Collegiate Church of San Gimignano

The Collegiate Church of Santa Maria Assunta is the principal church of San Gimignano and houses an important sequence of medieval and Renaissance frescoes. The building dates back to the medieval period and is located on the town’s principal square.

Inside, the church contains extensive painted cycles by major Sienese and Florentine artists from the 13th to the 15th centuries, including a decorated chapel dedicated to Santa Fina with work by Domenico Ghirlandaio. These frescoes depict scenes from the Old and New Testaments and the lives of saints and form the core artistic attraction.

The church was established in the 12th century and expanded and redecorated during the following centuries as San Gimignano grew prosperous. Decoration campaigns in the 13th to 15th centuries produced the surviving fresco cycles.

The Collegiate Church fronts the Piazza del Duomo in the historic centre of San Gimignano, in Tuscany, and is easily reached on foot from the town’s main streets.

• UNESCO status: Part of the historic centre of San Gimignano, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, due to its preserved medieval architecture and artworks.
• Main attraction: Interior fresco cycles date mainly from the 13th to 15th centuries and are the main reason visitors enter the church.

What to See #

• Santa Fina Chapel: Santa Fina Chapel, decorated with Renaissance frescoes by Domenico Ghirlandaio and other artists, dedicated to the town's patron saint.
• Frescoed nave and chapels: Main nave and chapels that contain extensive fresco cycles by 13th to 15th-century Sienese and Florentine painters illustrating biblical scenes and saints.