Siena is not only synonym with Palio and contrade.
Under Piazza del Campo and other parts of the town is a thick network of galleries open to visitors.
These galleries, which Sienese people call "bottini", form Siena`s underground waterworks, which was built between the 13th and the 15th centuries.

Built by the "guerchi" (those who worked underground) to make up for the lack of a river crossing the town, the bottini stretch for about 25 kilometres. Each gallery offers a spectacular sight of stalactites and stalagmites, and some of them contain also terracotta statues representing the Madonna inserted in the walls or some crosses made with old hacks.

You are on holiday in Tuscany, you have rented a villa or a farmhouse in Siena or in its outskirts for one or more weeks and you want to visit the underground of the town of Ascanius and Senius?

First of all, you need suitable clothes and equipment: electric torches, sports shoes and a pair of water resistant boots.

Then you could contact Siena`s town council or one of the various associations that organize the visits to the underground. And at the end of your experience in this fascinating part of Siena you could also visit the Museo dell`Acqua, a museum dedicated to water.

If you like stories and legends, remember that the galleries under the town of the Palio are rich not only in water... but also in myths and legends. If you want to discover them, you just have to read the following pages.