The Palazzo del Rettorato in the Banchi di Sotto in Siena is also known as the Palazzo dell’ Università. It was originally a convent, but this changed when Napoleon came into power and abolished all religious orders. Six rooms of the building have been transformed into a small museum.
A brief history of the Palazzo del Rettorato in Siena
The original seats of the university of Siena, from the Middle Ages until 1808, when Napoleon came into power, were the Casa della Sapienza and the Spedale di Santa Maria della Scala.
In 1816, after the end of the Napoleonic period and the establishment on the throne of Ferdinand III of Habsburg-Lorraine, the main university seat was moved to the former convent of San Vigilio.
Agostino Fantastici was the local architect entrusted with the task of making the transformation possible. He constructed the Aula Magna Storica on the first floor.
At the end of the nineteenth century, Giuseppe Partini oversaw further transformations. Partini was an experience architect who had already worked on restorations of the Duomo, the Basilica of San Francesco and the Piazza del Campo. He added the entrance in the Via dei Banchi di Sotto and gave the courtyard its current aspect.
During the Fascist era, Guido Bonci Casuccini constructed a new assembly hall and modified the existing rooms. He left the artistic part to Arturo Viligiardi, however.
What to see
The sculptures by Goro di Gregorio, Pietro Tenerani and Giuseppe Romolo Molteni in the courtyard date from the fascist period. The slightly older (1893) monument in the center of this courtyard is dedicated to the victims of the battle of Curtatone and Montanara in 1848, and was the work of the sculptor Raffaello Romanelli.
What to know before you go
Address: Via dei Banchi di Sotto, 55 – Siena. The courtyard is freely accessible. The museum is called Archivio e percorso storico di Ateneo (Sistema Museale Universitario Senese). At the moment (June 2025) it is closed. For more information, call (Phone: +39 0577 232382).