Carafa chapel
The Carafa Chapel ( Cappella Carafa ) in the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva in Rome is famous for the frescoes by Filippino Lippi and is one of the most important chapels that were designed in Rome during the period and in the style of the early Renaissance between 1488 and 1493. Depicted is the glory of the Blessed Mother Mary and St. Thomas Aquinas , the medieval doctor of the church and Dominican. The chapel is named after its benefactor, Cardinal Oliviero Carafa , who came from the Neapolitan noble family of the Carafa , and is located at the front of the right transept.
history
Cardinal Oliviero Carafa , patron of the chapel and once cardinal protector of the Dominicans, had it built in honor of St. Thomas Aquinas at the end of the 15th century and consecrated in 1493. On the recommendation of Lorenzo the Magnificent from the Medici family, the cardinal decided to entrust the almost thirty-year-old Florentine artist Filippino Lippi with the frescoing of the chapel. Filippino Lippi interrupted his work at the Strozzi Chapel in Santa Maria Novella in Florence and began working in the chapel in the transept of the basilica in Rome from 1488 together with his student Raffaellino del Garbo . When Pope Alexander VI. paid an official visit to the church for the feast of the Annunciation in March 1493, at the end of the ceremonies he visited the newly completed chapel. The entire program of the chapel is a religious, heraldic and diplomatic manifesto of the cardinal's virtues. Raffaelino del Garbo carried out the fresco painting of the adjoining small room, which was originally intended to hold the cardinal's remains but was never used for this. The fresco cycle deals with the history of Verginia and other issues related to chastity.
Furnishing
Entrance portal
The magnificent entrance portal to the chapel - designed in the form of a triumphal arch - is formed by massive, fluted Corinthian pilasters with projecting entablature and an arch with the dedicatory inscription : DIVAE MARIAE VIRGINI ANNVNTIATAE ET DIVO THOME AQVINAT SACRVM. The execution is attributed to Mino da Fiesole , Andrea del Verrocchio and Giuliano da Maiano . The small inscription on the keystone mentions Cardinal Carafa. The two putti on the right and left on the entablature are by Andrea del Verrocchio. The rich, imaginative ornamentation can be found on all (pseudo) architectural elements.
Chapel back wall
For the fresco on the back wall of the Carafa Chapel, Filippino Lippi takes up the real architecture of the chapel portal and creates a spatial impression of extraordinary impact, depth and size. By staggering partly realistic and partly painted architecture, Filippino Lippi creates an illusionistic sense of space. The wall behind the altarpiece seems to open into a spiritual world. The naturalistic representation of space and landscape as well as the differentiated facial expressions and gestures of the individual persons create a direct relationship and are typical of early Renaissance painting. The division of heaven and earth, of the earthly and spiritual world is created by perspective lines and the guidance of light and suggests several image levels to the viewer. The focus is on the altarpiece with the Annunciation and, as in other spheres and appearing far away, although it is spatially painted on the same plane, the Assumption of Mary . To the right and left of the altarpiece, the depiction of the apostles is linked to the earthly world through color and style.
Annunciation
The picture is above the altar of the chapel and is painted using the fresco technique. It is framed by two carved pilasters with Corinthian capitals adorned with grotesques that show the influence of the frescoes rediscovered in the Domus Aurea of Emperor Nero in the 1480s . This representation of the golden decorations is recorded in the pseudo-architecture of the room shown in the picture. The upper end is formed by an entablature with a frieze of angels, garlands and palmettes. The broad, stuccoed strip above the entablature is richly decorated with volutes, vases and male masks and crowned with a fruit basket. It underlines the visual separation of the worlds. The lower part of the altarpiece was damaged when the tabernacle was erected. In the center of the altarpiece stands the Virgin Mary with raised, blessing hand turned to the kneeling cardinal, while from the side she sees the archangel Gabriel floating in, who is dressed in waving robes and is guided by the rays of light and the dove of the Holy Spirit. Maria stands in front of a desk with open books as if she had just read them. Thomas Aquinas in Dominican habit looks at them and introduces the cardinal. The drawn curtain behind it reveals a still life in a wall niche: a shelf with books and a glass carafe, the symbol of purity, with an olive branch, as an allusion to the name of Cardinal Oliviero. The vestibule on the left, with the coat of arms of the Carafa family in the center of the barrel vault, takes up the shape of the adjoining grave chapel. Mary's attitude is interpreted to mean that the Church plays the fundamental mediator role in salvation and that saints, such as Thomas Aquinas, stand by the believers as advocates and models of virtue. To portray the biblical story in a present, material environment and Mary in a double role at the time of the Annunciation is a novelty in art history at this time.
