THE ART AND INFLUENCE OF GIANLOR ENZO B ERNINI ( 1 5 9 8 - 1 6 8 0)

A Colloq uium C o m m e m o r a ting t h e T r i c e n t ennial

of t he A r t ist's Death

The American Academy in Rome, May 8-9 , 1980

E di t e d b y

IRVING LAVIN
 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREFACE

OPENING REMARKS

PART I . BERNINI AND HIS SOURCES

P. 11 MATTHIAS WINNER : Bernini the S culptor and the C l a s s ical Heri-

t age in H i s E arly Years

P. 42 HOWARD HIBBARD : Bernini and Caravaggio

P. 53 ITALO FALD I : An Unknown P ainting b y Gianlorenzo Bernini of 1 6 3 6

P. 62 URS ULA SCHLEGEL : The Cruc ifixes of the Vatican Altar s

P. 69 MAURIZIO FAGIOLO : Bernini and Kircher at P i azza Navona : The End

of the Great Flood

P. 86 RUDOLF PREIMESBERGER : Bernini and Gaul l i at S ant ' Agn e s e in Agone

P. 92 SANDRA BANDERA : Reading Bernini Text s : Some D i s coveries and New

O b s ervations

P. 130 HANS KAUF FMANN : Notes ·on the ·mi s e - en - s c �ne cif Bernini ' s S t atuary

P. 133 IRVING LAVIN : On I l lus ionism in the Vault o f the Ges ti

PART I I : BERNINI AND H I S INFLUENCE

P. 142 ERICH HUBALA : The Baroque Aps i dal Altar : Bernini or Pal ladio ?

P. 161 HENRY MILLON : Bernini in P i edmont

P. 198 HELLMUT HAGER : Some Obs ervations on Bernini ' s Ar chitectural

Legacy

P. 229 ALLAN BRAHAM : Bernini ' s Influence on French Archi t e c ture

P. 243 CECIL GOULD : Bernini ' s Influenc e on French S culpture and

P ainting

P. 254 JO RG GARMS : Intere s t in Bernini in the mid- 1 8 th Century : S alvi and

Vanv i t e l l i
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PART II : BERNINI AND HIS INFLUENCE ( cont inued)

P. 265 RUDOLF KUHN: S culptures with Three Defined Views by Gianlorenzo

Bernini and Ignaz Gunther

EPILOGUE

ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

ILLUSTRATIONS
 3

A NOTE ON THE TRANSLATIONS

I tran s lated from Ital ian the art i c l e s by the fol lowing

author s : Sandra Bandera , Maurizio Fagi o l o , I talo Faldi , Jorg Garms ,

Rudo lf Preime s b erger , and Ursula Schlegel; and from the German , the

art i c l e s by Erich Huba l a and Hans Kauffmann . Particular thanks for

as s i s tance with the German tran s l at ions go to Orr in W . Robinson ,

S t anford Univer s ity , and for a s s i s tance with b o th Italian and Ger ­

man text s , Kurt W . For s t er , Stanford Univer s ity .

D iane Ghirardo
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PREFACE

In the summer of 1 9 7 9 John D'Arms, then Director of The American

Academy in Rome, and his predecessor Henry Millon, were kind enough

to invite me to organize a modest symposium at the Academy, to com-

memorate the three-hundredth anniversary of Bernini's death� I was

pleased to accept the honor, partly because of the great affection and

debt of gratitude toward the Academy I have acquired over many years,

and partly because I felt this occasion and format would offer an

appropriate opportunity to contribute to a surprisingly neglected as-

pect of Bernini studies, his infl uence. Bernini's vas t legacy as a

sculptor is evident to anyone who has a sense of the development of

European art, but with a few exceptions his influence in other media is

much less well understood.

-..�c·Accordingl y, invitations were sent to a

'rO'-'f 1 special ists, the sum of whose contributions might be expected to

strike a balance between new ideas and material concerning Bernini's

own works and their later repercus sions. No honoraria or other ex-

penses were offered, except that various foreign cultural institutions

in Rome generously provided housing for the speakers from their respec-

tive countries. The response was gratifying in the extreme, as is

evident from the present publication. The sessions were followed by

a�imated discussions in which the audience joined;

unfortunately, it has not been possible to reproduce these

exchanges here, but I am sure the participants will long remember them

as a particularly fruitful and enjoyable aspect of the occasion.

I wish to thank the contributors, as well as the audience, for their

enthusiasm, cooperation and patience. We in turn, are greatly indebted

 Preface -2- 5

to John D1Arms and Henry Millon for their constant encouragement and

helpfulness with the organization of the meeting and the preparation

of this volume. Christine Young, Secretary to the Director of the

Academy, Walter Cini, Assistant Director for Administration, and the

staff of the Academy, spared no trouble to ensure the success of the

enterprise in all its phases. James Bodnar, Andrea Brown, Barbara

Kellum, John Scott and William Tronzo, Fellows of the Academy, rendereq ,
-6> �Jpa.hts
invaluable service throughout the meetings. For their hospitality) we

are most grateful to Professor Theodor Kraus, Director of the

Deutsches Archaologisches Institut in Rome, Professor Clemens Krause,

Director of the Istituto Svizzero di Roma, Dr. David Whitehouse, Director

of the British School at Rome, and Professor Matthias Winner, Director

of the Bibliotheca Hertziana. !

�ger �
Con ver -��·-��:- Massachusetts Institute of Technology Press was

cordially receptive and always cooperative in the matter of publishing

ln.
�
the acts; and Diane G rardo is to be warmly thanked and congratulated

for her thoughtful and scrupulous fulfillment of the formidable task

of translating, copyediting and typing the final manuscripts.

Irving Lavin
Princeton, New Jersey

September, 1980
 6
Preface - 3 -

/. Two works may be mentioned that deal generally with aspects of

the historiography of Bernini and his art: L. Welcker, Die Beur­

teilung Berninis in Deutschland im Wandel der Zeiten, Diss. , Cologne,

1957; G. C. Bauer, ed. , Bernini in Perspective, Englewood Cliffs,

New Jersey, 1976 .

 7
- 1-

O P ENING R EMARKS

We are gathered to commemorate the death of Gianlorenzo

Bernini, the leading Italian artist of the seventeenth cen-

tury--the artist who, far more indelibly t han any other,

stamped the age with his own image, to the point where Bernini

and the Baroque in I taly are almost synonymous. His contem-

poraries were well aware of his prodigal achievements, and ac-

cording to his biographers, w hen he died at the age of 82,

all Rome mourned the loss and cro w d e d t o t h e f uneral at Santa

Maria Maggi ore.

