race, held on the 2nd July and 16th of August around the Piazza del Campo.
Piazza del Campo - Dominated by the Palazzo Pubblico (Town Hall). Inside there is the large Sala del Mappamondo which hosts the 'Majesty' by Simone Martini. The Sala della Pace bosts the famous frescoes by Lorenzetti dedicated to the Allegories of Good and Bad Government. Next to the building stands the Torre del Mangia (90mt high) constructed between 1338 and 1348 by the Rinaldo brothers.You may climb up the 505 steps and get a splendid view of the square and the centre of Siena. Have a look at the Fonte Gaia, made by Jacopo della Quercia in 1419 and which owes its name to the happiness with which the Sienese welcomed the arrival of water in the Piazza del Campo.
The Gothic Duomo with its multicolour marbles façade is one of the most spectacular cathedrals in Italy. The interior has a coffered and gilded dome and inlaid marble floors. Among the many works of art, the most notable is the Votive Madonna by Guido da Siena, the wooden choral bench by Fra Giovanni da Verona and the marble bergamot by Nicola Pisano. Then there are the works of Pinturicchio, Donatello, and Neroccio in the Chapel of San Giovanni Battista, and the Piccolomini Library in the first span of the nave on the left, which is a collection of the library of Pius II. There is an unfinished nave which now is home to the Museo dell'Opera Metropolitana.This museum hosts sculptures by Giovanni Pisano, Paintings by Duccio di Buoninsegna, Lorenzetti and Beccafumi.
Other interesting sights: the Pinacoteca Nazionale, the Renaissance Palazzo Piccolomini, San Domenico (inside, the Cappella di Santa Caterina houses the reliquary which contains the head of the saint), the Santuario della Casa di S.Caterina, dedicated to to the patron saint and the Fortezza Medicea, built for Cosimo de' Medici.
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Siena
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