Siena 2018: Inside the Cathedral

When you step inside the Siena Cathedral one of the first things that will probably catch your eye are the mosaics on the floors. These mosaics are sometimes covered to protect them from decay but thankfully all of them were on display when we visited. There are 56 of these Renaissance-era floor mosaics in the Siena Cathedral and they make for an interesting inversion in visiting a large church like this one. Normally when you go into a big church you spend a lot of time looking up, but in the Siena Cathedral you spend a lot of time looking down. The mosaics are roped off to keep people from stepping on them so you frequently can’t walk in a straight line to get from one area of the church to another. In addition to the floor decorations there are plenty of other things to check out such as the high altar, all the smaller chapels, and various works of art along the walls. The main support columns of the cathedral have stripes of black and white stone, which are the colors of Siena’s coat of arms.