Museo d'Arte Sacra della Val d'Arbia

The Museum of Sacred Art of the Val d'Arbia in Buonconvento preserves paintings, sculpture and liturgical objects from churches of the surrounding valley. Palazzo Ricci Socini provides an Art Nouveau setting for works from several centuries.

Why it matters

The collection retains a geographical connection between rural religious communities and their artistic heritage. Sienese painting is represented alongside the furnishings and objects through which local devotion took material form.

What to notice

Duccio's Madonna and Child is a central work, accompanied by painting by Pietro Lorenzetti, Luca di Tommé and Andrea di Bartolo. Later sections include Sano di Pietro, Matteo di Giovanni and Rutilio Manetti. Metalwork, textiles and confraternity objects broaden the account beyond panel painting. A marble tabernacle from the Ombrone bridge recalls devotion along a major travel route.

Context and history

Don Crescenzio Massari gathered the first collection in 1926. A museum was established in Palazzo del Glorione in 1979 before moving to the restored Palazzo Ricci Socini in 1998. These successive homes supported the conservation of works from the valley's churches, bringing them together without losing their connection with the surrounding territory.