Caravaggio and stuff

Piazza del Popolo

The gates here were one of the main entrances to Rome.  The via Flaminia was a major road leading into Rome from the north and dates back to antiquity.  Pilgrims used the road to reach the city.  The triumphal arch is in the middle of the Aurelian wall and built at the end of the 16^th century.  The gates are flanked by Peter and Paul.  The doors would have been closed when pilgrims arrived and the pilgrims would have to pay taxes to pass through the gates to enter the city.  The piazza was the first sight the pilgrims had of the city.  This section of Rome, the Campus Martius, remained populated during the Middle Ages because the aqueduct, the Acqua Vergine, remained operational.

The obelisk in the center of the piazza was re-uplifted here in the 1580’s by Sixtus V who wanted to redesign the city with an urban plan-renovazione urbis.  This particular obelisk was important and dates from antiquity.  It is one of two obelisks from the Circus Maximus-the other is at St. John Lateran-and would have marked the ends of the spine of the circus.  The obelisk is made from a single piece of granite and was transported to Rome whole as a spoil of war.  

During the Middle Ages the Circus Maximus turned into a lake due to its low profile and approximation to the Tiber.  Sixtus V, thinking there might be something there, had the lake drained and rediscovered the obelisks.  He had the obelisk re-uplifted at Piazza del Popolo which connected axially with other obelisks in the city- at St. John’s, at St. Peter’s, at the Spanish Steps, at Santa Maria Maggiore.  The obelisks recreated the spine of the circus referencing Rome itself as a circus.  Sixtus V had the obelisk capped with a bronze cross indicating Christianity’s superiority over the ancients and marking the continuation of the ancient imperial governments.

The far edge of the piazza is executed in a tridentine design with three streets heading off into different yet important, parts of Rome: Via Ripeta heads to St. Peters, Via Baubino leads to Santa Maria Maggiore and then to St. John’s, and Via Lata leads to the Campodoligo, the civic center of Rome.  Bernini designed two churches for that end of the piazza, Santa Maria in Montesanto and Santa Maria dei Miracoli.  The two churches, with their classical pediments and domes, are a synthesis of St. Peter’s and the Pantheon combining the ancient with the modern.  Each church has three entrances referencing the three streets, as well as the three entrances to the piazza through the Porto del Popolo.

Santa Maria del Popolo was the first church pilgrims would see as they entered the city.  It was the legendary location of Nero’s grave and early Christians put a church here to dispel evil spirits by sanctifying the ground.  In 1660 a celebration was held for Queen Christina of Sweden who had made a pilgrimage to Rome after converting to Catholicism.  Bernini had restored the arch and the church in honor of the celebration, which was also staged by Bernini.

Neo-Platonism-during the Renaissance Plato’s Ideals evolved to coincide with the thinking of the day.  The Ideals become fragmented as they travel through the universe from heaven to earth.  Once on earth the scatter so humanity can only see a fragment of the truth.  The human soul went through a similar process.  As it leaves heaven, the soul loses its memory of the ideal place but it regains that memory after it leaves the body and returns to god.

Transition-The end of the 16^th and beginning of the 17^th centuries was a time of transition between the Renaissance and the Baroque, which might be said to be a response to Protestantism-the Counter-Reformation.  1600 was a jubilee year and Rome expected two million visitors-pilgrims-to crowd her streets.  Churches throughout the city were refurbished and embellished.  This was fortunate for a young artist named Michelangelo Merisi whom we know as Caravaggio.

Caravaggio arrived in Rome in the 1590’s under the patronage of the marquise Colone.  He lived with another artist, Arpino, who was commissioned to pain the inside of St. Peter’s dome.  Caravaggio assisted Arpino and studied still lifes.  He was discovered by Cardinal del Monte who commissioned early paintings by Caravaggio.  The Justiniani Family, neighbors of del Monte, also started commissioning paintings from Caravaggio.  Caravaggio received his first public commission from Cardinal Matteo Contaerelli for the family chapel in San Luigi dei Francesi which was being embellished along with the other churches for the Jubilee year of 1600.  The chapel was dedicated to St. Matthew and Caravaggio made a series of three paintings for the chapel.

