Crociani Civic Museum and Art Gallery in Montepulciano
A rich collection of paintings, terracottas and archaeological finds
The Civic Museum in Montepulciano is housed inside the 14th-century Palazzo Neri Orselli, a rare example of a building in the city that still preserves memories of 14th-century architecture in Siena.
The exhibition is divided into four main sections, arranged on four floors, one of which is underground. The first one encountered by the visitor is the archeological collection, which collects Etruscan and Roman finds unearthed in the Montepulciano area and especially in the necropolis of Acquaviva. These finds, besides having significant aesthetic value, testify to the strategic importance of the Valdichiana territory since ancient times.
In the Montepulciano section, located on the basement level, stone artifacts, ceramic materials and metal objects from various sources are visible. Among the most notable works is the silver funeral mask of Sant’Agnese of Montepulciano, who died in 1317.
The Pinacoteca Crociani represents the Museum's most important cluster. Comprising about one hundred and eighty works dating back to approximately the 14th and 19th centuries, it is named after Francesco Crociani, who donated his collection to the municipality upon his death in 1861. Among the major works on display are the Crucifixion by Filippino Lippi; the Sacra Famiglia (Holy Family) by Antonio Bazzi, known as Sodoma; a canvas of Sant’Agnese by Domenico Beccafumi; and works by artists of the Sienese, Florentine, Roman, Emilian and Flemish schools, such as Jan Miel and Abraham Bloemart, whose "Young Men Playing with a Cat" can be admired. A small room is devoted to a single painting: a portrait of a gentleman, made around the beginning of the 17th century and recently attributed to Caravaggio.
Finally, there is a collection of terracottas by Della Robbia from the 16th century, including the two altarpieces "God the Blessing Father" and "Madonna with Child", both commissioned to Andrea della Robbia.