Two f acts concerning BerniniJs own attitude toward death

cast a shadow over this splendid picture of artistic triumph

and a p o t heosis. One is that in contrast to most successf ul

and important Italian artists since the Renaissance, Bernini

planned no distinctive commemoration f or himself. Unlike the

great masters o f the past whom he emulated in many other ways--

R a p hael, Titian, Michelangelo, f or example, all of whom pro-

vided or intended to provide i m p ortant f unereal monuments of

their own--Bernini chose to be � i m p l yJinterred) in

t he f am i l y vault beneath t he f lo o r in a metal box inscribed

with his name and the date of his death � In t h i s context,

e v i dentl y , Bernini•s view of his own afterlife was quite dif-

f erent from theirs. The second f act is that Bernini had a

premonition about his f uture rep utation. He expressed his

m o dest and melancholic f e eling in terms at once metaph orical

and astrological, saying that he owed h is success t o his guidi ng

 8
-2-

s t a r , who s e a s cendan c y would cease after his d e a th , l e aving his

r e p u t a tion to d e c line or fall all a t o n c e. �

In t h is r e s pe c t , as in many o t h er s , B e r nini w a s prophe t i c .

I venture to say that if few a r ti s t s reached the h e ig h t s of

a dm i r a tion he did in his t im e , f e w h ave then bec ome the s ub -

j ect of so much vit uper a ti o n , both as a c r e a tor and as a man .

By now, of c o ur s e , o u r pe r c e p t i o n of B e rnini ' s t im e and of

Rome are so c o l o r e d by his spirit that to t hi n k of c o mmemo r a t ing

him s e e m s a l mo s t imp e r ti n e n t. If one vi s i t s today the Proto-

mo t e c a C apit o l in a , the c o l l e c tion of po r t r a i t s of famous men on

the C ampid o g l i o , B e rnini ' s is one of the l arge s t and most

p r o mi n e n t l y d i s p l a y e d bu s t s . Yet , it s e em s to me we have a

great deal more to l earn about the n a t ur e and me aning of his

a r t if it is s ti l l pos sible for some p e op l e to argue w h e the r

B e rnini or B o r rornini w a s the grea ter g e n iu s - - a s if the old

an t a g onisms w e re r e l ev a n t a ft e r 300 years . It also s e ems to

me that the tra j e c tory of B e r n ini1s a r ti s t i c legacy r e mains

o b s c ur e , for there is still a tendency to think of him as

m a r k in g the end , rather than the be ginnin g of an epoch--the

last great a r ti s t of the Re n ai s s a n c e , as he has been d e s c r ibe d .

For th e s e r e a s on s we are fortunate tha t the c o n t r ib u t io n s

we s ha l l b e h e aring today and t o m o r r o w wi l l c on s i d e r n o t o n l y

B e rnini's art it s e l f , but also its in f l u e n c e on the g e n e r a tio n s

that f o l l o w e d. Let us t h e r e f o r e b e gin o ur r e f l e c ti o n s on and

of that gian t s t a r which rose in Napl e s on D e c e mb e r 7, 15 98,

a n d b r ig h t l y i l l umin a t e d the e arth until it fell in Rome at

mid n i g h t o n N o v e mbe r 27- 8 , 1680 .

I . L.
 9
- 3-

j, See the s ou r c es quoted in my 11 Bernini's Death, 11 The

Art B u l l etin, LIV, 1 9 72, l5 9 f f . The relevant pas s a g e in

Bernini's w il l , dated November 2 8 , 1680 , is as f ol l ow s :

''Il rnio corpo, uogl io c h e s ia s ep e l l it o n e l l a Sacrosanta

Bas i l i c a di s. Maria Maggiore, doue ol t r e hauere l a s e poltura

di casa rnia, s er u i r a i Mons ig.r Pietro F i l ippo rnio f i g l io

Canonico del l a medema Bas il i c a per u n a quotidiana memoria di

r i c o r dars i del l 'anirna mia. Li f u n er al i rirnetto ad arbitrio

del l 'inf ras c ritti miei heredi al l i qual i raccordo, ch'a'

poueri defonti s on o pi � nec es s ar i j li s uf f ra g i j di mes s e, ed

orazioni, che di apparenze del l 'es equie"(fol. 2 7 8£.; cf. ibid.,

1 84 , n. 81 ) .

O n Renais s an c e arti s t s ' tombs i n Ital y , s ee I. Lavin,

''The S c u l ptor's 'Las t Wi l l and T e s tament,''' Al l en Memorial

Art Mus eu m Bul l et i n , XXXV, 1 9 7 7-8, 4- 3 9 ; G. S c h� tz-Rautenberg ,

Ku n s t l ergrabma l e r des 15 . und 16. Jahrhu n de r t s in Italien.

Ein Beitrag zur Sozial ges c hi c hte der Klin s t l e r , Dis s . , Cologne

and Vienna, 1978.

/
J. P. Freart de Chantelou, Jou rnal du voyage du Cavalier

Bernin en Fran c e , ed. L. Lalanne, Pari s , 1885, 62.

 10

PART 1

BERNINI AND HIS SOURCES

 11
Matthias lvinner

BERNINI THE S CULPTOR AND THE CLASSICAL

HERITAGE IN HIS EARLY YEARS

Praxiteles ' , Bernini ' s and Lanfranco ' s

"Pluto and Proserpina"

The classical heritage as it appears in the early sculpture

of Gian Lorenzo Bernini is far too vast a sub j ec t to be handled

briefly . I shall confine my discussion t o only one s tatue, the

"Rape of Pros erpina , " which in some respects is the first work

from the artis t ' s mature period , and i t is also the mos t class iciz-

ing (Fig . 1 ) . Art his torians have already isolated antique works

of sculpture in Rome which could have s t imulated Bernini when he

1
chiselled this marbel group . Though inspired by some of the well

known statues o f the ancients , Bernini cons tantly avo ided being

nailed down to a specific model . The "Abduction o f Prosperina" as

known in contemporary Rome from reliefs on old sarcophagi had no

2
parallel as a frees tanding antique sculpture (Fig . 2 ) .

In the 1 7 th century the artist first had to ponder on an

invenzione of the who l e group . Baldinucci later claimed that

Bernini himself c ommenced his works by first devoting all his strength
3
to the invenzione before turning his mind to the ord ering o f the parts .

That the term invenzione belongs to the heri tage of class ical rhetoric

Bernini knew qui t e wel l , since he refers in this context to the example

of the orator . But he hel d , as indicated by other scattered remarks ,

the tradi t ional conviction that the inventive facul ties which produced
4
both poetry and painting operated in the same way .

