Madonna with child and two putti

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Madonna with Child and Two Putti (Antonio Rossellino)
Madonna with child and two putti
Antonio Rossellino , second half of the 15th century
Carrara marble relief
77.5 × 52 × 12 cm
Bode Museum (Ident.-No. 1709), Berlin

Madonna with Child and Two Putti is the title of a relief made of Carrara marble by the Italian artist Antonio Rossellino from the second half of the 15th century. It is a variation of the Enthroned Madonna , in which two putti faces in the background at the top of the picture gave the relief its name. After being severely damaged during the Second World War , the original was able to be completely reconstructed in 2012 using a plaster cast. The work is part of the sculpture collection of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin and is located in the Bode Museum .

Material and technology

The Berlin model of the Madonna with Child and two putti is a relief that was originally made of Carrara marble . In the relief there is a clear difference between the flat parts, such as B. the putti faces at the upper edge of the picture, and the highly elaborated parts, such as Mary's lap, in the lower part of the picture. In the course of an extensive restoration in 2012, the missing parts of the relief were repaired and are visible to the viewer as additions.

Preservation and condition

Destruction in World War II

Antonio Rossellino's marble reliefs were badly damaged in a fire in May 1945 in the guidance tower in Berlin-Friedrichshain . Large parts of the background of the relief were badly damaged by the destruction. Furthermore, parts of the veil, the halos and parts of the knees were missing . Large parts of the faces of the putti were destroyed. In addition, large parts of the putti wings were missing. In addition, parts of the lips were missing in the face of the baby Jesus (see illustration from 2012). Above all, the raised parts of the relief have been preserved. Large parts of the image of Mary and the baby Jesus as well as the lower part of the throne still existed. All parts were badly damaged in their structure, i. that is, they had cracks and chips and a rough surface. Later restorations in the 1950s and 1980 secured the existence. However, gilding that can be seen on pre-war photographs and is also known from written records could no longer be identified on the fragments.

Restorations

Condition of the Berlin relief before the restoration in 2012

In preparation for an exhibition, further restoration measures were carried out in 1980 . Using a plaster cast made before the war, defects could be identified and corrections made. After filling up all the imperfections, the surface was coated with a weak wax , so that the marble could be given a matt sheen again. A renewed restoration campaign in 2012, with the help of an old plaster cast of the original, added a lighter plastic to the imperfections, making the relief appear complete again today. For the restoration carried out in 2012, a silicone mold was first made on the basis of the original model so that the defects could be repaired. In order to come as close as possible to the original model, which was presumably made of marble, special particles were added to the filler in order to copy the gloss and color of the original.

Condition after 2012

Fig. 3: The Berlin model during an exhibition in 2015

Since 2012 the work has been completely presented to the viewer again. The supplemented areas are marked by a slightly lighter color. In its current state, the model presents itself as a stitched relief, i.e. That is, the original parts can be seen together with the additions. This clearly shows the relief as a representation of the Madonna and Child. The putti in the upper corners of the image field are now clearly recognizable as winged angels and the veil of Mary has been added so that her face is framed by a delicate play of folds in the veil. In addition, both figures in the foreground have been expanded to include their halos, which appear as full panes behind their heads. The patina is no longer original due to destruction and restoration. In addition, clear differences in color can be seen. The relief was inserted into a golden round arch segment in the course of an exhibition in the Bode Museum in 2015. This segment was laterally delimited by two gold, ornamentally decorated pilasters with a Corinthian capital (see Fig. 3).

Reconstruction of the frame in 2018

As the war-related destruction also destroyed the wooden frame in which the relief was used until 1945, an elaborate reconstruction was carried out in 2018. The style was based on the time the relief was created. In order to achieve a frame in the Renaissance style that was as authentic as possible , photographs of the exhibition rooms before the outbreak of war were used, on which the relief of Antonio Rossellino could also be recognized. On these photos, however, it was recognized that the frame from the 15th century was , however - due to the dimensions - probably not the original. Nevertheless, the style and color scheme - including pilasters and frieze - was adopted. A reconstruction was thus produced in several steps. The new wooden frame was made from linden wood.

description

General

The relief is presented to the viewer in an upright rectangular format. The image field is bordered by a simple frame that is part of the relief. The lavishly decorated, colored frame in which the relief was used for the exhibition in the Bode Museum was destroyed. This frame was made of wood. In the course of an elaborate reconstruction in 2018, a Renaissance- style frame was produced in which the relief is presented. The two framing pilasters are framed in gold, as are the ornamental decorations, as well as the base and capital . The background of the pilasters is dark blue. The frieze of the frame is also colored gold, only a broad dark blue color stripe, the architrave , connects the pilaster colonnades with the decorative gold frame frieze. Above the cornice , a round arch segment forms the end of the frame. The background of the relief appears simple, which gives the group of figures in the center a special meaning. The group of figures in the middle completely fills the image field on the left and right. The throne of Mary at the lower edge of the picture is elaborate and goes well beyond the relief frame, which creates a three-dimensional effect.

