The Palazzo Comunale (), also known as the Palazzo del Popolo () of

San Gimignano San Gimignano () is a small walled medieval hill town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, north-central Italy. Known as the Town of Fine Towers, San Gimignano is famous for its medieval architecture, unique in the preservation of about a dozen of ...

has been the seat of the civic authority in the

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

since the 13th century. It is located on the Piazza del Duomo close to the Collegiate Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The building and Collegiate Church are at the heart of the medieval town, and are part of the

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

of the "Historic Centre of San Gimignano".UNESCO
Historic Centre of San Gimignano
(accessed 05-09-2012) The building contains important fresco decorations by

Memmo di Filippuccio Memmo di Filippuccio (active 1303-1345) was a 14th-century painter from Siena, Italy. Biography Memmo di Filippuccio is mentioned in the municipal records as painting several works at the Town Hall of San Gimignano in 1303.Rosella Vantaggi, ' ...

, Lippo Memmi and others, a museum and a gallery with works of the Florentine and Sienese schools of art - including paintings by

Coppo di Marcovaldo Coppo di Marcovaldo (c. 1225 – c. 1276) was a Florentine painter in the Italo-Byzantine style, active in the middle of the thirteenth century, whose fusion of both the Italian and Byzantine art, Byzantine styles had great influence on gen ...

, Lippo Memmi, Benozzo Gozzoli,

Filippino Lippi Filippino Lippi (April 1457 – 18 April 1504) was an Italian painter working in Florence, Italy during the later years of the Early Renaissance and first few years of the High Renaissance. Biography Filippino Lippi was born in Prato, Tusc ...

, Il Sodoma and Pinturicchio.

History and architecture

The Palazzo Comunale dates from the late 13th century, and was built on the ruins of an existing building between 1289 and 1298.Official website of Comune di San Gimignano - About the Palazzo Comunale, Pinacoteca, and Torre Grossa
Further expanded in the 14th century,Lonely Planet - San Gimignano sights - Palazzo Comunale
/ref> the facade is characterised by arched windows, with the lower half of the frontage built with stone, and the upper part in brick. On the ground floor is a courtyard, which was built in 1323 and is decorated with the

coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its wh ...

of those who have held public office in the municipality. The main civic offices of the town council are now located on this ground floor.SanGimignano.com - Comune tourism site - People's Palace
/ref> On the first floor is a stepped gallery from which dignitaries would address the gathered crowd in the square. The battlements date from a restoration of the nineteenth century, and the structure is capped by the " Torre Grossa” (great tower). This tower was completed in 1300 and (at 54 meters) is the highest tower in the walled town.

Museum

The Palazzo Comunale, seat of the government of San Gimignano, was built in 1288. Enlarged in 1323, the palace became the seat of the town after it had taken place in the nearby Palazzo Vecchio del Podestà, from 1337. The building houses the civic museum since 1852. The crenellated crown and other elements date back to the restoration carried out by

Giuseppe Partini Giuseppe Partini (Siena, 1842–1895) was an Italian architect, mostly involved in reconstructions in his native Siena. ''Giuseppe Partini (1842-1895): architetto del purismo senese'' (1981) by Maria Cristina Buscioni. He was active with the sc ...

between 1878 and 1881. The Civic Museum of San Gimignano is located on the upper floors of the building and can be accessed both from the Piazza del Duomo and from the courtyard behind the Palace. The courtyard was built in 1323 and is decorated with frescoes or sculpted coats of arms and, in the center, a cistern arranged in 1361. Among the frescoes is a Sant'Ivo that makes justice of Sodom, a Madonna with two saints by an unidentified Sienese painter of the second half of the fourteenth century, and a Justice that tramples on the lie monochrome of

Vincenzo Tamagni Vincenzo Tamagni (1492 – c. 1516) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance. Born in San Gimignano, he became an apprentice first with il Sodoma at Monte Oliveto Maggiore, and then worked in the Vatican Loggie under Raphael in Rome (1512-1 ...

(sixteenth century). From here starts the external staircase for the entrance to the premises of the museum, covered by a canopy supported by brick columns.