How then could Bernini transform the ancient poetical invention

of the mytho logical Rape of Proserpina into a sculptural one? His

 12

achievement a s a sculptor shall further b e clarified when h i s effort

to adapt the same ancient myth to a pic torial invenzione is compared

with the treatment of the s ame theme by the contemporary painter

Lanfranco .

I t i s unlikely that Bernini himself was free to choose his

class i cal theme . The first payment by Cardinal Scipione Borghe s e ,

dating from 1 9 June 1621, i s f o r a "Plutone che rapisce Proserpina"

together with a memorial bus t of Paul v.5 Italo Faldi also found

decisive documentation that the Pluto was tr �nsported from

Bernini ' s studio near S . Maria Maggiore to Scipione ' s Villa near
6
Porta Pinciana on 23 Sep tember 1 622. It can be a s sumed
h
that the marblel/' �glven already in 162 3 , before the death of

Gregory XV, to the Cardinal Lodovico Ludovisi and installed in his

adj acent vill a . There a Latin dis tich conceived by Cardinal Maffeo
7
Barberini , later Pope Urban VIII , was inscribed on i ts bas e : "Quisquis

humi pronus flores legis , inspice , saevi me Ditis ad domum rapi . "

(Beho l d , whoever you are , i f you stoop down to pick flowers , consider

how I am abducted to the dwelling place of wild Dis . ) S trangely

enough , Cardinal Maffei used the Latin name Dis for Pluto , the Greek

God of the Underworld who turns up in his italianized form "Plutone"

in all the payment documents . The God D i s and Pro serpina were

venerated in the so-called cave of Terentus which in the early seven-

1

teenth century view was located in the neighborhood o f the present

8
dat Piazza Nicosia near the banks of the Tiber . Censorinns and

Suetonius have testified that the traditional "Ludi saeculares"

( centenary festivals ) were initiated here by Augustus in 1 7 B . C .

 13

with a sacrifice for the Moires at the altar o f the gods Dis (Pluto) ,
9
Proserpina and Ceres . This was the only place in ancient Rome where

an altar was consecrated to the subterranean deities Pluto and Proser-

Pina . The serious s eventeenth century descrip tions o f Roma antica

mention the place extensively and even , as in Alessandro Donato ' s

"Roma Vetus" from 1 6 3 8 , at tempt to illustrate with an etching the

topographical site o f the venerated subterranean cave in the Campo

10
Marzio (Fig . 3 ) . An anonymous 1628 guide o f Rome described the

nearby Palazzo Borghese and extolleJthe building with the obligatory

remark that it "non sia inferiore a quelli edifitij Imperiali antichi

che furono in questo nobil Campo Marzo , et essendosi spente quelle

belle meraviglie . . . hoggi si vedono ravvivate in memoria di questa

nob i l famiglia. ,ll But the only relics of classical buildings referred

to in Ancient li terature in the neighborhood of the Borghese �alace

were the tomb o f Augus tus and the cave o f Terentus with the altar of

Pluto and Proserpina . After the death of his uncle the Pope , in 1 6 2 1

Scipione Borghese moved from his dwelling place in the Borge , the

�alazzo Giraud-Torlonia, to the Palazzo Borghese ( in the Campo Marzio)

owned by Marc-Antonio Borghes e , Principe d i Sulmona , the only living

12
heir o f the family. Marc-Antonio had married Camilla Orsini in 1 6 2 0

but their son Paolo was n o t born until 1 6 2 4 . The sudden death of the

Pope had not only robbed the family of its leading member , i t even

threatened the future o f the main b ranch o f the family i f the recently

married couple Marc-Antonio and Camilla could not produce an heir .

The site o f the family ' s Palazzo in the neighborhood of Pluto ' s and

Proserpina ' s sanctuary and the mourning over the death o f the leading
 ...,
I.

14

Borgh es e , Pope Paul V , may have played a part in Scip ione ' s choice
13
of the pseudo-antique subj e c t -matter for Bernini' s group . Did

Bernini h imself pay tribute to such assumed allegorical impl ications

in his invenzione?

Scholars have failed to remark on the fact that the h ind-legs

of the marble Cerberus are hidden by sprouting l eaves . This plant

on the back of the sculpture is obviously a laurel tree which had

been chopped down (Fig . 4 ) . The naked s tump res ts in the center of

the foliage and bursts into leaves again . If Bernini' s group

illustrates only the mythical Rape o f Proserpina as recounted in

the poetry o f Ovid and Claudian , we surely could expect some flowers
14
in Proserpina ' s hands or on the ground . She was picking flowers
and.
when Pluto tore her away to h is gloomy realm , Cardinal Maffeo ' s

moral izing ins crip t ion on the sculpture ' s base alludes to flowers .

Instead of flowers , the laurel- trunk with foliage could refer to

Cerberus who is und erstood by Natalie Comitis as Nature's engendering

15
power . That Bernini wanted to h int at such a connota t ion of Cer-

berus becomes clear from the l eaves and branches which enc ircle the

dog ' s genitals and even hide h is h ind legs , so that the infernal

animal seems to grow from the earth ( F ig . 5 ) . Some ancient authors

16
even identified Cerberus with the earth . The evergreen laurel

tree was the t ime-honored plant of Apollo . Apollo ' s Daphne , trans-

formed into laurel , s tands no t only for v irtu e , t riumph and glory ,
17
bu t a 1 s o f or eternlty . A cut-off trunk with sprouting laurel
.

branches s t ems from the bark of Bernini' s Daphne who is on the

18
verge o f t o tal transf ormat ion (Fig . 6 ) . In Book VI of Virgil ' s
 15

Aeneid , Aeneas is instructed by the Cumaean Sybil to pluck o f f the

golden bough which is holy to Proserpina and to dedicate it to her

if the hero wished to enter and leave the Elysian Fields in the
19
Tartarus . In the words of the poet "Primo avolso non deficit

alter - if the first branch has been plucked another will always

grow . " A scroll encircling a sprouting laurel stump quotes this

Virgilian verse on Pontormo ' s pos thumous portrait of Cos imo d e '
20
Medici (Fig . 7 ) . The offspring o f the virtuous Medici family

will never ceas e , is the pic torial messag e .

A similar idea o f the renewing power o f the bereft family

tree of the Borghese may have been in S c ipione ' s mind when he

discussed with Bernini the erudi te accesories of the "Rape of

Proserpina . " How impor tant the myth of Proserpina for the

Villa Borghese and i t s patron must have been emerges in a closer

examination o f Lanfranco ' s ceiling fresco in the Loggia upstairs

(Fig . 8 ) . As Howard Hibbard has documented , Lanfranco ' s painting

dates from 1 624 , just one year after Bernini ' s group had been

. . 21
glven t o the Lud ov1s 1. . Though the painter Domenico Corvi exten-

sively restored Lanfranco ' s original in the eighteenth century , we

know from documents and from Pietro Aquila ' s earlier etchings that

at leas t the quadro riportato in the center adheres meticulously

22
to Lanfranco ' s original iconography . Jacomo Manilli named this

guadro riportato in 1 6 5 0 a "council of the gods " , Conciglio degli

. 23
D eJ.. And to the best o f my knowledge no one else has tried
. 24
since to unveil more of the mean1ng .

