The long building of the Palazzo della Canonica occupies a large portion of the south side of Piazza dei Cavalieri. The façade extends over three stories, with the central axis marked by the main entrance featuring a balcony and window, surmounted by a broken pediment.
There are eleven windows per floor—ten on the ground floor—all framed with pietra serena, a stone that also characterizes the central axis and the benches on either side of the entrance. The gray color is echoed in the corners and the attic.
In Giorgio Vasari’s vision of the square, the Palazzo was intended to play a complementary role to the other buildings: lying outside the line of sight of those entering the square, it guides the gaze toward the church of Santo Stefano or the later Palazzo dei Dodici.
