Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena

Housed in the insanely ambitious and unfinished extension planned for the Duomo in the early 14th century. Some of Giovanni Pisano's sculpture for the façade is on the ground floor. Above, the museum contains the masterpiece of the Sienese School, Duccio's Maesta, painted for the high altar of the Duomo between 1308 and 1311. The scenes from the Life of Christ and of the Virgin show the full extent of Duccio's art: his mastery of composition and narrative, his brilliant colours and graceful figures. They make a fascinating contrast with the contemporary work of Giotto.