Pluto and Proserpina are seated below Jove ' s cloudy chair in
25
the vertical axis of the fresco (Fig . 9 ) . Proserpina alone looks
 , . .
,. '

16

b enevolently down on u s . She caresses Cerberu s , which may convey the

idea that she is a specifically earthbound goddess and hence united

more closely with us as the terrestrial beholders . I t is obvious that

the gods on Mount Ol ympus at tend a f inal j udgment of Jove who points

his right hand towards the group of gods on his righ t , while Astraea-­
26
Jus tice--crowns him with s tars . Gods encircle women o n e ither side

of Jove , a young woman on the left and an old one on the right (Fig s .

1 0- 1 1) . S ince neither i s supplied with a particular designation, we

shall try to identify them according to the internal evidence of their

interrelation with their neighbor s .

In the far right twoheaded Janus a s g o d of Chaos , the year , t ime

and eternity introduces the picture (Fi g . 10). Bacchus , grapes in

hand .l foll"ws with his retinue , with Maenads and Priapus or Silenus
27
close to him . The presence of Faunus with ears pointed in front of

him reveals that an Olympus of specifically Roman rustic deities has

been assembled . Naked Apollo holds in his left hand an arrow as a

sign o f his warming and burning sunrays . His yellow halo refers to

the sun, whereas the three Graces or Hours in the background and two
28
Muses lower in the clouds are his usual followers . Mercury with

his trumpet as messenger leans downward , turning his head like Apollo-

Sol to the elderly woman . She gesticulates with outstretched arms and

looks towards the handsome girl a t the opp o s ite end of the fresco (Fig

11) . The girl seems to stand submissively acquiescent to Jove ' s will

as she crosses her hands above her chest and holds a laurel branch .

The elderly woman summons som ething from Jove . And since she found

her place in between Apollo-Sol and Bacchus she may ei ther be Diana-
 ,' . ·
..

17

29
Luna or Ceres--or a possible combination o f both deities . She is

indeed clad as mother Ceres when she was restlessly wandering day

and night through the world and the skies in search of her lost
30
daughter Proserpina . The necessary torch in her hand is represented

by Apollo ' s hal o . Ovid tells us (Fasti IV , 580) that Ceres vainly

implored the gods and her brother Jove , who hims elf was the father

of Proserpina , to reveal to her the hiding place of her daughter .

According to Ovid , the sympathetic Sun-Apollo , who sees all things

committed by day , finally informed her that Proserpina ruled the

third realm as the wife of Jove ' s brother Pluto . Indee d , the three

brothers , Jove with Juno , Neptune with his mate--s trangely enough

Ceres--and Pluto with Proserpina s i t in the center as representatives

31
o f the three realms o f natur e . Pluto had been living without a

wif e , and he threatened to ravage heaven ,.,ith monsters from the

32
depth i f his brother Jove failed to supply him with a female mat e .

Jove therefore asked Venus to inflame Pluto with love for the
33
beautiful Proserpina. She promptly d id so ; here she sits near

her lover Mars and points to Pluto and at the same time she looks

across the fresco at the Virgin Proserp ina who is flanked by Vulcan

and Hercules with his club . Her rape took place in Cere ' s Sic ily

in the shadow of Aetna, Vulcan ' s forg e , where Cupid ' s love arrows

were produced . Consequently Cupid flutters with Vulcan ' s hammer

around Proserpina . Hercules represents e ternal virtue as Proserpina

. . d e f en d 1ng
. 34
ha d b een v1rtuous 1n her v1rg1n1ty aga1nst Pl uto . Bu t
. . . ·

why is ?an with h i s pipes , the g o d of nature i n Arcady, looking

towards Ceres? During her search for her daugher , Ceres came to
 I .· f

18

35
Arcady and was ravished against her will b y Neptune. Out of

shame she hid in a dark cave and refused to see the l ight of heaven

anymore, herewith causing the destruction of the crops and much evil

for the human rac e . I t was the wandering Pan who d i s covered the

mourning Ceres and instantly informed Jov e . Jove succeeded in recon-

ciling Ceres . When she finally left her hiding-place the earth bore

fruit again. Ovid explains in the Metamorphoses the means by which

36
Jove appeased the wrath and the accusation o f mother Ceres . The

text runs as follows : "But now Jov e , holding the balance b e tween

his brother ( Pluto) and h i s grieving s i s ter (Ceres ) , d ivides the

revolving year into two e aual parts . Now the goddess (Pros erpina) ;

the common divinity o f two realms ;s p ends half the months of the year

with her mother and half with her husband . Straightaway the bearing

of her heart and face is changed . For she who but lately even to Dis

seemed sad , now wears a j oyful countenanc e ; like the sun , which long

concealed behind dark and m i s ty clouds disperses the clouds and re-

veals his face . "

\!:o be
The clue for the subj ec t and invenzione of the fresco seern� this

Ovidian passage . Jove subdivides the revolving year into two equal

halves . To complete a full sequence of one year ' s time , Pros erpina

has to appear twice , once with Pluto , once on the higher level of

Ceres .

S ince both Proserpina and Ceres appear twice in the fresco--the

latter once on a lower level as " t erra" with Neptune , and once with

Apollo as "luna"--Lanfranco probably wanted to describ e the two halves

 19

37
of the revolving year . The pair Ceres-Proserpina on the right

side of Jove respresent the first half of the year , winter (Proser­

pina in the Underwarlci with Pluto , the matronlike mother above

claiming her right to know where her daughter is hiding) . The pair

Ceres-Pros erpina on the left side of Jove shows the daughter risen

to heaven happily united with the gods above her mother . Ceres as

Terra crowned herself with the grains and was reconciled with Jove

because she had recovered her daughter for half of the year as a

result o f Jove ' s partition o f the year .

Janus initiates the cycle which we call a year. Apollo-Sol

is likewise responsible f or the revolution of hours, days and years .

Saturn , Father Time , introduces the group which encircles Proserpina ,

and she too will represent another subdivision o f time according to

Jove ' s sentence . In this context the pair of gods on the outer frame

behind her can only be explained as Vertumnus and Pomona . The ancient

Romans had derived "Verturnnus" etymologically from "verteren meaning

38
"to revolve" . His task is to oversee the growing of grain and fruits

as the year completes its cycle . As late as 1 65 0 , Manilli describes

frescoes by a Flemish painter above the four doors of the Loggia

39
representing the Four Seasons .