Calling of St. Matthew-Three figures point to Matthew, a tax collector living at the customs house, who is sitting in the back of a tavern; Christ points rather emphatically at Matthew, his arm following the shaft of light (or Christ is responsible for the light), Matthew responding to the gesture by pointing to himself, and finally Peter, standing next to Christ mimics his gesture but less emphatically, his fingers in a priestly blessing formation.  The hand of Christ is Michelangelo’s hand of Adam from the Sistine ceiling-recalling that Christ is the new Adam.  The light enters the room from the right emphasizing the reading of the painting from Right to left giving it a linearity of narrative like a history painting.  Caravaggio divided the painting in half recalling Michelangelo on the right and Leonardo on the left; the figures in the painting react much like the figures in Leonardo’s Last Supper.  The figures closest to Christ are the most animated while the ones furthest away are not involved in the scene at all.  Overall the painting is calm and tranquil.

Martyrdom of Saint Matthew-A more violent painting it is juxtaposed with the tranquility of the Calling of Saint Matthew.  The figures are placed in a circular formation based on a wheel referencing the continuation of time.  There is energy in this painting as if the artist was present and captured the moment as it occurred-this is the concept of energeia, a rhetorical figure of speech, rhetorical verrissitude.  The Ignudi in this piece are neophytes-those awaiting baptism.  Matthew is shown falling into the baptismal font as if he were falling into a tomb, which is what this chapel was.

Altar Piece-St. Matthew with the Angel-Matthew is writing his gospel while receiving inspiration from an angel.  This is the second version Caravaggio painted, the first was rejected because Matthew was depicted as illiterate with his hand being guided by the angel and it was unseemly that an illiterate man could write the gospel.  In this version, the angel is dictating the gospel to Matthew and giving him the human ancestry of Christ which would be recalled by the elevated host.

 

Madonna of Loreto was created for the Caveletti family and dedicated to Our Lady of Loreto.  In the depiction, the Madonna and child are at her home and receiving pilgrims-an anachronistic image.  Mary is crossing her legs as if she is turning to go back inside and taking the child to his destiny.  This is showing her in movement.  Her hand is holding the child exactly where his future wound will be.  Christ’s face is obscured, hidden in the shadows; his awareness of his future sacrifice is hidden.  There is tension in the image, the red velvet of Mary’s dress represents the blood of Christ and she is being portrayed as a priestess, delivering her son to his sacrifice.  Caravaggio took into consideration the precise location of the painting and the architecture immediately surrounding the chapel; the painting is illuminated from the lower left side as if it were receiving its light from the church door opening.

Boy with a Basket of Fruit-This is a suggestive and sensuous painting similar to Titian’s “Flora.”

This is an early painting of Caravaggio’s and it represents where his talent lay, which was not on the human form.  From Pliny’s Natural History:  "The story runs that Parrhasios and Zeuxis entered into competition, Zeuxis exhibiting a picture of some grapes so true to nature that the birds flew up to the wall of the stage.  Parrhasios then displayed a picture of a linen curtain, realistic to such a degree that Zeuxis, elated by the verdict of the birds, cried out that now at least his rival must draw the curtain and show his picture.  On discovering his mistake he surrendered the prize to Parrhasios, admitting candidly that he had deceived the birds, while Parrhasios had deluded himself, a painter.  After this we learn that Zeuxis painted a boy carrying grapes, and when the birds flew down to settle on them, he was vexed with his own work, and came forward saying, with like frankness, 'I have painted the grapes better than the boy, for had I been perfectly successful with the latter, the birds must have been afraid.' " Caravaggio recreates the painting by Zeuxis-by way of Ekphrasis-and in doing so acknowledges where his ability is limited, the fruit is incredible, the boy not so much.

Sick Baccus-This is a self-portrait and a contemporary of The Boy with a Basket of Fruit.  In this work Caravaggio is imitating Michelangelo and his sculpture of Baccus.  He is attempting to prove the superiority of painting by transforming Baccus into a young man who is quite ill, something which sculpture could not accomplish.  Baccus’ green pallor could be easily represented in paint but not in marble.  

Baccus is also a very sensuous painting.  He is definitely aware of the viewer and seems to be offering not only his grapes to the viewer but offering himself as well-his red ribbon just asking to be untied.

Palafenieri Madonna-The three figures in this painting, St. Anne, the Virgin Mary, and the Christ Child, represent the genealogy of Christ and his humanity.  Christ is again being shown as the New Adam and here he is redeeming the sin of Adam by killing the snake.  He is also touching his future side wound as is the Virgin Mary.

