Florence 2012 Journal: Comparing the two Pulpits of the Baptistery in Pisa and Cathedral in Siena

Comparing the two Pulpits of the  Baptistery in Pisa and Cathedral in Siena.

The Pulpit in the Baptistery of Pisa was completed in 1260 and the Pulpit in Siena’s cathedral followed five years later and was eventually completed in 1268. Nicola Pisano was Pivotal in the sculpting of them both. However, Pisano’s son Giovanni, assisted him in the latter along with a possible relative of Alnorfo Di Cambio. As with most Pulpits, they have both been moved around in their respective locations. Furthermore, they both depict the conventional scenes of the life of Christ. Namely the Annunciation, the Adoration of the Magi, the Slaughter of the Innocents, the Crucifixion and the Last Judgement.

The earlier Pulpit (Fig. 2) was among the first to step away from what was typical for their form. It was built at a time when the Gothic style had been introduced by the Pisan Cardinal as a ‘fashionable’ style. You can see this in the ‘bushy capitals’ which are a supposed ’Gothic variation of the Corinthian capital’.[1]

Furthermore, Pisano also incorporates classical elements into his work. This can be seen across both Pulpits, in Fig. 2 with the naked classical figure (believed to be Hercules) and in Fig. 1 with the naked bodies in the Last Judgement scene. Conversely, such influences are most notably found in the form of Roman Sarcophagi. In fact, in the ‘Adoration of the Magi’ scene, St. Mary is depicted with a temple above her head - this is identical to a depiction found on a sarcophagus in the Camposanto (Fig. 2). What is more, it is asserted by Fred Kleiner that if you were to alter the dimensions of the panels slightly, then they would have been akin in form to Roman Sarcophagi.[2] This is all an allusion to Pisa as the ‘New Rome’ as they were reproducing exact replicas in some cases of classical sculpture. The historian Christopher Klenhenz puts it in the following terms:

‘This hexagonal Pulpit is decorated with scenes from the life of Christ that are characterized by classical forms; like the inscriptions on the face of the Cathedral, these forms connect the work to the popular theme of Pisa as new Rome’. [3]

However, while he did begin to use new elements he did also continue in Medieval tradition somewhat in that the bottom of the columns are supported by lions (there is one lion breastfeeding so we can only assume Pisano wanted to depict a lioness but did so wrongly as it has a mane). Their inclusion alongside new, innovative elements, could be because the lions were so symbolically important. Their importance derives from folklore that states  a lion will breathe into the open mouths of his cubs and give them vision which is an allusion to Resurrection. This feature was also carried forward for the later Pulpit in Siena; (Fig.1) but in contrast to the earlier pulpit, the latter lioness is depicted correctly.  This could be either testament to Pisano’s improvement as an artist or the involvement of others; Charles Norton asserts the former saying that the ‘Sienese pulpit shows the advance that Niccola had made in the six years since the Pisan pulpit was completed’.[4]

Considering the two Pulpits had were made under the same man, and not even a decade apart, they are bound to be similar. However, I believe the new generation of artists (in the form of his son, Giovanni) meant that the style of the latter Pulpit in Siena was developing akin to Proto - Renaissance sculpture. It was evidently not completely what we consider ‘Renaissance’ today but the development is evident. In my opinion, the Sienese Pulpit bridged the difficulties Nicola had with space and depth with the almost ease at which Giovanni achieved those very elements in his Pulpit in the Cathedral at Pisa at the beginning of the 14^th century.

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[1] C. Mamiya, F. Kleiner, Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, Western Perspective, (Wadsworth Publishing Co  Inc; 12^th Revised Edition, 2005), 406.

[2] Ibid.

[3] C. Klenhenz, Medieval Italy: An Encyclopedia: 002 The Routledge Encyclopaedias of the middle ages (Routledge, 2003), 906.

[4] C. Norton, Historical Studies of Church Building in the Middle Ages: Venice, Siena, Florence 1902 (Kessinger Publication, 2003), 132.

Florence 2012 Journal: Siena

Siena

On the 9^th of November we visited Siena.

The Palazzo Publico is situated in the Piazza del Campo: a shell shaped Piazza with 9 fragments. These fragments represent each of the 9 contrade (districts) of Siena that were present during its contruction in 1297. Its original purpose was to seat the house of 9, the mayor and the house of justice. It is built on a hill with a 30 metre decline from the north side to the south side of the palace and thus the ground is acknowledged to be insecure. Therefore the bottom of the building is made in stone, while the upper part is far lighter and built with bricks to keep the delicate ground underneath from collapsing. Opposite the Palazzo is the fountain that is used to water the horses during the biannual horse race held there.

It was paid for by one of the two major parties at the time: the Guelphs. They supported the Papacy unlike the other party, the Ghibellines, who supported the merchants. We know this because of the flat dentals (tourettes that look like teeth - pictured above) used on the building. The Guelphs were known to build flat ones whilst rounded dentals are attributed to the Ghibellines.

The right side of the palace (with the tower) is where the seat of the Mayor is, the middle is used for the government (originally the House of 9) and to the right is where the seat of justice is located. The tower, ‘Torre del Mangia’ is the latest addition built in 1338-48. The name means ‘Tower of the Eater’ and derives from the character of its first Guardian - Giovanni di Balduccio.  Infamously known for ‘eating’ all of that he earned!

Inside you can find the Fresco by Simone Martini in the Sala del Mappamondo (the World Map Room). It is slightly damaged due to water infiltration from the lodger located above, the salt content of the wall and the humidity from below. There is also evidence of the blue background peeling off but this is because the Lapis Lazuli (blue pigment) was applied in secco and therefore is likely to peel. It was completed in 1315 and had to be restored only 6 years later because of the problems mentioned beforehand.  The room in which it is located is called as it is because opposite the Maesta used to be a large rotating map of the world. The ability to rotate it has resulted in circular marks left behind on the wall.

The following room has a panoramic fresco by Ambrogio Lorenzetti depicting the ‘Good and Bad Government‘. It shows the strife caused by the previous ‘bad government’ then evolves into a harmonious depiction of the Sienese countryside under the new ‘Good Government’.

Siena’s cathedral was completed in the 13^th century and was rebuilt on an earlier site. There were plans to extend it ambitiously. However, the Black Death in the 1340’s meant that the work had to be put on hold. Once the Plague had passed on, the Sienese realised that there were fatal errors in what had already been built and that the insecure ground (as mentioned earlier) would not be able to support the structure. Therefore, work was never resumed and all that can be seen now are the outer walls of what was to become the new nave (See Left), to the right of the front façade.

The main Façade of the Cathedral took nearly 100 years to complete. It is said to have been created in two stages - the first stage of its construction was completed up to the Lunettes and the second was from the Lunettes upwards. The first stage began in the 1280’s and stopped abruptly in 1317. The majority of the work done was completed according to Giovanni Pisano’s (Nicola’s son) plans. The second stage was not completed until the least 1360-70’s and was fairly in keeping with Pisano’s plans. However, the new architect Giovanni di Cecco had to modify Pisano’s plans somewhat in order to accommodate for the OPA’s desire for the façade to be raised.

Therefore, the Cathedral is a combination of Sienese Romanesque (that looked towards Classical Antiguity) and the French Gothic style (Di Cecco’s influence). For example, the columns at either side begin in the traditional Romanesque style only to transform into Pinnacles as they reach the height of the façade, a typical  feature in Gothic architecture. Another thing to note are the black and white stripes not only seen on/inside of the Cathedral but throughout Siena too, they are the official colours of Siena.