Siena Cathedral

Rob07

New member
I have recently read that you can now visit the roof space of Siena cathedral.
Has anyone here done this ?
Can you reach the cupola above the dome ?
If so, is it a "double" dome, with stairs between the two domes (as in Florence and St Peter's, Rome) ?
Any information welcome,
Rob
 
video of Door to Heaven spaces of the Duomo di Siena

Ciao Rob,

The space that has been renovated to safely allow visitors up to the top includes areas of the rooftop from which you can see both the inside of the cathedral from the top as well as enjoy great views of Siena.... while I have not gone to Siena yet since it just opened up a little over a week ago, I found a video by the Opera del Duomo that shows views of what you do see and it seems to include a walk around the base of the cupola/dome drum itself. I have just posted the video on our blog to share with everyone: http://www.discovertuscany.com/blog/siena/duomo-di-siena-visit-door-to-heaven-2644/

Whether it is a double dome or not I cannot remember, but it is definitely smaller than the one in Rome and in Florence and it doesn't seem to have a platform at the very top like the duomo in Florence... so maybe a double dome wasn't necessary in its construction. It sits half way down the cathedral so architecturally speaking the double dome might not have been used, interesting question to ask the guide when we/you end up going ;-).
 
Hello Lourdes
Many thanks for this clear reply; I think you are probably right about small dome=no platform=no double walls.
I have emailed the "authorities" (Opera Labatori) with the same question. I will post here if I get an answer.
Very interesting site, greetings,
Rob
PS. Google Translate says that nhanca125's post reads:
"Your article very good - thank you for sharing"
 
I'd love to know too at this point! :) Glad you've found the site interesting, there is so much to add I just wish I had 30 hours in the day to get to all of it!

P.S. As for nhanca125's post: we're getting many identical ones from several new accounts, all in the last couple of days, all in Vietnamese and all with numbered accounts (01, 02, 03, etc) that I'm just considering it all spam and deleting as I see them! They certainly don't add anything useful, so I've deleted the post above as well.
 
hi, not sure if i should have started a separate thread...i am surprised to learn that one has to pay to even go inside a place of worship like the siena cathedral...i would understand paying for the piccolomoni library, baptistry etc, but the church itself?
 
Hi
I want to know more about Siena cathedral.Can you help me?Actually I am studying different religions and
their perspectives.It gives me lot of help in raising my knowledge if you share some more to me.I am glade to find such knowledgeable forum.
 
sgrima - I understand, I was surprised myself the first time I went to Siena... and I think I didn't go in because I was put off by it. But I then discovered there were two good reasons to go inside: the Piccolomini library and the pavement. Next time I went to Siena I had to go see, and I was happy to pay the 3-4 euro to see these masterpieces, understanding my visit goes to making sure they are conserved and are well-taken care to last several more centuries in the future. In some churches it is easier to separate the cathedral as a place of worship from the visitors and thus some parts are free while others are on payment. I don't think that is the case for this one.

bchris - you can read more about the Siena cathedral here http://www.discovertuscany.com/siena/siena-churches/duomo.html If you have specific questions, let us know! In this case, you really have to study history more than a religion, as the history of Italy, the church and the arts are all intertwined!
 
Lourdes,thank you very much for quick response of my post.Your help is very important in this regard and the link you have posted here seems helpful in raising my knowledge and in study.Ya your suggestion to overlook the history of Italy is also favorable.
 
hi lourdes, you are right: we paid the basic price which allows you to see the cathedral and the library, and it was beautiful. booking online enabled us to skip the queue!
 
:D am very glad to hear you found it beautiful as well, it is simply breathtaking! And compared to the Florence Duomo, a whole different experience! Glad to hear you were also able to skip queues, those are no fun ;).
 
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