 

David Holding the Head of Goliath-This is another self-portrait but this one is rather penitent.  Caravaggio had killed a man-the details aren’t important-and was exiled from Rome.  He was desperate to return and pleaded with a cardinal friend of his to help him try to receive clemency from the pope.  As a way of showing his sorrow for his deeds, he sent this painting as a calling card to the cardinal showing that he was repentant; one of Goliath’s eyes is already dead and the other stares directly at the viewer begging for forgiveness.  This is actually a double self-portrait showing a young and an older Caravaggio; the young man holding the head of the older man also represents the passage of time.

Stanze by Raphael

These rooms were originally part of the papal apartments.  Julius II had the apartments moved upstairs and these rooms redecorated to remove traces of Alexander VI whom Julius detested.  Julius was a warrior prince and larger than life-Terebilita-but something of an uncultured, pompous jerk.

Stanza della Segnatura-1508-1511-Julius II

Disputation over the Sacrament (Disputa), School of Athens, Parnassus, Jurisprudence

Now called the signature room, this was originally Julius’ library.  It was dived into four sections corresponding to the four disciplines-Poetry, Law/Justice, Philosophy, and Theology, the last two being the most important.  Each wall had a fresco dedicated to one of the disciplines and tables were set up against each of the four walls with books relating to the discipline depicted laying out.  

Disputa-This was the first wall visitors would see as they walked into the library and was the wall dedicated to Theology.  The fresco depicts the Holy Trinity with God above blessing visitors.  Below him is Christ showing his stigmata with the Virgin Mary and John the Baptist flanking him on either side.  The Holy Ghost below Christ is flying down to the host on the altar.  Each of the three figures is surrounded by a radiant, gold circle, the circles diminishing in size as this vertical axis moves downward with the host being the smallest.  The vertical axis is intersected by three curvilinear, horizontal axes.  The upper most axis is at the level of God and is made up of Angels.  The middle axis is comprised of various saints and prophets sitting on clouds supported by putti.  They are recognizable both by their attributes and inscriptions on their halos.  The lowest axis is made up of forefathers of the church, identified by inscriptions on the books lying at their feet, and other polysemic figures discussing the exact meaning and importance of the host.  Two figures to note are Dante in red on the right and the lone, enigmatic female figure pointing to the scene-La Bella Pictura.  The frescoes shape reflects the apse of a church-appropriate with the inclusion of an altar and the host.  In the background is a church under construction which represents the building of the new St. Peter’s.

School of Athens-This fresco is directly opposite the Disputa and represents the Philosophy discipline.  It is populated with a large number of ancient philosophers including Socrates, Pythagoras, Euclid, Ptolemy, Zoroaster, and Diogenes who are discussing their philosophies with each other, with their students, their disciples, and/or interlocutors.  The setting is a stable, three arcaded classical structure that is a representation of the new St. Peter’s.  In the arcades are sculptures including one of Apollo and one of Minerva.  At the center are Plato and Aristotle, Plato holding Timaeus, the Socratic Dialog in which Plato introduced his Ideals and refers to a single creator, Aristotle holding Ethics, his treatise on how people should act.  Plato points to the sky-the heavens-where perfection exists.  Aristotle’s gesture is pragmatic, he points to the ground as if to say it is what happens on earth that matters, not some heavenly ideal.  The two are walking forward toward the Theology wall and, therefore, toward Christianity.  Both Plato and Aristotle are pointing to the Trinity; Plato is pointing up at a tripartite window above him and Aristotle is pointing to the Disputa across the room.  Plato, by referencing a single creator/god in Timaeus, prepared the world for Christianity and this idea made him and the other ancient authors worthy of study by Renaissance humanists fusing antiquity with Christianity, Philosophy with Theology, creating a new, modern society  Again an enigmatic figure appears on the left in white, looking directly at the viewer.  Also, on the right, Raphael included himself in the scene.

Parnassus-This is the fresco dedicated to poetry.  There is a mountain-Parnassus-surrounding a window through which the modern Parnassus was visible.  Apollo, playing a vielle, is at the center surrounded by muses and poets including Sappho, Homer, Virgil, and Dante.