There are s everal possible readings of the Mars-Venus pair .

Perhaps the position of Mars next to Venus refers to March as the

40
first month of the Roman Calendar . Or , perhaps Venus and Mars

signify spring , while o ther divine couples represent the other three

seasons . Maybe Mars and Venus go t their prominent place because

the divine lovers refer to peace and--more specifically--to the

Pax Romana. It is even possible that painter and patron meant to

 20

hint at the repetition o f the "saecula aurea , " the Golden Age which

is bound to return after the Age of Iron . This repetition takes place

in the s ame way that the shorter periods of time--minutes , hours , months

and years--are e ternally revolving . The rhapsodic words o f Virgil's

Fourth Eclogue are the basic text for all Renaissance and Baroque
41
imagination about the Golden Age : "Now is come the last age . • . The

great line of centuries begins anew . Now the Virgin returns , the reign

o f Saturn returns, now a new generation d escends from heaven on high . • .

Thine own Apollo is now king . " Virgil alludes to the Virgin Astraea ,

or Jus tice , who turns up as a constellation in the Zodiac on the

annual day when day and night are equally long . She sits above Jove

in the fresco . Because she left the earth and went to heaven at the

end of the Iron Age , her return to earth initiates the new Golden

Age in which j us tice , peace and abundance may flourish .

De Magistri s , a court-poet o f the Borghese family, introduces

his encomium "Aetodraconteum" with an interpretation o f the family arms

42
in 1 6 1 6 to Cardinal Scipione . "The ancients dedicated the Eagle to

Jove and the Dragon to Saturn and both of them express the idea of

the Princ e ; these two together articulate the coat of arms o f the
• . •

,,
Borghese . According to d e Magis tris , these a rms express the reality

of the ages : as Jove succeeded Saturn, so the eagle is superimposed

on the dragon . The present age seems to renew the Golden Age , concludes

the author, because the Eagle and the Dragon are happily united . Lan-

franc e ' s Mars b ears on his helmet the golden Dragon which certainly

will be s e en tog ether with Jove's nearby Eagle as a complement of the

Borghese arms.
 21

The god FaUnus, smiling invitingl � t us , lies on his fleece in

the right corner , closer to the beholder than the o ther god s . The

skin of a sheep that has been sacrificed to Faunus now bes tows on

those who lie on i t dreams , Nisions and prophecies . Thus Faunus in-

vites us to regard the picture as a heavenly vision of the turn

towards a new Golden Age under the auspices o f the Borghese Arms .

But s t ill another passage of Claud ian ' s "De raptu Proserpinae"
43
Lib I I I may have excited Lanfranco ' s imagination. When Pluto

raped Proserpina , Jove gathered toge ther all gods on Mount Olympus

and decreed that nobody should tell Ceres the abode o f her daughter

or be tray the name o f the ravisher . In response to the s t eady

complaint of Nature that the race of man had sunk in lethargy by

reason of Saturn ' s sluggish rul e , Jove ordered that the arts ( � )

should give birth to c ivilization (sollertia) . "And Ceres should

wand er over sea and land in anxious grief , until , in her j oy at

finding the traces of her los t daughter , she grant man the gift o f

corn . " Lanfranco expresses Proserpina ' s innate nature of"creeping

forth" ( (lroserpar e , as S Augusti�etymologically explained her

44
name) by the painted laurel branch in her hand . Even Ceres had

visions of her raped daugh ter , in form of a laurel as Claudian tells

us : " . . . there stood a laurel , loved above all the grove , that used

with maiden leaf to overshadow the virgin bower of Proserpina . This

(Ceres) saw hewn down to the roots , its s traggling branches fouled

,4 5
WJ.. t h dust . . . And it is Vulcan ' s hammer carried by Cupid towards

Proserpina ' s laurel that illus t rates human Art refining Nature ' s
 "'"'' ·'-

22

gifts for the duration o f Ceres ' wanderings in search o f her

daughter .

Hans Kauffmann suspected that Bernini ' s Proserpina should

have been placed in the Sala terrena underneath the Loggia with
46
Lanfranco ' s "conciglio degl i dei" . He even thought that the idea

of the Golden Age in Claudian ' s "Rape of Proserpina" was present in

Bernini ' s mind while he was carving his group because Andrea Borboni

had already mentioned in 1 6 6 1 in his book "Delle Statue" that Bernini

47
may have been guided by Claudian ' s text . Nonetheles s , the icono­

graphic interpretat ion of the marbl e group reveals only a meager choice

of firmly classical reference s . The basic idea was set forth in

48
Pietro da Barga ' s Proserpina bronze in the Bargello . This �roup

had been cas t in Rome in the 1 580s for Ferdinanda d e Medici . Bernini

clearly knew this work , since his own rendering of Pluto-Proserpina

as a frees tanding group with Cerberus as a support was a combination

which da Barga had invented . But did the idea o f a frees tanding

"raptus Pros erpinae" really originate with da Barga? In fact Pliny

reports that Praxi teles , renowned as the great marble sculptor of

Antiquity, also produced bronzes , as testified by his "raptus Proser­

49
pinae . " Vasari ' s second edition of the Lives ( 1 5 68) consequently

lists Praxi teles as the greatest marble sculptor a f ter Phidias . He

mentions explicitly the Rape of Proserpina" "Prassitele ancora

avvenga che nel lavorare in marmo fusse tenuto maggios mastro nondimeno

lavoro anche in bronzo malta eccessivament e : come ne fece fede la

50
rapina di Proserpina . " Pietro da Barga ' s bronze could therefore

be interpreted as a humanistic reconstruction of the lost Praxitelean

 23

bronze group . I t may be conj ectured that Bernini was j us t as

familiar with Pliny ' s text through Vasari as he was with Barga's

bronze .

