Loggia of the Judge

You enter the Palazzo del Comune through a splendid courtyard that was created when the building was enlarged in the 14th century. It is decorated with the coats of arms of the various podestà that held power over the years. 

There is a well in the back of the courtyard, very similar to the one in the Piazza della Cisterna. It was probably used to supply water. 

The right side opens to a portico called the Loggia del Giudice (Loggia of the Judges). This was in fact the place where justice was administered. 

The loggia is decorated with splendid frescoes. One of these depicts Saint Ivone, the patron of lawyers, administering justice to the poor, while at the door, the rich, bearing lavish gifts, anxiously wait to enter. This work, like that of the Madonna in the atrium of the Palazzo Vecchio del Podestà, was created in 1500 by Sodoma (whose real name was Antonio Bazzi), who took his inspiration from the Leonardo da Vinci school.

On the long side is the 14th-century fresco Madonna with Child flanked by San Gregorio and San Gimignano. Finally, just above the stairway, is the fresco of the Allegory of Justice, depicting the judge expelling a liar. At his side are Prudence (the serpent) and Truth (a nude maiden).