Jurisprudence-The final wall has a lunette above a doorway and contains the cardinal virtues, Fortitude, Prudence, and Temperance.  On one side of the doorway, Justinian is receiving Civic law and on the other side, Gregory the Great is receiving Canon law.  The two have become fused in the power of the pope.

Stanza di Eliodoro-Raphael-1511-1514-Julius II and Leo X

Expulsion of Heliodorus, Miracle at Bolsena, Liberation of St. Peter, Meeting of Attila and Leo the Great

This room was a waiting room for European royalty, ambassadors, visiting clergy and other dignitaries.  While waiting, sometimes for hours, they would sit in this room and contemplate the scenes around them-or at least that was the idea.  The scenes are meant to represent the special place papal authority has in God’s eyes; God is on the side of the pope.  You attack us (the Church/Papal authority) and God will help the pope stop you-Meeting of Attila and Leo the Great.  You imprison us and God will set us free-Liberation of St. Peter (being portrayed by Julius himself!).  You disavow our miracles and God will convince you-Miracle (Mass) at Bolsena.  You steal from us (or refuse to pay your church taxes) and God will strike you down-Expulsion of Heliodorus.  These frescoes served as not so subtle reminders to the various visitors to mind their p’s and q’s.

Stanza dell’Incendio-Raphael-1514-Leo X

Continuing on the theme from above, here Leo X is shown as Leo IV, with the aid of God, is putting a stop to a fire in the Borgo by raising his hand in blessing.

Three Raphael's seen at the Vatican Museum and the Belvedere Courtyard

Raphael Sanzio was born in Urbino to a family of painters He was a prodigy and was sent to study with Perugino where, amongst other things, he assisted on Perugino’s Sacra Conversazione.  Raphael’s early work imitates Perugino’s style but changes and develops as he matures and comes into contact with other artists such as Michelangelo and, especially, Leonardo.  Although his life was short, he died when he was 37, he was quite prolific and achieved great status and acclaim while alive.  His body rests at the Pantheon.

Coronation of the Virgin-1503-Patron: Oddi family

This is an early work of Raphael and reflects the style of his teacher, Perugino.  The work is clearly divided into two sections by a very solid looking cloud on which Mary sits as Christ places a crown upon her head.  Below the apostles, and Raphael himself, look up in wonder.  The upper section is circular or hemispheric while earth is inside a square; these are standard depictions of heaven and earth dating back to antiquity-the heavenly sphere and the earthly plane.  The faces of the characters are very similar and the angels floating above Mary and Christ are depicted in a medieval manner.

Foligno Madonna-1512-Patron: Sigismondo dei Conti

This piece represents one of Raphael’s first works in Rome.  He was given the commission through the aid of Pope Julius II to whom he had been introduced by his friend Bramante.  Julius’ friend and private secretary was almost struck by a meteor and attributed his fortune at being missed to the Virgin Mary, hence the subject of the painting.  Sigismondo is being introduced to the Virgin by Saints John the Baptist, Jerome and Francis.  The space is still being dived in two with the spherical heaven above the earthly plane but the dividing line is not as clear as in the Coronation piece.  The clouds surrounding the Virgin Mary transform into angels as they ascend.  Mary is sitting on a throne but it is a throne of clouds and NOT an architectural setting.  Mary’s being framed by the sun is a reference to a vision at the top of the Campodoligo where a Sybil appeared to Augustus and informed him of Christ’s birth.

Transfiguration-1518-1520-Patron: Cardinal Giulio de Medici for the Cathedral of Narbonne in France (however it never made it to France-it was hung in San Pietro in Montorio until it was moved to the Pinacoteca-the painting gallery of the Vatican Museum).

This was Raphael’s last painting.  Sebastiano de Bombo was also given a commission by the Cardinal and when Raphael saw what Sebastiano was creating he altered his own style once again by becoming more Leonardesque.

Christ is revealing himself to Peter, John and James who are being pressed down into the earth of Mt. Tabor by Christ’s aura.  On either side of Christ are Moses and Elijah who are holding books referring to the Old Testament.  The painting is, again, divided into the two sections-heaven and earth, sphere and square-but the separation, while apparent, especially in the circular formation of Christ’s mandola, the delineating line is completely blurred at this point in Raphael’s career.

