Martinengo Altarpiece
Martinengo Altarpiece | |
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Artist | Lorenzo Lotto |
Year | 1513–1516 |
Medium | Oil on panel |
Dimensions | 520 cm × 250 cm (200 in × 98 in) |
Location | Santi Bartolomeo e Stefano, Bergamo |
The Martinengo Altarpiece is a painting by the Italian
History
On 15 May 1516, Lotto was in Bergamo to sign a contract for a large altarpiece for the high altar of the church of San Bartolomeo, funded by Alessandro Martinengo Colleoni, who had chosen the church as the family's new burial place (the outstanding
The painting, the largest ever painted by Lotto, was once accompanied by a series of minor panels, which were dispersed in the following centuries and have been only partially identified - one is The Entombment of Christ (now in Bergamo).
Description
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Lotto%2C_pala_martinengo_01.jpg/240px-Lotto%2C_pala_martinengo_01.jpg)
The subject of the painting is a
The interpretation of the numerous symbols of the picture is disputed. Some of the objects could be taken from Francesco Colonna's Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, alluding to the rule of Venice in Bergamo, of which Martinengo was a supporter. The inscription in the upper part, saying Divina Suave, would be a reference to Venice.
In the lower part, the Virgin sits on a throne having a zoomorphic base, whose lion paws are a reference to
The two child angels in the low foreground are a typical element in Lotto's works.
The work is signed and dated "Laurentius / Lotus / M.D.XVI".
Secondary panels
The following panels, located in other places, are usually associated with the work:
- Angel with Sceptre and a Globe (Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest
- Martyrdom of St. Stephen (predella), 51x97 cm, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo
- Deposition of Christ (predella), 51x97 cm, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo
- Miracle of St. Dominic (predella), 51x97 cm, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo
- Martyrdom of St. Alexander (tondo, canvas), 16.8 cm diameter, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh
- Pietà (tondo, tela), 16.8 cm diameter, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh
- St. Peter Martyr (from the pillars, canvas), 24x53 cm, Fondazione Longhi, Florence
- Dominican Saint (from the pillars, tela), 24x53 cm, Fondazione Longhi, Florence
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
Sources
- Pirovano, Carlo (2002). Lotto. Milan: Electa.