Pala of Blessed Nicholas of Tolentino (Raffael)

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Fragments of the altar panel from the Museo di Capodimonte, Naples

The Pala of Blessed Nicholas of Tolentino , also called Pala Baroncini , is one of the earliest altarpieces by Raphael .

Image data

Painted around 1500 / 01
oil on wood

Story of the picture

On December 10, 1500, Raphael and Evangelista da Pian di Meleto were jointly commissioned to paint a large altarpiece for the Baronci Chapel in the Church of Sant'Agostino in Città di Castello . Work on the panel was finished on September 13 of the following year. Blessed Nicholas of Tolentino , standing in the center of the picture, was depicted in an archway with the devil at his feet. Around him there are three angels with banners and above his head there is God the Father, with a crown in his hands, surrounded by angel heads. To the left is Mary and St. Augustine , these two also carry a crown in their hand.

During a severe earthquake in 1789, the painting was so badly damaged that it was decided to saw the panel and only save the intact parts. In the same year the fragments of Pope Pius VI. acquired for the Vatican , where they remained until 1849. After that, their track is lost for a long time. It was only much later that research succeeded in identifying four fragments of the main panel and two predella panels , which are now in various art collections:

  • Angel, fragment of the Pala, Brescia,

  • Angel, fragment of the Pala, Paris,

  • Predella tablets
    • Blessed Nicholas of Tolentino raises two dead pigeons. Detroit, Institute of Art
    • Blessed Nicholas of Tolentino saves a drowning child. Detroit, Institute of Art

A copy from the 18th century, which is in the Pinacoteca civica in Città di Castello, offers an idea of ​​the main picture. Preparatory drawings are in Lille (Musée des Beaux-Arts) and Oxford ( Ashmolean Museum ). Based on these drawings, research now assumes that the design of the altar goes back to Raphael himself, whereas the execution is a joint effort by Raphael and Evangelista da Pian di Meleto . While Raphael probably painted the main panel, the predella panels appear to be a work by Evangelista da Pian di Meleto.

literature

  • Louis Hertig (introduction), Pierluigi de Vecci (scientific appendix): The complete works of Raffael (= classic of art ). Kunstkreis Luzern et al., Lucerne et al. 1966.
  • Sylvia Ferino Pagden, Maria Antonietta Zancan: Raffaello. Catalogo completo dei dipinti (= I gigli dell'arte 9). Cantini, Florence 1989, ISBN 88-7737-101-3 .

Web links

Commons : Pala del beato Nicola da Tolentino  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
Commons : Details  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files