Palazzo dei Priori, Volterra

This building, initially called Palazzo del Comune, was commissioned in 1208 by Ildebrando Pannocchieschi, Palatine Count of the Holy Roman Emperor.

The facade is now decorated with heraldic shields in stone and terracotta belonging to ruling families, often of the appointed Florentine officers after the town became part of the Duchy of Tuscany in 1472.

[3] The northeast facing facade is oddly asymmetric, with the entrance portal off to the left, the tower off to the right, and the five mullioned windows on the piano nobile, not matching the trios on subsequent levels.

In the stairs leading up to the next story (first floor), is a fresco depicting a Crucifixion with Saints (1490) by Pier Francesco Fiorentino.

The courtyard once contained a fresco titled Justice (1532) by a young Daniele Ricciarelli; it was detached in 1844 and is now in the town civic museum.