Piazza del Campo
On Gingerguide's self-guided Siena audio tour, Piazza del Campo is a stop worth about ~45 min. Stand in front of it, press play for a short narrated story, and put any follow-up question to the built-in AI guide.
- Type square
- Suggested visit ~45 min
- Siena Siena guide
About Piazza del Campo
UNESCO-listed Piazza del Campo is one of Europe's greatest medieval squares, a shell-shaped brick piazza divided into nine sections representing Siena's Council of Nine, sloping gently toward the magnificent Gothic Palazzo Pubblico.
Piazza del Campo is the heart of Siena, a vast, gently sloping, shell-shaped piazza in the very centre of the medieval city, universally regarded as one of the finest public spaces in the world. The square's distinctive concave shape slopes toward the Gothic Palazzo Pubblico at its flat southern end. The brick paving is divided into nine sections radiating from the base of the Palazzo Pubblico, a permanent memorial to the Council of Nine (Governo dei Nove), the oligarchic government that ruled Siena from 1287 to 1355 and commissioned the Campo's design and the great civic buildings around it.
The Campo was established on the site of a Roman forum, where three of Siena's oldest neighbourhoods, the terzi (thirds), converged. It was gradually built up over the twelfth and thirteenth centuries into its current form. The distinctive herringbone brick paving in nine sections dates from 1349. The Fonte Gaia, Jacopo della Quercia's famous fountain of the early fifteenth century (the current version is a nineteenth-century copy), provides the visual focus at the upper end. The piazza forms the stage for the Palio di Siena, held twice yearly.
Did you know? The nine sections of Piazza del Campo's brick paving are a permanent political monument, each one commemorates one member of the Council of Nine (Governo dei Nove), the oligarchic government that ruled Siena at the height of its power from 1287 to 1355.
How much time do you need at Piazza del Campo?
Around ~45 min works well for Piazza del Campo — time to look properly and listen to its story on the spot. Linger if you like; nothing on a self-guided walk is on a clock.
Should you stop at Piazza del Campo?
Yes — Piazza del Campo made the cut as one of 20 places the Gingerguide team researched and narrated across Siena. The story tells you why it is worth the stop, and the AI guide fills in anything you still wonder.
Nearby stops in Siena
Hear the story of Piazza del Campo
Preview the Siena tour free in the Gingerguide app.