The Museum of the Contrada della Lupa (Contrada of the She-wolf) in Siena is housed in the historic quarters of the contrada, which date back to the 16th century and were originally the property of the Confraternity of San Rocco. The construction of the headquarters appears to date back to the first years of the 16th century and was completed almost a century later with the fresco painting in the Oratory and the Cathedral, which were given to the Lupa in 1789.
The historic quarters include a ceremonial room, an archive and a costume room. In the oratory, you can admire a fresco cycle dedicated to the life of Job by Bernardino Mei, Rutilio and Domenica Manetti and Astolfo Petrazzi. In the adjacent cathedral is a large fresco by Rutilio Manetti from the early 17th century. Descending into the church crypt we enter the Hall of Victories, which conserves all the contrada’s winning Palio banners, the Hall of Sacred Vestments, with ancient decorations belonging to the Confraternity of San Rocco, the Armory, the Costume Hall, with a collection of the contrada’s historic costumes since 1839, and lastly, the Meeting Room with all the trophies won.
The museum also conserves a precious antique: a photograph of Giuseppe Garibaldi dedicated to the jockey Mario Bernini, the winner of the 1867 Palio, which was personally attended by the “hero of the two worlds”.
