Siena
Siena...one of the major contenders for the rule of the Tuscan duchies...locked in combat for years with Florence. Shown in the picture above is the city square, the Campo, where the famous Palio horse race is held every July. Neighborhoods, called contrada, compete in this horse race, which is held on the gray stone border around the perimeter of the Campo.
The people watch from the balconies and rooms surrounding it, as well as packing in the center of the square (actually a round), on the bricks. The horses are blessed before the race INSIDE their neighborhood churches. Our local guide, Roberto, also told us there was much food and merriment, both before and after the race.
The Prize? Having the contrada flag borne in the place of honor inside the Duomo, or Cathedral.
Left, Our guide, Alfio holds out a contrada flag---every neighborhood has its own unique flag.
The rest of the year, the gray stones around the Campo support the tables of the many restaurants surrounding it..a great place to eat and people watch.
Roberto took us through the magnificent Duomo ("Domed") cathedral--not a square inch was left undecorated or unembellished--from the dome to the walls, around which are the busts of the popes from Peter on....to the walls to the floors, which house lovely marble mosaics of historical themes, both religious and secular, to the respendent but tiny Piccolomini Library, donated by Pope Pius ll, who was of the Piccolomini family (originally from Pienza, a bit further south). There is a rich collection of illuminated manuscripts, as wells as murals by the young Raphael Sanzio (who later became one of the most celebrated painters of the Renaissance).
The black striped marble columns inside, echo the traditional Tuscan marbled mosaic of the exterior. And the Pulpit sculpted by Nicolo Pisano is one of the best examples of his art in existence.
The Duomo was originally intended to be larger in footprint than its rival in Florence, but unfortunately, wars between Siena and other duchies diminished the Treasury. Today, one can still see the original intended exterior walls, which are now part of the street leading to the Duomo.