Maria

Maria is presented to the viewer in a three-quarter view, sitting on a throne. Your posture is turned to the right. Her sitting posture creates a lap on her thighs, on which the baby Jesus is sitting on a small pillow. The throne of Mary is delimited by volutes . Below her throne is a bird on her left. Mary and her child are flanked in the upper corners of the picture edge by two children's heads, which can be recognized as angels by their wings. Mary's arms gently touch the child on her lap. Your right hand is placed on the child's lap. Your left hand is supported on the back of the child's head. Maria wears a sleeveless petticoat that is tied at her waist. An upper garment is held together at chest level and falls gently over both shoulders. From the middle of the head, Mary's hair is covered by a long veil that falls down along her back. Her hair, not covered by the veil, is curly. A slightly inclined halo sits above her head. Her eye-catching jewelry includes a necklace and a ring on her right hand.

Baby jesus

The baby Jesus on Mary's lap is seated on a rectangular cushion decorated with cords . The playful posture of the legs makes the soles of the feet visible to the observer. The child's arms, with fingers slightly clenched, are bent and form a line at chest level. The posture of the head creates a kind of double chin. The child wears a tight, short-sleeved undergarment. On the child's right side, part of an overgarment falls over the child's left arm. A cross pendant hangs at the height of the neck . The head, which is turned away from the mother, is surrounded by a halo above. The child's hair is designed as wild, tight-fitting curls.

Putt

Above the field of view in both corners there are winged angelic faces that can be identified as putti. Strands of putti hair are indicated by slightly curly hair. The faces form a symmetrical counterpart in relation to the face of Mary. The putti heads are directed towards the figures in the center, with the left of the two directed towards the viewer.

composition

The Berlin relief is a variant of the Madonna depictions with the Child Jesus, namely a Madonna enthroned . Here are Mary and her child play in sedentary entertainment, while the Virgin sits, sitting or standing baby Jesus on his mother's lap on a throne. In the Berlin relief, the baby Jesus is sitting on a pillow that is on the lap of Our Lady. The arrangement of the figures, their gestures, the interaction of the figures, their clothing and the design of the background distinguish the Enthroned Madonna reliefs from one another.

By using the so-called “rilievo schiacciato” (Italian for “squeezed relief”), Antonio Rossellino overcomes the limited perspective possibilities of the relief by creating different spatial depths. For example, the cloudy sky with the two putti faces fades into the background due to the flat marble work. In contrast, Maria's knees come to the fore due to the high level of elaboration and overlap the picture border at the lower edge of the picture. The framing of the image field is thus generously ignored. These differences in height give the relief a strong three-dimensional effect. The careful touch of the mother with her hands and her devout look at the child meanwhile emphasize the intimate character of this mother-child relationship and the mother's care for her child. The elaboration of the chin, the arms and the legs allow the child Jesus to be fully recognized as a real, incarnate human being, with which the incarnation ( incarnation of God ) is artistically represented. The upper body of Mary takes up almost the entire center of the relief. Her head, surrounded by a halo, ends at the level of the putti faces. However, the part of the face of Our Lady is more elaborate, which also shows differences between the foreground and the background. The baby Jesus takes up half of the right half of the relief. His right arm ends with the picture border. The child's gaze goes outside the picture. The throne can be recognized by two differently worked volutes on the left and right edge of the picture. The staggered arrangement of the volutes gives the throne an additional perspective. The bird below the throne volute on the left is possibly an eagle, which can be seen as a reference to a client. However, this is unknown.

Antonio Rossellino made depictions of the Madonna and Child in different variations. A dissertation by Birgit Langhanke published in 2013 gives an overview of the various Madonna reliefs in the work of Antonio Rossellino. She also comments in detail on the Berlin relief with two putti. She sees something special in the child's posture and the averted gaze, as the Child Jesus is depicted less in relation to the mother. In addition, Langhanke sees the detailed depiction of the robe and the jewelry of Maria as evidence of the development of the content.

iconography

The Mother of God is represented here as the Madonna Enthroned. In Byzantine iconography, the motif of the Enthroned Madonna is a special form of depicting Mary, who as the mother of Jesus Christ is of particular importance in Christianity. As the enthroned, she becomes clear as the "Queen of heaven and earth". In addition, she is depicted as a woman sitting on a throne with the baby Jesus on her lap . The cross pendant of the baby Jesus can be interpreted as a foresight of one's own fate - death by crucifixion. There are different variations in the design of the background, gestures and facial expressions as well as in the placement of the hands of the two figures. Typical of depictions of the Enthroned Madonna was the placement of Mary's right hand on the child's shoulder and the left on his knee. In the present version, Maria has placed her right hand on the child's lap, while her left hand is gently supported on the back of the child's head. In the background, in the two upper corners of the picture, two putti faces can be seen.

