Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Pisans. During WWII, Allied artillery destroyed many of the cloisters' frescoes, but a
couple were salvaged and are now displayed in the
Sala Affreschi
(Frescoes Room).
Most notable is the
Triumph of Death
(1336-41), a remarkable illustration of Hell at-
tributed to 14th-century painter Buonamico Buffalmacco. Fortunately, the mirrors appar-
ently once stuck next to the graphic, no-holds-barred images of the damned being roasted
alive on spits have since been removed - meaning a marginally less uncomfortable time
for visitors who would have once seen their own faces peering out of the cruel wall paint-
ing. Buffalmacco's
Last Judgement & Hell
(1336-41), in the same room, is equally brutal.
MUSEUM
Museo delle Sinópie
(Piazza dei Miracoli; adult/reduced €5/3, combination ticket covering Battistero, Camposanto, Museo
dell'Opera del Duomo and Museo delle Sinópie 1/2/3/4 sights €5/7/8/9 (reduced €3/4/5/6); 8am-7.30pm
summer, 10am-4.30pm winter)
This museum safeguards several
sinópie
(preliminary sketches)
drawn by artists in red earth pigment on the walls of the Camposanto in the 14th and 15th
centuries. The museum makes for a compelling study in fresco painting, with short films
and scale models filling in the gaps.
MUSEUM
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo
(Piazza dei Miracoli; adult/reduced €5/3, combination ticket covering Battistero, Camposanto, Museo
dell'Opera del Duomo and Museo delle Sinópie 1/2/3/4 sights €5/7/8/9 (reduced €3/4/5/6); 8am-8pm
summer, 10am-5pm winter)
A repository for works of art once displayed in the cathedral and
baptistry, this museum's highlights include Giovanni Pisano's ivory carving of the
Madonna and Child
(1299), which was made for the cathedral's high altar, as well as his
mid-13th-century
Madonna del colloquio,
originally from a gate of the
duomo
. Don't
miss the tranquil cloister garden with great views of the Leaning Tower.
Festivals & Events
Luminaria
The night before Pisa's patron saint's day is magical: thousands upon thousands of candles
and blazing torches light up the river and riverbanks while fireworks bedazzle the night
sky; 16 June.
LIGHT SHOW
SPORT
Regata Storica di San Ranieri
