Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta

Montepulciano's Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta stands on Piazza Grande with an unfinished brick facade. Inside, a restrained architectural setting contains works from the medieval and Renaissance church that preceded it.

Why it matters

The cathedral combines a late-sixteenth-century architectural project with older artistic commissions. The contrast makes the building both a statement of ecclesiastical ambition and a setting for the town's inherited religious art.

What to notice

The Latin-cross plan has three aisles. Taddeo di Bartolo's Assumption altarpiece gives the main altar a major work of early-fifteenth-century Sienese painting. Elements of Michelozzo's monument to Bartolomeo Aragazzi survive in dispersed positions, while glazed terracotta associated with Andrea della Robbia adds another sculptural medium.

Context and history

Ippolito Scalza designed the replacement for the older parish church of Santa Maria. Construction extended from 1586 to 1680. The earlier church's bell tower survived, while the new facade remained unfinished. The long building campaign and preservation of earlier artworks gave the cathedral its combination of later architecture and older devotional objects.