The scene below shows the remainder of the apostles helpless and confused as they try to help a possessed boy.  They are either looking desperately into a book for answers or pointing vaguely to Christ-whom they cannot actually see (but the boy actually appears to).  The book is a reference to the New Testament and the stream just below it represents the purity of water.  On the right the townspeople form a mirror image of the apostles and this set up is a reference to Leonardo’s Last Supper and the ripple effect produced from the center.  The enigmatic female figure at the center turns and points to the boy.  Her presence is most likely a device merely to show Rafael’s talent and is referred to as La Bella Pictura-she appears in other works of his.

The Belvedere Courtyard

The Villa

Originally commissioned to Donato Bramante by Pope Julius II, the Belvedere Complex began in 1504 and continued under various architects and popes.  The courtyard, inspired by courtyards of ancient Rome, was meant to connect the papal apartments and the Villa of Innocent VIII with a “covered and level” walkway of “two parallel porticoes diminishing in height from three to one stories in response to the rising terrain of Monte Sant’Egidio.”  The lower court included tiered seating and served as a “theater for such papal spectacles as dramas, jousts, and bull fights.  The lower court could also be flooded for mock battles at sea.  Between the upper court and the Villa was a small, open courtyard which housed the papal collection of sculpture, much of it from antiquity and recently unearthed.  In this courtyard the greatest artists of the day, Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael, Bramante, would have walked and been inspired by the objects seen.

The Apollo Belvedere

This is a Roman copy of a Greek original by Leochares and has been in the Belvedere since 1511.  It is believed to be the inspiration for Christ in Michelangelo’s Last Judgment (although I personally don’t see it).  The Vatican Hill was once named Parnassus after the home of Apollo and it was on this hill the Apollo Belvedere was rediscovered.

Laocoön

Laocoön and his Sons

This is one of the most important discoveries in the development of art.  It was found by a gardener at the Villa in 1506.  Michelangelo and other artists were brought in to analyze the work and attempt to decipher it.  It actually wasn’t a problem; in the 1^st century CE Pliny the Elder described the sculpture and its location in the Palace of Titus, and even named the artists: Hagesander, Polydoros, and Athanadoros.  Laocoön was a Trojan priest who warned the Trojans of the Greeks plan to invade the city by way of the great wooden horse.  Unfortunately for them, the Trojans did not believe him.  But Athena did hear him and, being on the side of the Greeks, sent snakes to attack and devour Laocoön and his sons.  The rediscovery of this statue marks the beginning of modern archeology with multiple individuals working together, and consulting archaic sources to determine exactly a time, place and function of an object.  

Emotive Laocoön

Even more than that, Laocoön changed the way sculptors and painters looked at their art.  It had always been the goal of Renaissance sculptors to reach the level of and surpass that of antiquity.  Laocoön brought about the direct confrontation of one society with another from different eras and it changed the rules of art by adding new twists in form, defined musculature, as well as enhanced emotion.  Art changed forever at this point with artists placing their figures exaggerated twists and spirals, their bodies displaying dramatic tension, and giving the figures much greater depth of emotion.

Torso Belvedere

The Torso Belvedere was another ancient piece of sculpture that provided inspiration to artists.  It has an emphasis on muscles that was unseen in Renaissance art up to that point but the torso’s influence can be seen almost immediately.  One example is the Ignudi of Michelangelo’s Sistine Ceiling are based on the form of the Torso Belvedere.

Mid-term assistance

 Well, it has been another long week filled with classes and quizzes and preparing for mid-terms.  I was afraid that I'd have no time to post an entry this weekend either as I must focus my energy on memorizing names of works, artists, dates, and commissioners.  But then I thought that since I have to transcribe my notes into something that makes sense, I might as well transcribe them here.  

Façade of San Marco, 1455-1503, Francesco del Borgo,
for Cardinal Pietro Barbo (Paul II)

San Marco is the first church in Rome dedicated to St. Mark and the first in Rome with a Renaissance façade.  It is the titular church of Cardinal Pietro Barbo (the future Paul II).  The arches of the loggia are Roman arches with engaged columns or pilasters and piers supporting the arches.  The façade references both the Coliseum and old St. Peter’s in its form-the stone used for the façade is actually from the Coliseum.  Old St. Peter’s façade had three arcades with Roman arches, and a blessing loggia where the Pope blesses the crowd.  In Roman arches the arch is supported by a pier with an engaged column or a pilaster.  Compare this style to Florentine arches where the column actually supports the arch.  San Marco faces Via Papalis, the then longest street in Rome.  The façade contains Cardinal Barbo’s crest as well as the Lion, the symbol of St. Mark.

