Sanctuary

The Sanctuary.

"This is the sanctuary. It was built by my great-grandfather to honor the memory of the Assassin Order and protect its secrets."

―Mario Auditore.

The Sanctuary was a location in Monteriggioni, used by Assassins in both the Renaissance and Modern Times.

Statues

The Sanctuary was characterized notably by seven statues of seven legendary Assassins, who "guarded the freedom of humanity when it was most threatened."

Six of these statues had corresponding seals at their base, which had to be collected and returned, in order to unlock the gate in front of the seventh statue of Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad. This seventh statue also held the armor set fashioned by Altaïr.

From left to right, the statues represented:

• Qulan Gal
• Darius
• Wei Yu
• Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad
• Amunet
• Iltani
• Leonius

History

Mario first showing Ezio the Sanctuary.

The Sanctuary was constructed by Domenico Auditore, and served as a tribute to the greatest Assassins in history.

Found underneath the Villa Auditore, its entrance was concealed behind a tall bookcase in Mario Auditore's study. It was revealed by Mario to his nephew, Ezio Auditore, as he became devoted to the Assassin's Creed.

Siege of Monteriggioni

File:Escapevilla.jpg

The sanctuary's secret exit.

During the Fall of Monteriggioni, the Sanctuary was used as a temporary haven for survivors fleeing the attack.

Additionally, a passageway behind the statue of Altaïr served as an escape route for Ezio, his family, and several surviving townspeople. The hidden door led them into the tunnels under Monteriggioni, which were also connected to the Auditore Family Crypt.

Modern Times

The modern-day Assassins making use of the Animus.

Centuries later in modern times, a team of Assassins would seek out this last Assassin safehouse in Italy, as their first hideout had been found and assaulted by Abstergo. Desmond Miles and Lucy Stillman traced back the escape route, in order to unlock the bookcase entrance, and allow Rebecca Crane and Shaun Hastings to gain access to the Sanctuary.

The modern Assassins then used it as refuge, since its underground structure would protect them from Abstergo's cell phone surveillance. However, as the Sanctuary had no electricity, Desmond first free ran around modern Monteriggioni to reroute electricity into the Sanctuary.

Trivia

• The circular grate in the courtyard at the back of the Auditore Family Villa is actually the top of the Sanctuary, which allows light in.
• In Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, though the grate at the top of the Sanctuary appears broken from the inside, when viewed from the outside, it seems undamaged.
• In Assassin's Creed II, you can examine all the statues except Altaïr's, and gain information about the Assassin. In Brotherhood, only the statue of Altaïr may be interacted with, resulting in a short cutscene that involves Desmond using a stereotypical Italian accent, and Rebecca scolding his racism.
• The secret exit used during the siege of Monteriggioni is present in Assassin's Creed II, however, it is blocked by a pile of logs.
• Although all of the Assassin statues (other than Altaïr's) have the small skull mechanisms that open the entrances of Assassin's Tombs, they cannot be interacted with.
  • In Brotherhood, these skull mechanisms have been removed from the statues during the siege of Monteriggioni, but reappear in modern Monteriggioni.
• Desmond can interact with his teammates or certain items in the Sanctuary during each memory sequence and trigger a variety of conversations.

Gallery

• 
  Ezio looks at his ancestor's statue and armor.
• Desmond arguing with Shaun in the Sanctuary.
  Desmond arguing with Shaun in the Sanctuary.
• 
  Shaun Hastings in the Sanctuary.
• 
  Modern-day Assassins in the Sanctuary.
• Qulan Qal's statue.
  Qulan Qal's statue.
• 
  Darius' statue.
• 
  Wei Yu's statue.
• 
  Amunet's statue.
• 
  Iltani's statue.
• 
  Leonius' statue.
• Altaïr's Statue, along with his armor.
  Altaïr's Statue, along with his armor.