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Siena · Tuscany
Things to see in Pienza
In Pienza the atlas lists 16 historic places: 5 historic villas and palaces, 4 castles, 3 abbeys and monasteries, 3 museums and 1 fortress or tower.
Of these, 1 list opening hours and 1 has free entry.
Don’t miss: Palazzo Piccolomini (1963), building in Pienza, Italy.
By date of construction, the most common period is the Modern era (100% of dated places).
- 16historic places
- 1,976inhabitants
- 491 maltitude
The town
Pienza is a city in the Val d'Orcia region of Tuscany. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is considered the "touchstone of Renaissance urbanism". It had a population of about 2,100 people in 2017.
Pienza, formerly the village of Corsignano, was renamed and redesigned as a completely planned Gothic town, in honor of and at the command of the most famous of all its inhabitants in history, Pope Pius II (1405-1464; reigned as Pope starting in 1458). Its Centro Storico is a UNESCO World Heritage site. UNESCO's listing for Pienza can be seen at this link.
Text from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA, abridged · Wikivoyage
16 places
Villas and palaces 5
Castles 4
Abbeys and monasteries 3
Museums 3
Fortresses and towers 1
Getting there
Buses run from Montepulciano (8 per day, 30 minutes), Montalcino (10 per day, change to line #114 in Torrenieri, lengthy changing time) and Siena (SITA runs several, though the number varies by season, 1 hour 15 minutes travel time; however, the latest bus returning from Pienza always leaves at 14:44).
Text from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA, abridged · Wikivoyage
What to see, according to Wikivoyage
Piazza Pio II: A grand & elegant square, surrounded by the city hall, with its bell tower, & the Piccolomini family palace
Duomo: It dominates the Piazza, with a fine interior & beautiful windows. Works of art in the duomo include five altar paintings from the Sienese School, by Sano di Pietro, Matteo di Giovanni, Vecchietta and Giovanni di Paolo. The Baptistry, dedicated as usual to San Giovanni, is located next to the apse of the church.
Palazzo Piccolomini, ☏ +39 0578-749-071. Once home of Pius II & the Piccolomini family, it can be visited with a 30 minute guided tour. €3.50, open Tu-Su 10:00-12:30 & 15:00-18:00, closed Monday & in the winter.
The Diocesan Museum is filled with church paintings from the 12th to 17th centuries, €4.10, open W-M 10:00-13:00 & 15:00-19:00, closed Tuesday, open only on weekends in winter, on Corso il Rossellino.
View Terrace To the left of the church is a lane leading to a panorama of the countryside.
Palazzo Vescovile, on the third side of the piazza, was built by Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, the future Pope Alexander VI, to comply with the request by Pope Pius II for the Cardinals to have a residence in the town.
Text from Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA, abridged · Wikivoyage · Underlined names link to our own pages.