Siena
Beautiful Siena with its origins in Tuscany
The tipically medieval art city (by a legend founded by the Roman Remo’s sons Aschio and Senio fleeing from their uncle Romolo) is shaped like a Y on the top of the sorrounding hills and is still divided into Terzi, or Thirds (like the 3 legs of a Y): the first is known as the Third of the City, the original residential nucleus of Siena, relied on the Castelvecchio (Old Castle) for its defense, then there is the Third of Saint Martin, patron saint of pilgrims and travellers, an area formed along the Via Francigena, the pilgrims’ road towards Rome, and finally the Third of Camollia: on the arch of its walls is significantly written the sentence “Cor Magis Tibi Sena Pandit”” (“Siena opens its heart to you more than its gates”). At the very centre of the 3 Thirds there is the Piazza del Campo (Square of the Field, where in the past there was a meadow), with its famous Torre del Mangia, the Fonte Gaia (a well known marbre fountain) and the Gothic Palazzo Pubblico (City Palace), with its celebrated frescoes by Vecchietta, Simone Martini and Sodoma. The Dome or Cathedral is a wonderful building, Romanesque in the lower part and Gothic above, made by coloured marbres, decorated with an horizontal black and white strip, the “bandana”, representing the heraldic symbol of the town. Inside there is a marvellous marbre floor where are pictured many stories of the Ancient Holy Books. Here are many works by well known artists, among which we remember the “Maiesty” by Duccio di Buoninsegna, the works by Giovanni Pisano, Donatello, Arnolfo di Cambio, Michelangelo. In the same square we can admire the hospital of Santa Maria della Scala, a museum where we can see many important art objects. The city is full of art, museums, palaces and churches in a charming atmosfere. The sorroundings are so picturesque, vivid and full of art, too, as well of an unequalled nature.
