Internal road

The medieval hospital contains within it an extraordinary system of access and connection between its various levels and sections: this is the so-called “strada interna” (internal street), also known as the covered street, which is more commonly remembered by 20th-century Sienese as the “voltoni” (vaulted passageways). This street, however, is deeply rooted in the earliest development of the hospital and underscores the exceptional nature of the entire hospital complex. Along its route were located many functional spaces: granaries, cellars, cisterns, workshops, stables, and even the headquarters of various confraternities. Mentioned in reports on the hospital dating back to 1399 and 1456, the street descended from the “corticella” and passed by the hayloft, woodshed, staff housing, animal stables, a well, a slaughterhouse, the carpenter’s and blacksmith’s rooms, chicken coops, and the cellar (likely the current Cantinone, now part of the National Archaeological Museum). In 2023, after years of restoration, the upper section of the museum’s internal street and its adjacent spaces — including the silos room and the former stable — were reopened to the public. The restoration project, led by the Municipality of Siena in collaboration with the University of Siena and under the supervision of the Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio for the provinces of Siena, Grosseto, and Arezzo, was carried out by the architectural firm Guicciardini & Magni Architetti of Florence. Its main objective was to preserve and enhance the many historical layers that have accumulated over time.