Two artists at work to complete the great Sienese project.
Siena Cathedral’s facade is in white marble with the red and green veins typical of Prato’s serpentino marble. It can be divided into two halves, lower and upper, belonging to two distinct construction phases. The abundant decorations, predominantly sculptural, conceal irregularities and asymmetries resulting from the long construction phase in which multiple designers were involved.
The lower part was built by Giovanni Pisano and is attributable to a transitional Romanesque-Gothic style. He worked on it between 1284 and 1297; the three portals and the two side towers date back to this phase. The central portal has a round arch while the side ones are decorated with slender twisted columns with sculpted capitals in the form of foliage. Three garlands above the arches are decorated with rampant leaves and have busts in the centre, which were only added in the 17th century. At the top are statues of angels and a statue of the Virgin, to whom the large oculus seems to act as a halo. The outer side towers are squat and sturdy, balanced by slender windows in the recesses and cusped aedicule with Gothic statues, gargoyles and decorations.
Giovanni Pisano also took care of the sculptural decoration, but no one knows what the statues of the prophet Habakkuk and the soothsayer Balaam are doing on the facade along with other pagan prophets, prophetesses and philosophers.
The upper part of the facade was designed by Camaino di Crescentino who worked on it between 1299 and 1317 and gave it its present three-spire form. A beautiful oculus opens in the centre, framed by Gothic niches containing busts of Apostles and Prophets paying homage to the Madonna and Child. On the sides, two pillars frame the structure and end in pinnacles and then very slender spires, accentuating the upward sweep of the building.
On the sides are two rows of small loggias, while the whole is topped by three gilded cusps. The three gold mosaics, depicting from left to right the Presentation of Mary in the Temple, the Coronation of the Virgin and The Nativity of Jesus, were executed in Venice in 1878. Meanwhile, the oculus bears a stained glass window depicting the Last Supper and visible from the inside.
CATHEDRAL OPENING HOURS
Until 31 March 2022: 10:30 am – 5:30 pm / Holidays: 1:30 pm – 5:30 pm / Days before public holidays: 10:30 am – 5:30 pm
1 April – 31 October: 10:00 am – 7:00 pm / Holidays: 1:30 pm – 6:00 pm / Days before public holidays: 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Floor uncovering period (27/06 – 31/07; 18/08 – 18/10): 10:00 am – 7:00 pm Holidays: 9:30 am – 6:00 pm
1 November – 31 March: 10:30 am – 5:30 pm / Holidays: 1:30 pm – 5:30 pm / Days before public holidays: 10:30 am – 5:30 pm
Last admission half an hour before museum closing time.
Times may vary due to religious events.
PRICES
GENERAL:
01/01 – 26/06; 01/08 – 17/08; 19/10 – 31/12
€ 5
27/06 – 31/07; 18/08 – 18/10
€ 8
REDUCED (Groups and schools >14 and guided groups): 27/06 – 31/07; 18/08 – 18/10
€ 6
FREE
• Children under 6 years old
• Residents and those born in the Municipality of Siena
• Accredited journalists
• Disabled persons with accompanying person
• Religious
• Students of the University of Siena and the University for Foreigners of Siena
• Parish groups in the Archdiocese of Siena with a letter from the parish priest
During the floor uncovering period (27/06 – 31/07; 18/08 – 18/10) € 15
01/01 – 26/06; 01/08 – 17/08; 19/10 – 31/12 € 13
REDUCED (CHILDREN BETWEEN 7 AND 11 YEARS OLD)
01/01 – 31/12 € 2
FREE
• Children under 6 years old
• Residents and those born in the Municipality of Siena
• Accredited journalists
• Disabled persons with accompanying person
• Religious
• Students of the University of Siena and the University for Foreigners
• Parish groups in the Archdiocese of Siena with a letter from the parish priest
MASS TIMES
Weekdays: 10:00 am (Chapel of Our Lady of the Vow) Public Holidays and days prior 8:00 am, 11:00 am, 12:15 pm, 6:00 pm (summer 6:30 pm)
During the periods when the floor is uncovered, Holy Masses are celebrated in the Church of the Santissima Annunziata.
Tickets: https://operalaboratori.vivaticket.it/it/tour/complesso-monumentale-del-duomo-di-siena/2589
