As visitors reach the end of the European painting section on the second floor of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, they come across a dark entryway with two black walls reading the word “Siena” and “1300-1350,” a time period foreign to most viewers. Once inside, visitors are magically transported to a small medieval Italian city.

“Siena: The Rise of Painting, 1300-1350” features over 100 artworks highlighting the small Italian city’s artistic significance that later influenced the Italian Renaissance. Transporting viewers to a medieval time period, artwork from Sienese painters like Pietro Lorenzetti, Duccio di Buoninsegna and Simone Martini fills the exhibition, offering a window into the often overshadowed city’s robust history.