Di Monte Palace

The cardinal Antonio Di Monte wanted the construction of this elegant, sixteenth-century and unique building (accrording Giorgio Vasari) in the second decade of the XVI century by the architect Antonio Da Sangallo il Vecchio who designed the plan and the façade. The later internal courtyard and the back part of the palace overlooking the roof garden are both by Nanni di Baccio Bigio. The building of the palace began In 1515 after Cardinal Antonio’s acquisition of houses and estates in the neighborhood.
It is the seat of The Town Council. Its majestic stone façade presents five vertical axis and two central frames. The first floor has five lintel windows with alternate triangular and curvilinear tympani. The window in the centre has a little balcony with columns.
From Corso Sangallo, entering the palace through the main big wooden door, you can walk down the  corridor decorated with frescos and a big coat of arms of di Monte. Right on the left there is a memorial room which is the seat of the association of  ex-soldiers’ of Monte San Savino; it preserves a memorial plaque of 1824 erected in memory of the setting of the palace as the district magistrate’s court. Then you can find a rectangular courtyard with a groin vault loggia with three arches on the longest sides and two on the shortest ones.

The arches are supported by four pilasters and six big columns in the Tuscan style. In the west area there is another corridor leading to the ancient prison where the original furnishing has been well preserved: doors, plank-bed, toilet. The main corridor ends  with a door on Via Castiglia and takes you to the roof garden located above a big water tank.
The back face of the palace shows three openings: four windows with lintels on the first floor, four little windows in the centre ( the windows of the ex public prison) and two windows with lintels at the top; a balcony supported by some shelves is part of the Mayor's office. From Via della Castiglia you can see  the fountains inside some aedicule niches with gargoyles.
From a staircase you can access  the second level divided by paths and flower beds. On the left you can see the right side of  the Church del Suffragio and an area which allowed the prisoners to attend at the holy Mass. At the bottom of the wall there is an aedicule containing a bronze bust of Andrea Sansovino (1989) by F. Zazzeri. Then you can enter another green area that belonged to the Galletti Palace containing the open air  500 seat theatre carried out in 1988 (projected by M. Fagioli, S. Martinelli, A. Leonardi, C. Corsi) with five lines of balconies divided in three parts.
Interior: from two staircases you reach the first floor of the palace. On the lunette over the precious wooden door, of the Council hall,circa 1500, there is a fresco (1837) of the coat of arms of the town with symbols representing justice. The Council hall has a rectangular plan with the walls and the ceilings decorated with big frescoes  of the town coat of arms of Arezzo, of Monte San Savino and of illustrious families of Monte San Savino (Di Monte, Contucci, Purazzi, Cungi, Brandini, Ficai, Ciaperoni) by I. Dini.
On the left of the landing there are two adjacent rooms: one with a barrel  vaulted ceiling with paintings of the coats of arms of the villages near Monte San Savino, another whose ceiling is decorated with grotesques by Guelfi (1895). From the landing you can enter the long gallery-corridor whose windows look on to  the courtyard. On the walls there are  portraits of illustrious citizens of Monte San Savino and the ruling families of Tuscany. The most ancient were painted in 1650 by the local painter Francesco Giovannoni. Beyond the arch of the serlian  there is a little corridor leading to the Major’s office. From the balcony you can enjoy a wonderful  view  of the roof garden of the palace. Here there is a canvas by D. Sozzini of the Madonna delle Vertighe with St. Savino and St. Vitale (second half of XVII century).