Hall

The "Sala del Consiglio" is a large reception hall which was used as the council chamber. It is commonly known as the "Sala di Dante" and is named for the noted poet

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: '' ...

who visited San Gimignano in 1300 as an ambassador of the Florentine Republic.SanGimignano.com - Comune tourism site - History
/ref> He pleaded before the mayor and the general council the cause of a Tuscan Guelph league. Measta

The room is decorated with a '' Maestà'' by Lippo Memmi. Commissioned in 1317 by Nello de Mino Tolomei (then

podestà Podestà (, English: Potestate, Podesta) was the name given to the holder of the highest civil office in the government of the cities of Central and Northern Italy during the Late Middle Ages. Sometimes, it meant the chief magistrate of a city ...

of San Gimignano), the fresco is believed to have been inspired by the one painted by his brother-in-law Simone Martini's ''Maestà'' from the

Palazzo Pubblico The Palazzo Pubblico (''town hall'') is a palace in Siena, Tuscany, central Italy. Construction began in 1297 to serve as the seat of the Republic of Siena's government, which consisted of the Podestà and Council of Nine, the elected officia ...

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

.Art in Renaissance Italy By John T. Paoletti, Gary M. Radke The fresco shows Mary seated on a throne surrounded by adoring saints and angels (including patron Nello de Mino Tolomei). Just off the great hall is a meeting room which was originally used for private meetings. The next room was used by the city government. It contains the ancient carved and inlaid wooden seats (1475) and a bust of San Bartolo in coloured terracotta of the first half of the fifteenth century within a niche. On this floor, there is another small room with a bust of

Guido Marabottini Guido is a given name Latinised from the Old High German name Wido. It originated in Medieval Italy. Guido later became a male first name in Austria, Germany, the Low Countries, Scandinavia, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and Switzerland. The mea ...

, in Florentine terracotta of the fifteenth century. From here also starts the staircase for the climb to the Torre Grossa. The actual art gallery is located on the second floor.

Gallery

The gallery itself is on the second floor and contains works by

, Lippo Memmi, Benozzo Gozzoli,

, Il Sodoma, Pinturicchio,

Azzo di Masetto Azzo (Italian) or Azzus (Latin) are variations of the same name. Azo, Atto, and Hatto are other variants. *Albert Azzo I, Margrave of Milan, Italian nobleman *Albert Azzo II, Margrave of Milan (died 1097), Italian nobleman, founder of Casa d'Es ...

Niccolò di Ser Sozzo Niccolò di Ser Sozzo ( fl. 1334–63) was an Italian painter and manuscript illuminator. He generally has been identified as Niccolò di Ser Sozzo di Francesco Tegliacci, but recent research points instead to a Niccolò di Ser Sozzo di Stefan ...

; Taddeo di Bartolo,

Lorenzo di Niccolò Lorenzo di Niccolò or Lorenzo di Niccolò di Martino was an Italian painter who was active in Florence from 1391 to 1412. This early Renaissance artist worked in the Trecento style, and his work maintains influences of the Gothic style, marking a ...

, the so-called Master of 1419, and Benedetto da Maiano.Palazzo Comunale site.
/ref> The first room is called ''The Trinity'', due to a painting on this topic (1497) by

Pier Francesco Fiorentino Pier Francesco Fiorentino (1444/1445 – after 1497) was a 15th-century painter active in San Gimignano for much of his mature life, depicting religious-themed subjects. Biography Fiorentino was born in Florence, the son of the Florentine pai ...

. It also houses a ''Madonna and Child with Saints'' by

Leonardo da Pistoia Leonardo da Pistoia, also known as Leonardo Grazia, (1502 – ca. 1548) was an Italian painter of the Mannerism school. Biography Da Pistoia was born in the city of Pistoia, Tuscany, and died in Naples. According to Benezit, he is often confu ...

and a ''

Pietà The Pietà (; meaning "pity", "compassion") is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus after his body was removed from the cross. It is most often found in sculpture. The Pietà is a specific form o ...

'' by Bastiano Mainardi. Other rooms contain a '' Maestà'' from the late thirteenth century, altar decorations by

, a ''Madonna and Child'' by

(1528), several Gothic altarpieces (including one showing scenes from the life of Saint Gimignano), a ''Madonna with Saints Gregory and Benedict'' by Pinturicchio, and two medieval

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

es of the

Florentine school Florentine painting or the Florentine School refers to artists in, from, or influenced by the naturalistic style developed in Florence in the 14th century, largely through the efforts of Giotto di Bondone, and in the 15th century the leading scho ...

. The Podestà apartments (''Camera del Podestà'') are frescoed with matrimonial scenes of a couple taking a bath and going to bed. (An unusual work by Memmo di Filippuccio dated to the early 14th century.)

References

{{Authority control Museums in the Province of Siena Towers in San Gimignano Palaces in Tuscany City and town halls in Italy Art museums and galleries in Tuscany Buildings and structures in San Gimignano