The Banchi di sopra – without the ''via'' – is the continuation of the Banchi di Sotto, the city's main artery. On a document dated 1729 showing the city boundaries, this is listed as the Strada Maestra. Most of this street belongs to the Contrada Priora della Civetta. From the Arco de' Rossi up to the Pontani arch, the Contrada occupies only the left side of the street; the rest up to the Croce del Travaglio belongs entirely to the Civetta.
The Saint Christopher Church
There are many beautiful palazzi here, but none more so than the Palazzo dei Tolomei.. This elegant gothic palazzo in grey stone dominates the square in front of the Church of St Cristoforo.
Palazzo Tolomei, Façade
It stands on its own between the della Torre and del Coltellinaio alleys. The stunning façade is sombre and graceful, with its untouched thirteenth-century lines and Renaissance architectural embellishments on the upper level. In 1267 the owners – the Tolomei – were forced into exile, the building suffered the wrath of Provenzan Salvani's Ghibellines and was almost destroyed. It was rebuilt in 1270-72 using materials recovered from the ruins of houses and towers belonging to Salvani, demolished after the Guelph victory at Colle (1269).
In 1277, the old Tolomei residence again suffered, this time from a catastrophic fire. Despite this and the passing years, the elegant palazzo, sensitively restored in 1971, is today one of the most beautiful buildings in Siena.
Palazzo Tolomei, Double-arched window
It is a place of pilgrimage for scholars of Dante since it is the birthplace of Pia dei Tolomei, the subject of one of the most beautiful couplets in the history of poetry, inscribed on a wall of the palazzo.
Ricordati di me che son la Pia,
Siena mi fe' disfecemi Maremma
Banchi di Sopra – called the Corso by the Sienese – extends onwards to Piazza Salimbeni and the new shopping district. When the street widens, the top of the Torre del Mangia can be glimpsed standing out from behind other buildings.
On the right after the Palazzo dei Tolomei is Palazzo Bichi Ruspoli. Its sixteenth-century facade in tuff stone has inspired several important nineteenth century paintings by Alesssandro Franchi and Giorgio Bandini. Next, on the left, is the Gori Pannilini Palazzo which extends several metres along the street. Its long facade combined several buildings in the sixteenth century. The interior boasts eighteenth-century decorations depicting moments of family glory.
Domenico Arrighetti known as Cavedone, Sienese She-Wolf
On the right, in front of the Gori Pannilini Palazzo is the fifteenth-century Chinughi de' Pazzi Palazzo, followed by Palazzo Spanocchi, the ingenious work of Giuliano da Maiano, built between 1472 and 1475.
A view of Banchi di Sopra
This Renaissance façade of the Palazzo Spanocchi on the Banchi di Sopra is the only original. The façade facing piazza Salimbeni was extensively altered by Partini in the nineteenth century.
Comune di Siena 2010 - accessible version -
