A feast of art both sacred and profane awaits you if you make a visit to the Palazzo del Potestà, one of the highlights of the town. The palace is also located on the Piazza del Duomo and dates back to the 13th century. On the first floor you can find the celebrated Sala di Dante (Dante’s Room), where the poet stayed on a visit as an ambassador of the Guelphs as he defended them in their dispute against the Ghibellines. In an adjoining room you will find some pharmacy jars from Faenza, Florence and Siena. On the upper floor is the Pinacoteca, with paintings from the Siena and Florence schools on display. At this point, after reveling in such sacred works you should then make your way over to the Camera del Podestà, which may well prove even more appealing. It contains a series of frescos on one side depicting the burdening sexuality of a young man and on the other side the ill-fated consequences of abandoning oneself to carnal pleasures. Finally, make your way up to where all the visitors tend to congregate: at the top terrace of the Torre Grossa, the highest tower in the town, decorated on the inside with frescos depicting themes of love. The view from here is quite amazing: people look like tiny ants walking around the square, while the gaze stretches from the ancient rooftops of the city to the endless landscape of green hills on the horizon. Of the rest of the towers, make sure you visit the one at Casa Campatelli. Before going up, however, you can take a trip back in time with the museum-house, exploring old photographs, vintage furniture and other mementoes of the Campatelli family before climbing up to the upper floor, where the building is combined with the Torre del Duecento. It’s not possible to go to the very top, but at the base of the tower there is a video projection that tells the history of San Gimignano. You can even stay in one of the towers, in the historic residence of the Torre Salvucci Maggiore, one of the highest towers in the city. If you book it well in advance, you can have 11 floors all to yourself (around 7 m2), with a different feel to each room. Of course, staying here could be a little tiring, given you have to take the stairs each time you want to brush your teeth or realize you left something in another room, but it’s certainly worth it: the view from the terrace is absolutely stunning. If you can’t find a bed for the night, you can still buy a ticket and come up to take a look.
