Striped columns, an inlaid floor and the Piccolomini Library
Siena's cathedral is a triumph of Gothic decoration: a façade by Giovanni Pisano, an interior of black and white striped marble, Nicola Pisano's pulpit and statues by Donatello, Michelangelo and Bernini. Around it you can still see the walls of the "New Cathedral", an enormous enlargement abandoned after the Black Death of 1348.
Its greatest treasure is underfoot: the inlaid marble floor, 56 scenes created over two centuries by about forty artists, from sibyls to the Massacre of the Innocents. To protect it, it is uncovered completely only for a few weeks a year, usually from late summer to autumn. The Piccolomini Library, frescoed by Pinturicchio in brilliant colours, is another highlight.
Tip: the "Porta del Cielo" tour takes you up into the roof spaces with views down into the nave; book it with the combined OPA SI PASS ticket.
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