Praxiteles as a sculptor was more to Bernini than a l iterary

tradition. As his remark in Chantelou ' s diary from June 1 6 6 5 proves ,

Bernini even a ttributed the Roman Pasquino group to Phidias or Praxit-

eles , and described it as the most beautiful piece of antique sculp­

51
ture (Fig . 1 2 ) . Bernini interpreted the so-called Pasquino as the

wounded Alexander the Great being carried away by his s ervant . This

traditional assumption probably led Bernini to think of Praxiteles or

Phidias as the sculptors responsible for the group . Since the middle

ages , the names of these two artists had been associated with the
52
monumental Dioscuri of the Quirinale . And in Bernini ' s youth the

inscriptions , placed by Sixtus V . on their bases , defined both horse-

breakers as portraits of Alexander the Great with his stallion Bouke-

phalos . Phidias was supposed to have � · the left group and Praxiteles
53
was said to have emulated his master in a competition (Fig . 1 3 ) . In

1 6 38 this legend was des troyed on historical grounds by the Roman

guidebook o f Alessandro Donato who correctly interpreted the youths as

54
the twin bro thers o f Dioscur i . This als o thoroughly discredited the

authenticity of the artis t ' s names . Bernini himself seemed occupied

under Alexander VII with a new arrangement of the Cavalli which then ,
55
with the papal arms , served as a kind o f prospect to the Via Pia (Fig 1 4 ) .

Yet the old attribution of the Cavalli must have stuck in B ernini ' s

mind , if he s till mentioned Phidias as the sculptor o f only one of the

56
two youths in 1 66 5 , tacitly implying that the other one was by Praxiteles .
 24

I t would b e s i lly to assume that Be.rnini wanted to emulate the

stride of the youth allegedly by Praxitel e s . But with Pluto ' s

stride , could he not have tried to outdo an admittedly poor piece

of work by a renowned ancient sculptor?

In the same way the group of the dying Niobides stood as

57
Praxitelean marbles in the Villa Medici . Since their d i scovery

in 1 58 3 they had been associated with Pliny ' s tradition of such a

group by Praxiteles or Scopas in a Roman temple to Apollo . The

different facial expres s ions of terror and pain may have prompted

Bernini to surpass the Greek master in motion and emo tion . We

know from Pl iny , repeated by Vasar i , that Praxiteles made two

s tatues express ing oppos i te emotions , a matron weeping and a merry

58
courtesan. Did Bernini hint at the Praxitelean "Weeping Woman"

by means o f Proserpina ' s marble tears on her cheek (Fig . 1 5) ? The

grin on Pluto ' s face i s certainly the emotional complement to

Proserpina ' s mourning . The old idea o f Paragone powered Bernini ' s

chisel when he tried to surpass the best ancient marb le sculptor

in one of his renowned groups , the "Raptus Proserpinae" . The beauty

of the Cnidian Venus by Praxiteles had become proberbial : the beauty

of Proserpina and Daphne should also become proverbial . But how

Bernini succeeded in modelling and carving a new ideal of beauty goes

beyond his conception of invenzione and should be treated in another

chap ter .
 25

FOOTNOTES

1
R . Wittkower, "The Role of Classical Models in Bernini ' s and
Poussin ' s Preparatory Work", Studies in Western Ar t ; Acts o f the 20th
International Congress of the History o f Art , Vol . III , Princeton ,
1963, 47 (Hercules and Hydragroup in the Capitoline Museum , which
has been res tored about 1 6 3 0 in the Ludovisi Collection by A . Algardi) ;
H . Kauffmann , Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini, Berlin 1 9 7 0 , 45 , 4 7 (Laocoon ,
Torso si B e lvedere) ; S . Howard , "Identity Formation and Image Reference
in the Narrative Sculpture of B ernini ' s . Early Maturity--Hercules and
Hydra & Eros Triumphant", Art Quarterly 1 97 9 , 1 4 0 , 1 63 n . 6 ( Group
o f Niobides ; Gaul and his wife , formerly Call . Ludov is i , Fig . 3 ;
Mas tiff , copy o f a fourth-century Lysippic statue , Galleria degli
Uffizi Fig . 7 ) .
2
c. Rober t , Die antiken Sarkophagreliefs III , 3 , Berlin 1 9 1 9 , ·

455 f f , P l . CXIX , Fig . 359 ; recently G . Koch , "The Walters Perse

phone Sarcophagus" , The Journal of the Walters Art Gallery , XXXVII ,
1978, 78.
3
F . Baldinucc i , Vita del Cavaliere Gio . Lorenzo Bernino ,
Florence 1 68 2 , 7 1 . "Nel prepararsi all ' opere usava di pensare ad
'
una cosa per volt a , e davolo per precetto a suoi Discepoli , cioe
prima all ' invenzione , e poi rifletteva all ' ordinazione delle parti
finalmente a dar lora perfezione di grazia, a tenerezza . Portava
in ci � l ' esempio dell ' Oratore , il quale prima inventa , poi ordina ,
ves t e , a adorna , perch � diceva , che ciascheduna di quelle operazioni
ricercava tutto l ' uomo . . . "
4
see Baldinucc i , Vita , 75.
5
For the dating , compare the documentation pub lished by I . Faldi ,
"Note sul l e scul ture Borghesiane del Bernini " , Bollettino d ' Arte ,
1953 , 1 4 0 ff . and 3 1 0 ff . ; H . Hibbard , "Nuove note sul Bernini" ,
Bollettino d ' Arte, 1 9 5 8 , 1 8 3 . I . Faldi , Gallefia Borabese. le
,S_rnltnre dal Secolo XVI al XIX, Rome , 1 9 5 4 , no . 3 3 .
 26

6
Faldi , "Note" , 3 1 4 doc . no . II-VI " una testa con busto
di Paolo V felice memoria" . C . d ' Onofrio , Roma vista da Roma , Rome
u:_egarding
1967 , 2 7 7 f f . ( "'., the identification o f this bus t).
7
D ' Onofrio , Roma , 2 7 3 f f , on the suppos ition that Maffei had
alread J.omposed his "dodici dis tichi per una Galleria" in 1 6 1 8 / 2 0 ,
No . 7 "Proserpina rapta a Plutone e t imposita quadrigis seorsum puellae
sociae Proserpinae cum floribus e gremio proiectis , et prae metu pavi­
dae • . . " "Quisquis humi pronus flares legis ; inspice , saevi/me Ditis
ad domum rapi " . The Distich "'ould thus have been earlier than the
definite sculptural group ; according to D ' Onofrio , Maffei ' s poetry
may have inspired the subject matter of the group . F . Martinelli ,
Roma ricercata nel suo s i to , 2nd ed . , Venice , 1 65 0 , 348 quotes
Maffei ' s dis tich on the basis o f the group .
8
Today archeologists locate the ara Ditis Patris e t Proserpinae
under the Corso Vittorio Emanuele near Piazza Sforz a . In 1 8 9 0
some remnants of the ara were found her e . H . A . Stutzer , Das Antike
Rom , Cologne 1 9 79 , pp . 2 7 0-2 7 2 . L . G . Giraldi ( 1 4 7 9 - 1 5 5 2 ) located the
ara Ditis in the Campo Marzio near the Tiber in his book De
tcomplete works ,
Sacrificiis () e d . Leiden, 1 6 9 6 , p . 534) .
_ "Romae in Campo
Martio Terenti locus fuit , ubi Ditis e t Proserpina ara fui t : locum
quidam dic tum volun t , quod ibi Tiberis tereret" . A . Donato (Roma vetus
ac recens , Rome , 1 648 , Q st ed . 163 �) describes the cave of Tarentum
as being close to the Tiber near S . Lorenzo in Lucina : "Templum S .
Laurentii in Lucina ipso nimine indicat eiusdem Lucinae templurn cum
luco . Ibi e t Terentus , locus eius nominis , quod ibi curvatus Tiberis
s inisteriorem ripam atterere t : sive quod ara Ditis partis sub terra
ibi occul taretur, ad quam fiebant sacri ficai anne; ludisque secularibus . "
(Ovid, Fas t . I ; Martial Lib . 4 , 1 ) . E . Nardini (Roma anti c a , Rome , 1 6 66 ,
354) describes the s i te of the ara Ditis as follows : " I l luogo ,
'
che Terento diceva s i , pur fu nel Campo presso ' 1 Tevere , d i cui cosi
Festa 'Terentum in Campo Martio locum Verrius ait ab eo dicendum
fuisse, quod terra ibi per ludos seculares Ditis Patris i ta leviter
t eratur ab eius quadrigari is , ut eorum levis mob ilitas aequiparet
motus rapidos velocis lunae ; quod quam aniliter relatum s i t , cuius
manifestum est' ·•c Altri vi legg�, 'Terentus locus in c ampo dictus ,
quod eo loco ara Ditis Patris occultaretur , vel quod profluentis Tiberis
 27