Palazzo Venezia, 1455-1503, Francesco del Borgo for
Cardinal Pietro Bargo

Cardinal Barbo commissioned the Palazzo Venezia from the Florentine architect Francesco del Borgo and he wanted it built next to San Marco, his titular church.  It is the first geometrical building in Rome.  Borgo was up to date on the current tenets of architecture (he was a contemporary of Leon Batista Alberti and may have read Alberti’s treatises on building) and he also studied antiquity including the writings of Vitruvius.  The Palazzo refers back to medieval buildings with its tower, crenelations and color.  Framing the windows in travertine references the ancient past and the cross-mullion referred to both the Guelphs Pro-Papal stance (a political statement for all to see) and also produced an interior shadow of a cross.  The Piano Nobile-or main floor-consists of several rooms descending in size and increasing in importance with the smallest rooms being the Cardinal’s private rooms.  The current location of the second section of the palace was the original location of the palace garden screened in with a wall and planted with trees and displaying sculpture.  The palace entrance-possibly by Alberti-is the first use of concrete since antiquity.  Note similarity to the Pantheon and its coffered ceiling.  The entrance is a barrel vault leading into the courtyard which is unfinished but done al’antiqua-in the old style.

Façade and main portal of the Palazzo della Cancelleria

 

Palazzo della Cancelleria, begun 1489 for Cardinal Raffaele Riario; the Architect is unknown.

Cardinal Raffaele Riario built his palace-covered in marble absconded from the coliseum-with an “honest fortune” he had acquired by gambling with (and winning) other cardinals.  The palace has taken a further step away from the medieval style by losing the fortification that defines earlier palaces such as the Palazzo Venezia. The engaged pilasters at the top are a direct reference the coliseum. Proportions of the palazzo are made to the golden mean (1:3.618)

              

Façade of the Palazzo della Cancelleria and portal to the greatly
reduced church of San Lorenzo

            Cardinal Riario Destroyed the church of San Lorenzo (his titular church) reusing the elements from antiquity in his courtyard and reducing the church to a small chapel undistinguishable on the exterior.

 

Courtyard, Palazzo della Cancelleria

  The courtyard differs greatly from the façade which directly referenced both antique and contemporary Rome.  The courtyard is done in the Florentine style with a Florentine arcade constructed with granite columns from antiquity taken from the church of San Lorenzo (see above).  Unlike the Roman arch, the Florentine arch is supported directly on columns.  Here there is a double arcade and the corners are made from combined pilasters.

Courtyard-corner combined pilaster

Corner of Palazzo della Cancelleria

Courtyard with double arcade, Florentine arches, and a third floor

 Tourist notes:  This place if fricking huge.  I was backed up against the building across the piazza taking pictures of the façade and could never get more than a third in the photograph.  It just goes on and on.  The Cardinal was definitely out to impress people but it did not him much good; he wanted to be elected Pope but never was.

The courtyard is really beautiful and I can just imagine what it looked like in the day filled with plants and trees and statuary.  

Façade of Palazzo Farnese

Palazzo Farnese, begun 1517 and completed 1589.  Antionio da Sangallo was the original architect but died midway through the project.  Michelangelo redesigned portions of the façade and worked on the building until his own death.  Vignola and Giacomo della Porta completed the project.  The original commission came from Alesandro Farnese, the future Pope Paul III.

Alesandro Farnese was the intermediary agent at the council of Trent, and later became Pope Paul III.  The Palazzo was begun when he was a cardinal, the plan was expanded after his elevation to Pope.  The courtyard has a triple arcade like the coliseum and is made of Travertine.  The church has completely disappeared by this point.  It is comprised of additive modules-from Partridge: additive system could easily be expanded or shrunk depending on need and money available; “limited number of standardized elements that could be relatively efficiently and cheaply produced (74)."   

Michelangelo takes over from Sangalla upon his death; raises the roof line by 3 meters so the cornice (which he also enlarged) isn’t “crushing” the upper story windows.  He enlarged the central window and added the Farnese family crest above the main portal creating a focal point for the piano nobile; the shield the crest sits in is shaped like a horse’s head referencing knighthood.

