LIBRERIA PICCOLOMINI
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Sumptuous library built between 1492 and 1502 by Cardinal Francesco Piccolomini Todeschini.
Near the left nave of Siena Cathedral, this sumptuous library was built between 1492 and 1502 by Cardinal Francesco Piccolomini Todeschini (future Pope Pius III in 1503), in order to preserve the rich collection of manuscripts of his uncle, the humanist Pope Pius II (alias Enea Silvio Piccolomini, 1405-1464). From a more concrete point of view, the place allows a small break of quietude during the visit of the very touristic duomo!
Bright and rectangular, the libreria Piccolomini is richly decorated with frescoes, very well preserved, of the Umbrian Pinturicchio, telling the story of the life of Pope Pius II, elected in 1458 and a very powerful figure at the time. Of great finesse, painted between 1505 and 1507, these colourful frescoes recount in ten panels (read from left to right from the windows) the most important episodes in the life of this pope. Among the ten scenes, let us mention his departure for the Council of Basel, when he visited James I, King of Scotland, to obtain his support against Charles VII, King of France; his coronation under the name of Pius II in front of a compact crowd; or the canonization of Catherine of Siena.
On the gilded ceiling, dating from 1502, the yellow crescent moon on a blue background is the emblem of the powerful Sienese Piccolomini family. There is also a desk of the Pisan sculptor Nicola Pisano (1220-1284) on the sides of the library, and in the centre is the Roman copy of the Three Graces, a youthful sculpture by Michelangelo.
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