ripas aquarum cursus tereret' • Dalla cui seconda e t imologia inferirebbesi

esser quella ripa del Campl Marzo , ch ' � presso Piazza Nicosia e S .
Lucia della Tenta dalla curvatura del Tevere sempre battuta; e ben
alcuni credono il nome di Tenta da Terento derivate . Quivi esser
uscito d i nave Evandro nel venir d ' Arcadia canta Ovidio nel prime
d e ' Fasti . • . • V ' era l ' altar di Dite, e Proserpina sot terraneo come
a ' Dij infernali si costumava ; f � da Romani fatto ( scrive Zosimo) nella
guerra contro gli Albani , et acc i � ad ogn ' altro fuor ch ' a Romani fosse
incognito , fu ricoperto d i terra; ne si scopriva , che ne ' giuochi scolar i ;
nel qual tempo vi s i celebrava il Trino ttio , al quale allude Ausonio
nel ' Idilio II • • • Festo nel libro 1 8 . . . Quindi Martiale ne I . epigramma
del 4 libro , e nel 62 . del 1 0 . e Statio nel 1 . delle Selve nella Soteria
per Gallico accennano sotto la frase di Terento i giuochi Secolar i .
Questa altare come che sepolto fuori del tempo d i que ' giuochi e t incognito ,
fti trovato venti piedi s o tterra da Valerio Sab ino , che celebrandovi il
Trino ttio n ' o ttenne la sanit� de figli moribondi . La storia o favela
ch ' ella s i a , s i narra da Valerio nel 4 . del libro 2 . " . C . Huelsen
(Le chiese di Roma nel Medic Evo , Florence 1 9 2 7 , p . 3 0 3 ) says that the
etymological derivation of the name of the church " S . Lucia della Tenta"
( i . e . S. Luciae Quattuor Portarum) from the cave of Terentum is not
j us ti f i ed .
9
The best survey o f the saec ulares ludi
is in Paulys J Realencyclo­
oad i e der classischen Altertumswissenschaf t , vol . I A 2 col . 1 7 1 6 f f .
10
See note 8.
11
H . Hibbar d , "The Architecture of the Palazzo Borghese" , Memoirs
of the American Academv in Rome , XXVII , 1 9 6 2 , 63.
12 '
Hibbard , "Architecture" , pp . 7 2- 7 5 , with subsequent literature .
Scipione Borghese moved into the modern Ripetta wing o f the family palac e ,
which had been constructed a t h i s expens e . The most interesting fea-
ture o f this wing according to Hibbard (6 7 ) is the combination
of casino and hanging garden near the bank of the river .
Until 1 6 2 5 the bulk of Scipione ' s collection of antique sculpture
could s till be found in the palazzo Borghes e . 2 0 0 loads of statuary
were transferred in the subsequent years to the Villa Pinciana (Hibb ard ,
"Architecture" , 74 , note 8 ) . I t is not clear whether Sc ipione
commissioned the Bernini group of Pluto and Proserpina at the outset
 28

for the Villa Pinciana . I t may b e that he originally planned to install

it in his new dwelling in the Pala z z o Borghese where most of his
sculptures were in 1 62 1 . A subterranan ambience s imilar to the
mysterious antique sanctuary of Pluto and Proserpina was certainly
conc��vable under the hanging garden of the Ripetta wing . The map o f
Rome by M . Greuter ( 1 6 1 8 ) gives a separate illustration of the Palazzo
Borghe s e . Three female statues o f antique goddesses are singled out
as being especially beautiful in the Palace and appear on the etching
in large scale ( " S tatue Antiche d i rara belt� et grandezza in questa
Palazzo " ) . One of them is clearly specified by her attributes as a
Cere s . Should we suspect a Proserpina in one o f the other two?
For illustration s e e , Hibbard , "Architecture" ) Pl . 6 3 .
13
In this connection the augural meaning o f the story o f Pluto
and Proserpina should be kept in mind .

14
The iconographic conno tations o f B ernini ' s group have been
s tudied only by Kauffmann , Bernini , 48 f f . The literary tradition
of the s tory of Proserpina in Renaissance and Baroque poetry has been
investigated by H . Anton , Der Raub der Proserpine- Literarische Trad­
ition eienes erotischen Sinnbildes und mvthischen S ymbols, Heidelberg
1967 . The basic literary sources o f the myth in antiquity are Ovid ,
Met . V , 3 7 6- 57 1 ; Ovid , Fas t . IV, 393-62 0 ; Claudian , Rapt . Pros . Libri
III ; , S t . Augus tin, Civ. dei, Lib . VII , cap . XX-XXV.
15
N . Comiti s , Mythologiae , sive explicationis fabularum libri X ,
164 1 ( 1 5 6 8 , lst edition) ) 20 1:" . • . nihil aliud erit Cerberus quam
rerum naturalium generatio . . . " .
16
comitis , Mythologiae1 202 : "Qui terram Cerberum esse putarunt . . • " .
17 . .
Recem: l � terature on the symbolic meaning of laurel will b e found
in F . A . Giraud , La fable de Daphne, Geneva , 1 96 8 ; s till indispensable
is G . B . Ladner , "Vegetation Symbolism and the Concept of Renaissance " ,
Essays in Honor o f E . Panofsky, New York 1 9 6 1 , 3 1 5 ff .
18
No attention seems to have been paid to this special motif of
the cut off trunk . The laurel(as suc hfhas always been interpreted in )
.,
Bernini ' s Apo l lo and Daphne group since Maffei composed his contemporary
"
disti ch . H . Kaufmann , Bernini, p . 59 f f . ; W . Stechow, Apollo und Daphne ,
S t udien der B iblio thek Warburg, Berlin-Leipzig , 1 9 3 2 .
 29

