A 16th-century jewel in the heart of San Quirico. With access from the main square (Piazza della Libertà), you enter a veritable paradise, the Horti Leonini.
Unique and special: they were created around 1580 by Diomede Leoni, an immense Italianate garden, set between the medieval walls and the square, opens into a wide perspective gap that the perfectly geometric boxwood beds help enhance.
The Garden Park is divided into two parts: the lower and the upper.
The first bears a giant figure, resembling a cross of the Knights of Malta, drawn in boxwood and holm oak hedges. In the center of the lower part of the garden, a marble statue of Cosimo III de’ Medici, carved in 1688 by the Sienese Giuseppe Mazzuoli, commissioned by the Cardinal Flavio Chigi, in gratitude to the Grand Duke, who by a diploma dated September 6, 1677, had granted him the village as a feud with the title of marquisate.
From then on San Quirico became “the noble land of Siena.”
Before the staircase that leads to the upper floor, we find a Roman statue of two-faced Janus, a travertine and marble sculpture.
The upper part constitutes the so-called English-style forest, with imposing holm oaks. The remains of the Cassero Tower, a typical medieval keep that was bombed and razed to the ground during World War II (on June 14, 1944), are still present and visible.
From the lower level, also, following the avenue of holm oaks, which runs along the wall along Diomede Leoni Street, one reaches the Rose Garden.
The Horti Leonini are the site of important events: the Feast of Barbarossa, Archers’ and Bishops’ contests are held on the upper floor; Forms in the Green, the contemporary sculpture exhibition.
And at certain times of the year, don’t miss the excitement of experiencing the Horti Leonini at night as well, with extraordinary openings during the evening hours.
Horti Leonini at night with lighting, San Quirico d’Orcia