Piazza Farnese with a view onto via Papalis

There is an axial presentation involved here, the Piazza in front of the Palazzo is the exact size of the façade; the view from palazzo across piazza and down the street is to via Papalis; in the opposite direction the view moves from the piazza, through the palace courtyard, onto a view of river and across it to the Villa Farnese. 

Tourist note:  And I thought the French were anal!  Oh, wait, they are French.  Well not the Farnese, who were an old Roman family, but the Palazzo Farnese is now the French Embassy. 

An explanation of the via Papalis; it was a road, or more properly a series of roads, that created a liner procession route for a newly elected pope.  This was a time before the current St. Peter's basilica, Roman Catholicism's main church, and the Vatican palaces where the pope lives today.  In the 15th century and beyond a newly elected pope would have to travel from the Vatican to the Campidoglio, (see below) the civic center where he would accept secular power-remember the pope was also the secular ruler of the Papal States-and then onto St. John Lateran, the pope's official  church and residence at the time, to complete his coronation.  Wealthy people, and cardinals especially, wanted their palazzos to at least have a view of the via Papalis if they could not be directly on the route.  Alesandro Farnese went as far as buying several buildings and tearing them all down to create both his magnificent piazza and the new road that would allow him to have a direct view and a direct connection with the via Papalis.

Castor or Pollux-you choose

 Piazza del Campidoglio, designed by Michelangelo around 1516 for Pope Paul III Farnese and executed mainly by Giacomo della Porta in the second half of the 16th century.

In 1420 Rome had a population of about 20,000 down greatly from the 1 to 2 million that inhabited the city at the peak of the Empire.  Needless to say, sections of the city became almost completely uninhabited including the ancient city.  The Campidoglio sat at the junction between the two sections of Rome-the populated and the uninhabited.  This spot had been the religious center of Ancient Rome and was the location of the Temple of Jupiter.  This location was also the civic center of Rome during the Renaissance and the location of two civic buildings.  It was here the via Papalis turns and becomes the via Sacra-referencing the cities ancient past-and continued onto St. John Lateran.  It was also at this location that the pope would stop on his procession to St. John and accept his civic authority.  Riding down the via Papalis on his horse, the pope would climb up the Campidoglio between the twin statues of Castor and Pollux (ancient protectors of first Troy and then Rome-they came with Aeneas), receive his secular power, make a speech, then continue onto St. John Lateran.

Palazzo Senatorio

Pope Paul III wanted this location rehabilitated as the two existing buildings were in rather sad shape and the piazza almost non-existent.  He commissioned Michelangelo to create the design and begin the execution of the new civic center of Rome.  This piazza is the first in Rome to be developed all at one time. The piazza is an oval inserted into a trapezoid with a mound at the center.  Michelangelo believed that a piazza should be like a face with a mouth-the entrance-a center-the statue of Marcus Aurelius-ears-the buildings on either side, and eyes and a forehead-the central building, the Palazzo Senatorio.

Palazzo dei Conservatori

The triangular staircase in front of the Palazzo Senatorio  refers to the pediment of an ancient temple like the Temple of Jupiter that once existed on this hill.  On the left is a statue representing the god of the Nile, on the Right the statue represents the god of the Tiber and at the center is a statue representing Roma, the goddess of Rome.  (Michelangelo originally intended a statue of Jupiter in the center.)  The pope, receiving his secular authority, would stand at the top of the pediment and address the attendees.  The references to the temple pediment and ancient gods with the pope standing above them are meant to show that papal authority is above all other religions and above the civic authority of Rome.

Palazzo Nuovo

The oval part of the piazza is in the shape of a shield and is designed to be a replica of the shield of Alexander the Great.  Remember, Pope Paul III's name was Alesandro.  It was also his desire to reunite and/or reconquer and Christianize the former empire of Alexander the Great-Egypt and Persia.




 In his conception of the new buildings, Michelangelo considered that they should also act like parts of the body; the pedestals, trabeations,  and pilasters act as the skeletal foundation and the brick work is merely the skin.  The pilasters Michelangelo designed were a novelty-something new in architecture-a new order of column, the Colossal order where the pilaster (or column) extends beyond one floor.  All this combined became the prototype to Baroque architecture.