Montepulciano Cathedral
Montepulciano Cathedral historical timeline
Last updated on October 14, 2026- around the year 1000 — plebanial rights are acquired by the pieve di Santa Maria in Montepulciano. They came from an older church outside the castle walls — on the site where San Biagio stands today, so the town's religious authority originates down in the fields rather than up on the ridge.
- the third quarter of the 15th century — Iacomo and Checco di Meo da Settignano build the bell tower of the old pieve, in travertine ashlar and brick. Its apex is never completed, and it will outlive the church it was built for.
- from 1586 or 1594 — construction of the cathedral begins, to a design by the Orvietan Ippolito Scalza, on the site of the ancient pieve di Santa Maria, which is demolished apart from its tower. The sources disagree on the start year: the article on the building gives 1586, the article on the town 1594.
- — the cathedral is completed, both sources agreeing on this date. Its salient façade is left unfinished and remains so.
- — on 19 June the church is solemnly consecrated by Francesco Maria Arrighi, bishop of Montepulciano — thirty-two years after the building was finished.
- brought in from elsewhere — a number of the cathedral's works of art come from the ancient pieve and from other Montepulciano churches, among them the Trittico dell'Assunta painted by Taddeo di Bartolo in 1401, which is nearly two centuries older than the building that now holds it.
Verified against Wikipedia, October 2026.