3 Best Sights in Pitigliano, Tuscany

Now a museum of Jewish culture, the ghetto where Jews took refuge from 16th-century Catholic persecution was a thriving community until the beginning of World War II. Inside the precinct today are the remains of ritual bathing basins, a wine cellar, a kosher butcher shop and bakery, and the restored synagogue, where religious services are held on the Sabbath.

This 18th-century Baroque cathedral has a single nave with chapels and paintings on the sides. There are two altarpieces by local artist Francesco Zuccarelli (1702–88), a Rococo landscape artist, a favorite of George III and one of the founders of the British Royal Academy.

The museum, housed in the Palazzo Orsini, has several rooms featuring paintings by Zuccarelli, who was born in Pitigliano in 1702. Other works include a Madonna carved in wood by Jacopo della Quercia (1371/74–1438), a 14th-century crucifix, period furniture, and a numismatic collection.