Accommodations
Fortezza de' Cortesi
La Bufalaia
Agriturismo Il Vecchio Maneggio
San Gimignano Monuments
Via San Giovanni
Paved and slope road, it crosses various buildings of XIII-XIV centuries :
- San Francesco Church’s front in romanic-pisan style with five arcades.
- Pratellesi Palace with particular gothic brick worked mullioneds.
- Cugnanesi Tower in the homonymous square.
- Becci’s Arch flanked by Becci’s tower.
Piazza della Cisterna
It represents the middle of the village, it has a triangular shape and it takes the name from the cistern placed inside the square, built in 1237 and enlarged in 1346.
The cistern provided a safe and convenient water furnishment for the people, as reveal the tracks left by the chains and the ropes utilized to drag the jugs.
The square skirts the following buildings:
Razzi House with mullioned windows, Salvestrini House Thirteenth-century construction (today is an Hotel), Tortoli-Treccani Palace with a Sienese shape, Lupi Palace and its tower of the Devil, Ardinghelli and Cortesi Palace.
Piazza del Duomo
As Cistern Square, it is paved and surrounded with buildings and towers. On a high stairs, dominates the Collegiate Church of S. Maria Assunta (XII century) rich in 1300 Sienese and 1400 Florentine paintings, and the Chapel of Santa Fina. In the opposite there is the Podestà Palace surmounted by Rognosa Tower 50mt. high, utilized during 1300 as the State prison. In front of the Dome we can see the building of Ghibellini-Salvucci with the Twin Towers that heads Chigi Tower (1280).
La Rocca
Walking along the right left of the Dome, under the bell tower, we climb up to the Fortress.
It was built during the period of Florentine subjugation; it contained 5 turrets to get in the guards to control the limits of the town.
After the succession of Sienese government, the Fortress was dismantled and let it slide. In 1978 this area became a park.
Vicolo dell'Oro - Via delle Romite
From Dome Square we can get to the alley of Gold, that takes this name from the goldsmiths shops that it lodged .
From here we go down through an arch that connected to the Romite’s way.
This street takes its name from the hermits sisters who had their cells in this area before to get to the great nunnary of Santa Maria Maddalena of Sant'Agostino order.
The Tabernacle at the end of the street maybe was painted by Pittorino.
Piazza Sant'Agostino
Climbing up the street to reach the centre we arrive to a zone that was called S.Agostino garden, now it is paved.
Here dominates the aisleless church, where live Austin Friars, with a truss ceiling.
It contains very important works: from the altar of Benedetto da Maiano to the paintings of Gozzoli.
Le Fonti
Near the Tabernacle, turning right, we go down to the Fountain door that appears at the countryside and leads to the public fountain where people got water and washed the dirty clothes; it was also utilized by the wool and leather trades.
This building dates back to the ‘300, it has ten lancet arcs: it hid the first primitive Longobard fountain made of stone in IX century.
Via San Matteo
The way next to S. Agostino connected to the main street, always paved, named S. Matteo way, that crosses the second side of the town, walking along variuos alleys, it offers a most detailed S. Gimignano view; foreshortenings of houses and of boundary wall, tower that appear behind every corner of the street.
Here we can find another romanic Church, called S. Bartolo, built during the end if 1200.
Porta San Matteo
It is the second door of the town, and, as S. Giovanni’s one, it was destroyed and then rebuilt on 1262. Externally, the romanic arc, shows a series of six little arches on the top, while internally it has ten framed little arches.
Trough this door, inserted into the second medieval boundary wall, people went out to the north , along the wall that stopped at the round turret called S. Agostino.