Authorship

In art historical research, the Berlin Madonna is generally attributed to Antonio Rossellino. In addition to Heinz Gottschalk (1930), Leo Planiscig (1942) also assumes a work by Antonio Rossellino. Ronald Kecks (1988) sees strong stylistic similarities in the Berlin relief with the figures of the tomb of the Cardinal of Portugal - also a work by Rossellino. An attribution outside of Rossellino's oeuvre is made by Francesco Negri Arnoldi (2003), who wants to recognize a work by Francesco di Simone Ferrucci in the Berlin work .

Dating

When it comes to timing, there is largely consensus in research. The art historian Leo Planiscig (1942) dated the relief to the time around 1461. This assessment is followed by Giuseppe Galassi (1949), John Pope-Hennessy (1970) and Francesca Petrucci. (1980) In an exhibition catalog from 2013 the work is also dated to 1460/1461. Ronald Kecks (1988) follows the chronological classification around 1461. The work is dated somewhat later by Giancarlo Gentilini (2008), who, due to the stylistic and technical implementation of the figures, assumes a later date of creation.

function

The Berlin model was probably a relief originally made for private devotion . In addition to scenes from the life and suffering of Jesus Christ or depictions of saints , depictions of the Mother of God with her son were a popular subject for devotional images . Maria is often depicted in contemporary clothing. In the case of the Berlin relief, Maria appears - with veil and robes, as well as necklace and ring - in the Florentine fashion style, as a young patrician . Pictures, sculptures or reliefs for the exercise of private piety were very popular and reached wide groups of buyers. Popular depictions of the Madonna were often reproduced from inexpensive material. Due to the material, however, it can be ruled out that the Berlin model is a cast .

Provenance

A client of the Berlin model cannot be proven. There is no reliable information about the previous owners of the relief. Frida Schottmüller (1933) mentioned the house chapel in the Palazzo Pitti as a possible installation site . Reliable evidence of the whereabouts of the relief has only been available since 1890. The relief was acquired for the sculpture collection of the royal museums in Berlin in 1890. Shortly before the end of the war in 1945, the relief was kept together with other art objects in the Leitturm in Berlin- Friedrichshain and was badly destroyed as a result of a fire. In the post-war period, the model came to the Soviet Union , where it was initially restored. In 1958 it was returned to the Bode Museum (formerly Kaiser Friedrich Museum ) in Berlin, where it has been on display ever since.