Assumption of Mary
On either side of the altarpiece, the apostles direct the viewer's gaze up to the miracle that takes place in heaven: the Assumption of the Virgin. The hl. Peter , leaning on a sarcophagus on the left, and St. Paul kneel down and look up to Mary, the Mother of God. The hl. Thomas (left), who was not present during the Ascension, directs everyone's gaze towards heaven with his outstretched arm. Behind the apostles, a colorful procession of people and exotic animals snakes out of a fortified city; perhaps an allusion to the triumphant reception the cardinal received on his return from the victorious campaign. Filippino Lippi probably saw the giraffe in Florence; it was given to Lorenzo the Magnificent a few years earlier and aroused lively interest among the population. Enthroned above everything, the Virgin Mary, looking down, rises on a cloud supported by three angels with torches, symbols of spiritual enlightenment, and accompanied by cherubim waving incense. It is wrapped in a golden halo and a mandorla made of blue cherubs, symbols of divine wisdom. A group of angels making music gives the event great vibrancy, which is underlined by the play of lines in the folds and the flying ribbons on the robes: clockwise from the top right an angel with a bagpipe , one with a staffetta or triangle , below one with one around the Body strapped drum . To the left of Maria, further clockwise, an angel strikes a three-sided tambourine de Béarn and at the same time plays a galoubet, a long one-handed flute , above an angel with a trumpet with coulisse. The angel with the tambour de basque or bell drum gives the rhythm to the festival of sounds that reflect the heavenly harmony. The connection to the earthly and the present is created by the two angels on the right and left who hold the cardinal's coat of arms in their hands and present it to all believers.
Vault
The ribbed vault is divided into four caps on which four sibyls are depicted. The Carafa coat of arms is emblazoned in a medallion at the intersection of the ribs. The patterns of the painted frame - they are interwoven branches with diamond rings, alternating with books and palmettes - continue on the ribs. The diamond rings are an allusion to the Medici , as a thank you for the mediation and pacification by Lorenzo il Magnifico in the conspiracy of the barons that soaked the Kingdom of Naples, the country of origin of the Carafa, with blood in 1485. The books point to the cultural interests of the cardinal, who owned a rich library. It went as heir to the convent of Santa Maria della Pace (Rome) , where he also financed the cloister, built by the master builder Donato Bramante . Among the Sibyls, Filippino was the first Florentine to use the frog's eye view from bottom to top . The model was certainly the fresco of the Ascension of Christ by Melozzo da Forlì in the Basilica of Santi XII Apostoli , which today is only partially preserved in the Vatican Museums and the Palazzo del Quirinale under the title Angels making music . Filippino, but presumably Raffaelino del Garbo, represented the Cumaean, Libyan, Tiburtine and Delphic Sibyls. Their names appear on Roman-style signs at the bottom left. The prophetic sibyls, like the prophets of the Old Testament, were regarded as symbols of wisdom. In their hands they are holding flying tapes with extracts from the writings of St. Thomas. They are flanked by angels reading or writing books. The half-bared breast of the Cumaean Sibyl is not a lascivious allusion, as was customary later in the 17th century. This would not have been compatible with the strict character of the cardinal; Rather, it is a reference to medieval theology, according to which the prophecies of the Sibyls would have the same value for humans as breast milk is for the newborn. Some postures are reminiscent of classical Roman art, such as the reflective posture of the Tiburtine and the crossed legs of the Delphic.
Right side wall
The right wall shows a similar architectural ornament as the rear wall of the chapel, but is divided by a frieze into a central rectangle and a bezel above it. The frescoes The Triumph of St. Thomas (or St. Thomas in the Chair ) and The Miracle of St. Thomas (or The Miracle of the Book ) depict miracles from the life of Thomas Aquinas, one of the most important Doctors of the Church and Dominicans.
