Piccolomini Library
The Piccolomini Library in Siena Cathedral has no ticket of its own: the €10 cathedral ticket (€7 from 16 Nov) includes it. What Pinturicchio painted, and how to see it.
The Piccolomini Library has no ticket of its own: it opens off the left aisle of Siena Cathedral, and the cathedral ticket includes it, €10 until 15 November 2026 and €7 from 16 November (the Opera’s prices, checked October 2026).
The OPA SI PASS and the Porta del Cielo ticket include it too. With a guide, DEAR GUESTS’ City Tour with Admission to the Duomo and a Panorama from Above takes you in with skip-the-line entry, from US$47 a person (checked October 2026).
What the library is
Cardinal Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini, later Pope Pius III, founded it in 1492 to honour his uncle, Pope Pius II, born Enea Silvio Piccolomini, and to hold his books. In 1502 he contracted Pinturicchio to paint it. The walls show ten scenes from the life of Pius II, from his travels as a young diplomat to his last journey, to Ancona, under a vault painted in bright colours, and the room has kept them unusually fresh. In the middle stands the Three Graces, a Roman copy of a Hellenistic sculpture, and around the walls are illuminated choir books in their cases.
How long to spend
Fifteen to twenty minutes is enough for most visitors, more if you read the scenes in order. The library is part of the cathedral visit, so it keeps the cathedral’s hours: until 31 October from 10:00 to 19:00 (9:30 to 18:00 on Sundays and holidays), then from 10:30 to 17:30, opening on Sundays and holidays at 10:00 until 15 November and at 13:30 from 16 November.
The three ways in
On the plain cathedral ticket, bought at the door. On the OPA SI PASS, from US$22 on GetYourGuide, which adds the Baptistery, Crypt, museum and Facciatone. Or with a guide: the DEAR GUESTS tour above spends about an hour, starts at 11:00 in English from the Dear Guests visitor centre at Via di Città 48, and adds a ticket for the Palazzo delle Papesse, with a panorama of the city, valid that day or the next two. Guests this September name their guides, Carla and Cynthia among them, and praise how much they fitted into the hour; it is non-refundable.
Pick your way into the library:
City Tour, Duomo + Panorama
One hour with a local guide, the cathedral and library, and the Papesse panorama.
Check dates →OPA SI PASS
The cathedral and library plus five more sites, over three days.
See the pass →Walking Tour + Skip-the-Line Duomo
Two hours with a local guide, ending inside the cathedral.
See the walking tour →Prices and review counts as listed on GetYourGuide in October 2026, not a quote.
Check dates and book
The Cathedral, the Library and the Panorama
DEAR GUESTS' one-hour city tour takes you through the centre to the Duomo with a local guide, with skip-the-line entry to the cathedral and the Piccolomini Library and a ticket for the Palazzo delle Papesse panorama. Rated 4.5 from 53 reviews, from US$47 a person as of October 2026; non-refundable.
Check City Tour Dates