literature

  • Birgit Langhanke: The Madonna reliefs in the work of Antonio Rossellino. Dissertation, LMU Munich: Faculty for History and Art Studies. 2013
  • Wilhelm Bode: Monuments of the Renaissance sculpture of Tuscany - in a historical arrangement. Munich 1892–1905, p. 103.
  • Adolfo Venturi: La scultura del Quattrocento , vol. 6, Milan 1908
  • Heinz Gottschalk: Antonio Rossellino. Liegnitz 1930
  • Leo Planiscig: Bernardo and Antonio Rossellino. Vienna 1942
  • Giuseppe Galassi: La scultura fiorentina del Quattrocento. Milan 1949
  • John Pope-Hennessy: The Altman Madonna by Antonio Rossellino. In: Metropolitan Museum Journal 3 (1970), pp. 133-148.
  • Francesca Petrucci: Introduzione alla Mostra fotografica di Antonio Rossellino (exhibition cat. Florence, Misericordia di Settignano, 25.10. - 8.12.1980), Florence 1980.
  • Ronald G. Kecks: Madonna and Child - The domestic devotional image in Florence of the 15th century. Berlin 1988.
  • Francesco Negri Arnoldi: Antonio Rossellino e Desiderio da Settignano. Sulla paternità di alcune celebri Madonne fiorentine del Quattrocento. In: Confronto 2 (2003), pp. 58-64.
  • Francesco Caglioti: Catalog entry 2.8: Antonio Rossellino - Madonna col Bambino. In: Matteo Civitali e il suo tempo. Pittori, scultori e orafi a Lucca nel tardo Quattrocento (Lucca, Museo Nazionale di Villa Guinigi, April 3 - July 11, 2004), Maria Teresa Filieri (ed.), Milan 2004, pp. 308–309.
  • Giancarlo Gentilini: Dal rilievo alla pittura - La Madonna delle candelabre di Antonio Rossellino. Florence 2008.
  • Gabriele Donati: Catalog entry 5.9: Antonio Rossellino, Madonna col Bambino. In: Da Donatello a Lippi - Officina pratese (exhibition cat. Prato, Museo di Palazzo Pretorio, September 13, 2013 - January 13, 2014), Andrea De Marchi, Cristina Gnoni Mavarelli (ed.), Milan 2013, p. 193– 194.
  • Heinz Gottschalk: Antonio Rossellino. Liegnitz 1930.
  • Fra Filippo Lippi, Madonna and Child, tempera on wood, 115 × 71 cm , Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, Florence.
  • Ronald G. Kecks: Madonna and Child - The domestic devotional image in Florence of the 15th century. Berlin 1988., p. 102f.
  • Shelley Elizabeth Zuraw: The sculpture of Mino da Fiesole (1429–1484). Diss. New York University 1993. pp. 697-700. See also Bietti 2013.
  • Frida Schottmüller: The Italian and Spanish images of the Renaissance and Baroque. The sculptures in stone, wood, clay and wax. Berlin / Leipzig 1933.
  • Ministry of Culture - Association of Visual Artists of the GDR (ed.): Restored works of art in the German Democratic Republic (exhibition cat. Berlin, exhibition in the Altes Museum - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, April - June 1980), Berlin 1979.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Daniela Ranzi: Masterpiece with war damage. In: State Museums in Berlin. Retrieved July 9, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Madonna and Child. In: Database of the National Museums in Berlin. Berlin State Museums, accessed on June 19, 2020 .
  3. ^ Ministry of Culture - Association of Fine Artists of the GDR (ed.): Restored works of art in the German Democratic Republic (exhibition cat. Berlin, exhibition in the Altes Museum - Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, April - June 1980) . Berlin 1979, p. 139 ff .
  4. ↑ a b Julien Chapuis: Three-dimensional memory - plaster casts in the restoration and presentation practice of the sculpture collection of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Heidelberg University, accessed on July 9, 2020 .
  5. ↑ a b Karoline Korthase: Frame reconstruction in the Bode Museum. In: SMB Blog Museum. Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, October 12, 2018, accessed on July 9, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Karoline Korthase: Frame reconstruction in the Bode Museum. In: SMB Blog Museum. Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, October 12, 2018, accessed on July 9, 2020 .
  7. ^ Andrea Niehaus: Florentine relief art from Brunelleschi to Michelangelo . Deutscher Kunstverlag, 1998, p. 87 f .
  8. ↑ Birgit Langhanke: The Madonna reliefs in the work of Antonio Rossellino (dissertation) . Ed .: LMU Munich: Faculty of History and Art. Munich 2013, p. 236 .
  9. ↑ ibid.
  10. ^ Heinz Gottschalk: Antonio Rossellino . Liegnitz 1930, p. 38 ff .
  11. ^ A b Ronald G. Kecks: Madonna and Child - The domestic devotional image in Florence in the 15th century . Berlin 1988, p. 102 f .
  12. ^ Francesco Negri Arnoldi: Antonio Rossellino e Desiderio da Settignano. Sulla paternità di alcune celebri Madonne fiorentine del Quattrocento . In: Confronto . tape 2 , 2003, p. 63 .
  13. ^ Leo Planiscig: Bernardo and Antonio Rossellino . Vienna 1942, p. 27 f .
  14. ^ Giuseppe Galassi: La scultura fiorentina del Quattrocento . Milan 1949, p. 174 .
  15. ↑ John Pope-Hennessy: The Altman Madonna by Antonio Rossellino . In: Metropolitan Museum Journal . tape 3 , 1970, p. 143 .
  16. ^ Francesca Petrucci: Introduzione alla Mostra fotografica di Antonio Rossellino . In: Exhibition cat. Florence, Misericordia di Settignano, 25.10. - December 8th, 1980 . Florence 1980, p. 22nd f .
  17. ↑ Gabriele Donati: Antonio Rossellino, Madonna col Bambino . In: Andrea De Marchi, Cristina Gnoni Mavarelli (eds.): Da Donatello a Lippi - Officina pratese (exhib.-cat. Prato, Museo di Palazzo Pretorio, 13.9.2013 - 13.1.2014) . Milan 2013, p. 194 f .
  18. ^ Giancarlo Gentilini: Dal rilievo alla pittura - La Madonna delle candelabre di Antonio Rossellino . Florence 2008, p. 30 .
  19. ^ Karl Schade: Devotional picture: the history of an art-historical term . Ed .: Publishing house and database for the humanities. Weimar 1996.
  20. ^ Frida Schottmüller: The Italian and Spanish images of the Renaissance and Baroque. The sculptures in stone, wood, clay and wax . Berlin / Leipzig 1933, p. 47 .
  21. ↑ Madonna with child and two putti. In: SMB database. Berlin State Museums, accessed on July 9, 2020 .