Triumph of St. Thomas Aquinas
The scene depicts Thomas on the chair. It is set in a spacious architecture, oriented towards a pavilion with a ribbed vault and round arch in the center. From here, through an arcade on the right, you get to a terrace that continues towards the adjacent building. Thomas Aquinas sits in the niche, flanked by four symbolic figures. Below, outside the niche, are two symmetrically arranged groups of people. Thomas is holding an open book with the writing Sapientiam sapientum perdam in his hand. At his feet a squat figure, lying on the floor and covered by books, presumably the Arab philosopher Averroes , the personification of heresy with the banner Sapientia vincit malitiam ; a typical Dominican allusion to the role of science in recognizing and combating vice and heresy. On the sides of the saint are the embodiments of the sciences with their names in gold letters on the robes: from the left philosophy , theology with the wreath facing the saint, dialectics with the typical attribute, the snake, and grammar who teaches a child to read, a whip in hand to chastise the student if they are lazy. The people in the foreground are mostly heretics, who are also identified by golden, sometimes barely legible, inscriptions on the robes. The two outstanding figures of the group are Arius in a yellow coat on the left and Sabellius in a red coat on the right . The figure with the finger on the lips and the writing Manicheus on the cap is interpreted as the founder of the Manichaean Mani and the one with the pearl earring as Eutyches . The books on the floor are heretical writings intended for the stake. On the far right stands a Dominican priest, identified with the superior Gioacchino Torriani. On the left side stands Niccolò Orsini, the leader of the papal army, who seems ready to carry out the judgment of Thomas Aquinas. The two buildings on the sides serve as a backdrop; they recall examples of Umbrian painting such as the funeral of St. Bernardino by Pinturicchio in the Cappella Bufalini in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Aracoeli . On the left is an urban view of Rome, where the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius stands out, which was at the Lateran at the time, as it was believed to be an image of the Emperor Constantine.
Miracle of St. Thomas
In the large lunette on the right side wall, Filippino depicted two episodes from the life of St. Thomas: on the left, in an interior space, the miracle of the cross and the miracle of chastity . The saint kneels in adoration before a crucifix; behind him two angels with white lilies (symbol of chastity). The angel on the left lifts his cloak slightly and points to his belt. This portrayal points to a legendary episode in the saint's life: his parents tried to dissuade him from the monastic life and sent him a whore. However, he resisted the temptation; two angels appeared and tied a belt around his waist as a symbol of his chastity. The crucifix on the wall to the right of the saint refers to another legendary episode, according to which Christ praised the saint and his work (symbolized by the book under the cross) from the cross: Bene scripsisti di me Thoma . A frightened monk flees through a door at this miraculous apparition. The right side of the picture shows a loggia as a background, behind whose arches a city can be seen. The people in the foreground are interpreted differently. The puppy dog tugging on a child's robe is seen as a symbol of the devil who seeks the child's purity. The woman in the nun's robe with the rosary in her belt is possibly a personification of the Church and the man in red clothing on the steps is interpreted as Christ, her bridegroom, the red robe symbolizes the passion of Christ. The child would therefore, according to the allegorical writings of Ugo da San Vittore, be the symbol of the clergy born of the union of Christ with his bride. A man dressed in yellow teaches the old man in a turban by pointing to the woman - the church. The woman in the background could be a personification of the synagogue , as can be seen in the picture The Temptation of Christ by Sandro Botticelli in the Sistine Chapel . However, there are other plausible interpretations of the scene that see family members of the saint in the group of people.
Left side wall
54 years later, Pope Paul IV , real name Gian Pietro Carafa, a nephew of the cardinal, found his final resting place in the chapel instead of the patron and founder . The mighty grave monument was made by Giacomo and Tommaso Cassignuola according to a design by Pirro Ligorio and dominates the left side wall of the chapel. The frescoes were destroyed during the construction of the monument.
swell
- Giorgio Vasari: Le vite de 'più eccellenti pittori, scultori e architettori - Filippo Lippi Edizione del 1568, Firenze
- SCALA Group: Frescos - From the 13th to the 18th Century , Frechmann Kolón GmbH, Florence, 2012, ISBN 978-88-6637-136-6 .
- Johannis Burchardi: DIARIUM sive Rerum Urbanarum Commentarii (1483-1506); Ernest Leroux, Paris 1884.
- Giulia Cosmo: Filippino Lippi , series Art dossier, Giunti, Firenze 2001. ISBN 88-09-02031-6 .
