Magi Chapel
The Magi Chapel is a
Overview
The chapel is on the piano nobile of the palace and was one of the first rooms to be decorated after the completion of the building, designed by Michelozzo. In its original appearance the chapel was perfectly symmetrical and had its entrance through the central door, which today is closed. Inside, the chapel is divided into two juxtaposed squares: a large hall and a raised rectangular apse with an altar and two small lateral sacristies. Begun around 1449-50, the chapel was probably completed around 1459 with the precious ceiling of inlaid wood, painted and generously gilded by Pagno di Lapo Portigiano, according to Michelozzo's design.[1] The latter also designed the flooring of marble mosaic work divided by elaborate geometric design, which due to the extraordinary value of the materials (porphyries, granites, etc.) affirmed the Medicis' desire to emulate the magnificence of the Roman basilicas and the Florentine Baptistry.
The first pictorial element in the chapel was the altar panel bearing
In the apse, the side walls are painted with saints and angels in adoration, where Gozzoli followed the style of his master, Fra Angelico. There are also three thin vertical fresco sections showing the shepherds of the nativity.
Gozzoli's Journey of the Magi
Background
Having begun the work in the spring-summer of 1459, Benozzo probably completed the work rapidly over the space of a few months, with the help of at least one assistant, under the supervision of Piero di Cosimo de' Medici. It was probably Piero who suggested that the artist should use Gentile da Fabriano's Adoration of the Magi as a model for the frescoes. The extraordinary complexity and subtlety of the technique of execution, in which true fresco alternated with dry fresco, permitted the painter to work with meticulous care, almost as if he was engraving, like the goldsmith he had been in Ghiberti's workshop. This sheer craftsmanship is evident not just in the precious materials of jewelry, fabrics, and harnesses, but even in the trees laden with fruit, the meadows spangled with flowers, the variegated plumage of the birds, and the multicolored wings of the angels. Finally, leaves of pure gold were applied generously to shine in the dark, in the dim light of the candles.
The painting is dedicated to a sacred subject but rich in traces of pomp and secular elegance. Hosts of angels sing and adore while the magnificent procession of the Three Kings approaches Bethlehem, accompanied by their respective entourages as they enjoy the scene of a noble hunting party with falcons and felines along the way. The sumptuous and varied costumes with their princely finishing make this pictorial series one of the most fascinating testimonies of art and costume of all time.[2]
The procession
Melchior, the oldest Magus, rides on the west wall leading the procession. Traditionally, his features have been read as those of
Bearded Balthasar, the middle Magus, rides a white horse on the south wall. He is portrayed with the same facial features as Byzantine emperor John VIII Palaiologos. It is thought by some that the three pages behind him represent Piero's daughters, Nannina, Bianca and Maria, while others argue that the faces of those young women are more likely to be amongst the rest of the Medici portraits.
On the east wall, Caspar, the youngest Magus, leads the end of the procession on a white horse. This figure has often been taken for an idealized
With rich Tuscan landscapes filling the rest of the pictorial space, this fresco was designed like contemporary tapestries, a new type of courtly art destined for wealthy patrons. The fortress, in the style of medieval castles, which appears at the highest point of the picture and is the point from which the king's pilgrimage has set out, is similar to the Medicis' country seat in Cafaggiolo
Gozzoli's patron, Piero de' Medici, felt some of the seraphim were unsuitable, and wanted them painted over. Although the artist agreed to do this, it was never actually done.[citation needed] In 1659, the Riccardi family bought the Palazzo Medici and undertook some structural changes. This included, in 1689, the building of an exterior flight of stairs leading up to the first floor. For this purpose the entrance to the chapel had to be moved. During the process, two sections of wall were cut out of the south western corner, in the Procession of the Oldest King. After the stairs were finished, the cut out elements were mounted on a corner of the wall projecting into the room. During the course of this, the oldest king's horse was cut up and mounted on two different segments of the wall.
Gallery
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Chapel ceiling
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Chapel floor
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Decorations
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Decorations
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Carved wooden stalls
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The original altarpiece, Lippi'sAdoration
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Angels in Adoration (left)
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Angels in Adoration (right)
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Melchior
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Balthasar
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Caspar
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Byzantine wealth
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Cosimo and Piero
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Nannina, Bianca and Maria.
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Lorenzo and Giuliano
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Gozzoli, self-portrait.
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Gozzoli (centre), self-portrait
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Hunting scene
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Falcon and hare
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Birds in flight
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Exotic felid
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Jerusalem/Cafaggiolo
See also
- Flagellation of Christ (Piero della Francesca) - another painting featuring contemporary portraits, the identities of which have been hotly debated.
- Adoration of the Magi (Sandro Botticelli)- a painting featuring prominent Medici family members as the Magi.
- Madonna of the Magnificat (Sandro Botticelli) - a painting featuring Lucrezia Tornabuoni, wife of Piero de' Medici, as Mary, while Lorenzo and Giuliano appear as angels.
- The Confirmation of the Rule (Domenico Ghirlandiao) - a painting featuring Lorenzo and his sons Giuliano, Piero and Giovanni, the latter being the future Pope Leo X.
References
- ^ "Chapel of the Magi". The Museums of Florence (private website). Retrieved November 9, 2017.
- ^ "Chapel of the Magi". The Museums of Florence. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
- Cardini, Franco (2001). The Chapel of the Magi in Palazzo Medici. Florence: Mandragora.
- Davisson, Darrell D., Secrets of the Medici Palace and Its Private Chapel: Six Studies in the early Italian Renaissance, 2014, San Bernardino, Createspace.