Porta Tufi, Siena

The Porta Tufi or Tufi Gate is one of the remaining portals in the medieval Walls of Siena. It is located on Strada di Tufi , now Via Pier Andrea Mattioli, in Siena, region of Tuscany, Italy. It stands on a peninsula of walls near Sant'Agostino, opening to a road leading south of the city. Coordinates: 43°18′42″N 11°19′59″E / 43.311705°N 11.332932°E / 43.311705; 11.332932

Porta Tufi

History

The gate, built mostly of brick, was built in 1325-1326 during the erection of the outermost of the medieval walls. The design is attributed to Agnolo di Ventura.^[1] The portal has three rounded arches, with a larger central travertine marble arch. The flanking guardhouses have crenellated roofs. The external central arch is surmounted by a round marble relief of the Roman Catholic IHS Christogram in a Sun. The interior wall has an icon of the Madonna. On the corner of nearby buildings plaques announce entry into the Contrada of Tartuca. A recently added plaque inside the gate recalls that through this portal, in July 1552, Enea Piccolomini and Giovanni Benedetti entered with a small army to aid a Sienese rebellion against the Spanish-Florentine rule, that ended only a few years later with the Battle of Marciano.^[2]

Bibliography

• Toscana. Guida d'Italia (Guida rossa), Touring Club Italiano, Milano 2003. ISBN 88-365-2767-1