- Patrizia Zambrano, Jonathan Katz Nelson: Filippino Lippi , Electa, Milano 2004. ISBN 88-435-5554-5 .
- Guido Cornini: Filippino Lippi, la Cappella Carafa in Il '400 a Roma. La rinascita delle arti da Donatello a Perugino (catalogo della mostra a cura di Maria Grazia Bernardini e Marco Bussagli), vol. I, * * Skira ed., Ginevra-Milano 2008, pp. 247-255 ISBN 978-88-6130-823-7
- Catalogo Mostra, Filippino Lippi e Sandro Botticelli nella Firenze del '400, edizione 24 ORE Cultura, Roma 2011, Scuderie del Quirinale. ISBN 978-88-6648-000-6 .
- Volker Reinhardt (Ed.): The great families of Italy (= Kröner's pocket edition . Volume 485). Kröner, Stuttgart 1992, ISBN 3-520-48501-X .
- Johannes Zahlten: Knowledge of Borders (in Miscellanea Medievalia 33), De Gruyter 2006, ISBN 978-3-11-018998-8 .
- Brigitte Hinzen-Bohlen: Rome , HF Ullmann Publishing GmbH, Potsdam 2013, ISBN 978-3-8480-0371-6 .
- Loren Partridge: Renaissance in Rome - The Art of the Popes and Cardinals , Cologne, DuMont 1996, ISBN 3-7701-3802-3 .
- Violinist Louise Gail: Filippino Lippi's miracle of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome of the late Quattrocento In: Zeitschrift für Kunstgeschichte - 47, 14 page (s) (247 - 260)
- Violinist Louise Gail: Filippino Lippi's Carafa Chapel In: Sixteenth Century Journal 1986, pp. 95-96
- Heinrich Pfeiffer: On the iconography of Raffael's Disputà , Università Gregoriana 1975, p. 112
- Doris Carl: Inventory of the workshop of Filippino Lippi from 1504 Communications from the Art History Institute in Florence, Volume 31, H. 2/3 (1987), pp. 373–391
- Angela Dreszen: Oliviero Carafa Committente 'all'antica' nel Succorpo del duomo di Napoli ; Roman historical communications, Volume 46/2004, 165–200 (Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna)
- Bildlexikon der Kunst, Volume 13: Music - Symbolism and Allegory , Ed .: Stefano Zuffi, Parthas Verlag Berlin, 2006, ISBN 978-3-936324-86-0 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Brigitte Hintzen-Bohlen: Rom, p. 199.
- ↑ Inscription: OLIVERIVS CARAPHA CAR NEAP FECIT
- ↑ Diary of Johannes Burchard, page 57: … venit ad cappellam novam Annuntiate per Rmum D. cardinalem Neapolitanum factam
- ↑ Cardinal Carafa was buried in 1511 in the Cappella del Succorpo of the Duomo di San Gennaro of Naples.
- ^ Translation: Sanctuary of the Divine Virgin Mary Annunziata and the divine Thomas Aquinas
- ↑ Churches of Rome: http://romanchurches.wikia.com/wiki/Santa_Maria_sopra_Minerva
- ↑ Frescos from the 13th to 18th centuries: p. 276 and Brigitte Hintzen-Bohlen: Rom, p. 199.
- ↑ a b Loren Partridge: The Renaissance in Rome, p. 86.
- ↑ Quotation from: Paulus, 1 Corinthians, 3, 18 I will destroy the wisdom of the wise.
- ↑ Translation: Wisdom conquers malice.
- ↑ The assignment of the figures is interpreted differently in the literature. Vasari only lists Sabbellius, Arius and Averroes as the vanquished in graceful robes .
- ↑ Translation: Well you wrote about me, Thomas.
- ^ Giorgio Vasari, page 293
- ↑ Gail Geiger: Filippino Lippis Miracle of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome of the late Quattrocento , p. 249 ff.
- ^ Giorgio Vasari: Le vite ... page 501, note 26
Web links
- Santa Maria sopra Minerva (Rome). In: Structurae
- Homepage of the Minerva Basilica
- Churches of Rome - Santa Maria sopra Minerva
Coordinates: 41 ° 53 ′ 52.9 " N , 12 ° 28 ′ 41.5" E