Palazzo Pretorio, Medieval art museum in Certaldo, Italy

Palazzo Pretorio is a medieval building in Certaldo, a hilltop town in Tuscany, now used as a museum of art, archaeological finds, and historical objects. The collection spans several floors and rooms, covering a period from ancient times through to the early modern era.

The building dates to the 12th century, when it served as the seat of local counts who governed the area. Florence later took control and turned it into an administrative center, a role it held for several centuries.

The name Palazzo Pretorio, or dei Vicari, recalls the Florentine vicars who governed here from 1415 to 1784; 707 of them served in succession. In front of the palace stands a loggia, already recorded in 1455, used for the vicar's solemn parades and public ceremonies. It faces Via Boccaccio so the crowd could both hear the vicar's speech and see him. Inside, a 1506 fresco shows a woman with a scale and a lion, an allegory of the area's political life.

The building sits in the oldest part of Certaldo, known as Certaldo Alto, which is reachable by cable car or on foot up the hill. Plan for enough time to move through the rooms at a relaxed pace, as there are several floors to explore.

The facade's glazed terracotta coats of arms include works attributed to Andrea della Robbia, such as the Guasconi (1499) and Gondi Silvestri (1491) emblems, and to Girolamo della Robbia for the central Altoviti coat of arms of 1525. Above the door of the Camera del Cavaliere, the courtroom, an inscription reads "ODI L'ALTRA PARTE E CREDI POCHISSIMO", a warning to magistrates also found in San Gimignano and Lucignano.