Torre Grossa: San Gimignano’s Tallest Lookout Tower
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.6
- Popularity
- Medium
- Country
- Italy
- Primary era
- Medieval
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Unclassified
- Site type
- Military
- Remains
- Tower
On this page4 sections
History
Torre Grossa is a medieval tower in San Gimignano, Italy, whose construction began on 21 August 1300 and was completed in 1311. At 54 metres, it is the tallest of San Gimignano’s 14 towers. Work began four months after the city hosted Dante Alighieri, the major Italian poet and political figure best known as the author of the Divine Comedy.
The prominent Ardinghelli family commissioned Torre Grossa. Designed as a lookout structure, the tower remains in use for that purpose. It is now owned by the Italian state.
Remains
Structure and setting
Torre Grossa stands in Piazza del Duomo beside the New Palace of the Podestà, the medieval civic official’s palace, and near the Church of Santa Maria Assunta. The 54-metre tower rises above a vaulted passage. Its square base is faced with exposed stone masonry made from regularly cut, carefully shaped blocks. Internal flights of stairs run through the structure.
Bell chamber and summit
At the top, a bell chamber houses the tower’s bells. It is encircled by a walkway protected by a low parapet, with the walkway supported on projecting corbel arches. Above it is a pyramidal roof resembling that of Torre Rognosa, another historic tower in San Gimignano. This roof form is described as unusual among the town’s other towers.
