Palazzo Salimbeni is a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style urban palace located on the Piazza Salimbeni, just off Via Banchi di Sopra in the Terzo di Camollia of the city of

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 ...

, region of Tuscany,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. The building, associated with an ancient mercantile family of Siena, currently houses the main offices of the

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena S.p.A. (), known as BMPS or just MPS, is an Italian bank. Tracing its history to a mount of piety founded in 1472 () and established in its present form in 1624 (), it is the world's oldest or second oldest bank ...

, the oldest bank in the world.

History

It was built in the 14th century, likely above pre-existing 12th-13th century structures. In the 19th century it was remodeled in neo-Gothic style, with detail including the merlons, the

Lombard bands A Lombard band is a decorative blind arcade, usually located on the exterior of building. It was frequently used during the Romanesque and Gothic periods of Western architecture. It resembles a frieze of arches. Lombard bands are believed to ha ...

under them, the ogival triple

mullioned window A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

s, inspired by Siena's

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 ...

. It was further renovated by architect

Pierluigi Spadolini Pierluigi is an Italian masculine given name meaning "Peter Louis". It is often an abbreviation of "Piero Luigi". Famous people with this given name include: *Pierluigi Balducci, Italian musician * Pierluigi Benedettini, Sammarinese footballer * P ...

during the 20th century. It faces a square with a statue of the local religious figure

Sallustio Bandini Sallustio Bandini (19 April 1677 – 8 June 1760) was an Italian archdeacon, economist, and politician. He was an advocate of free trade, and removal of local feudal tariffs and tolls. He wrote an influential piece on this subject, titled ''Discor ...

, dating to 1882. Neighboring palaces include the Palazzo Santucci (16th century). Facing Palazzo Salimbeni, to the right stands the Palazzo Spannocchi (1470), designed by

Giuliano da Maiano Giuliano da Maiano (1432–1490) was an Italian architect, intarsia-worker, and sculptor, the elder brother of Benedetto da Maiano, with whom he often collaborated. Biography He was born in the village of Maiano, near Fiesole, where his fathe ...

. South along Via Banchi di Sopra are the Palaces Bichi Ruspoli and Tolomei.

Sources

* {{Authority control Salimbeni Houses completed in the 14th century Gothic architecture in Siena Montepaschi Group