19
Aenei VI, 1 4 3 .
20
M . Winner , "Pontormos Fresko in Poggio a Caiano " , Zeitschrift
f ur Kunstgeschichte 1 97 2 , 186.
21
H . Hibbar d , "The Date o f Lanfranco ' s Fresco in the Villa
Borghese and other chronological Problems", Miscellanea Bibliothecae
Hertziana e , Munich 1 9 6 1 , 356 .
22
Hibbard , "Date o f Lanfranco ' s Fresco" , Fig. 257 , 3 6 4 , note
IV, the contract o f Cervi ' s restauration: "Che d . 0 Sig. re Corvi debba
risarcire quelle Pitture tanto trattandosi de chiari scuri , quanta di
colori al naturale nel quadro di mezzo , imitando la maniera del prima
auto r e , e fedelmente secondo quel pensiero e disegno senza che sia
lee ito variarlo in minima parte . . . ��.
23
Iacomo Manilli , Villa Borghes e , Rome , 1 6 5 0 , 95 . "La volta
'
della loggia , con le Lunette di sotto , e opera del Cavaliere Giovanni
Lanfranchi ; il quale v 'h a nel mezzo dipinto a fresco i l Conciglio degle
Dei . Vien questa volta ornata da molte f igure finte di pietra in atto
di sostenerla ; con vasi grandi in mezzo , finti di bronze , e con medag­
lioni simili , dentro a cornici di stucco . Nelle Lunette son dipinti
und ici Fiumi , d e ' piu f arno s i del Mondo " .
Even G . P . Bellori (Le vite d e ' pittori, scultori e architetti
moderni 1} 6 7 2] Ed . E . B erea Turin 1 9 7 6 , 3 9 5 ) mentions only "gli
Dei a fresco nella Loggia" as paintings by Lanfranco in the Villa
Borghes e .
24
only Kau f fmann (Bernini , 5 0 ) ingeniously tried to connect
Claudian ' s "De Raptu Proserpinae" Lib . III with Lanfranco ' s ceiling
fresco . He referred correctly to Claudian ' s Lib . I I I , 14 f f . in
order to explain the presence o f the river gods in the lunettes .
But he could not solve the riddle of the central painting since he
did not find names for the single deities and thus was unable to
define the interrelation of the Gods .
I confine myself to the central painting alone . I will leave the
question of the river gods in the lunet tes , the s tories according to
Ovid ' s "Meta;norphoses" in the roundels above them, and the four painted
vases in the spandrels to a more detailed study of the loggia decoration.
 30

That the p rominent vases have something to do with the general context
of time s eems probab l e . Martianus Capella (De Nuptiis Philologiae et
Mercu rii , I . 8) described four metallic vases with lids of Apollo whi eh
were interpreted by Renaissance mythographers as "variedl de ' tempi" .
See V. Cartari , Le Imagini degle Dei degle Antichi , Venic e , 1 609 , 57 .
25
Lanfranco planned in his p reparatory d rawing ( s ee A . Stix and
A . SpitzmUller, "Die Schul en von Ferrara , Bologna, Parma etc . ", Vol . VI ,
Bes chreibender Kat . der Handzeichnungen in der S taatl . G raph . S lg .
Albertina , Vienna 1 94 1 , No . 3 7 1 ill . ) , to place Pluto and Proserp ina
more to the left , where in the f inal version Neptune can b e found . In
the original sketch , the plot of the painted s t o ry would have b e en
a dialogue between Jove and Pluto , who is wearing a crown . The concen­
tration on the concept of "time" is al ready clear in this sketch all
the mo re so since S aturn is s tanding and thus has a still more promi­
nent plac e . But some decisive details are not y e t defined i n the
drawing .
26
I want to thank Dr. K . Herrmann-Fiore f o r drawing my attention
to S t . Francucci (La Galleria dell ' Ill .mo et Rev .mo Signor Sc ipione
card . Borghes e . ; Ms . in the Fondo Borghese IV , 10 2 Arch . Stato Va t . ) ,
where already in 1 6 1 3 the 4 2nd s t rophe describes a relief o f the Astrea
above the doorway of Scipione ' s palace in the B o rgo ( the present
Palazzo Giraud-To rlonia): "La bell 'As trea sta sopra l ' arco in piede/
che pur dal ciel fece alla fin rito rno / l ' amata Pace a des tra man le
s i ed e , / versa da l ' al tra la dea Copia il corno . . . " . S e e C . d ' Onofrio ,
Roma , 218.
27
I t makes even more sense t o call the small fat man P riapus
rather than S i lenus , whos e general at tributes might also f i t with
those of the painting ( fatnes s , grapes for wine and bowl in hand , g rape
leaves on the head , bareness o f virile member) . But since Priapus
is the son of Bacchus and has always been regarded as representation
of nature ' s engendering power, much the same way that his father Bacchus
has been seen, small and childlik e , may be b etter identified as P riapus .
See Cartari , Imagini , 323-325: "Oltre di c i a , perche Baccho era
 ·.·

31

anco creduto da alcuni de gli antichi essere quella virtti occul ta ,

che � tutte le piante d � forza d i produrre gli maturi frutti ,
scrive Herodoto , che egli fu Nume famigliare alle Dee Eleu s ine , e t
che andava spesso con lor o . Queste erano • • • r.erere , e t Proserpina
l e quali erano credute fare che lo sparse s eme germoglias s e . Et
leggesi appresso di Pausania (see Paus anias , Descrintion o f Greece,
ed . Jones , Loeb Library , London , Cambr idge Mass . , 1969 Lib I , I I 4 J
parimente , che gli Athenies i havevano nel tempio d i Cerere fra gli
altri s imulacri quel d i Baccho anchora , i l quale porgeva con mano
un ardente fac e . Da che venue fors e , che le favole fingessero
Priapo essere nato di Baccho , per mostrare la intera virtU s eminale ,
che piglia sua forza dal Sole , cos i negli animali come nelle piante ,
e nelle altre cose prodotte dalla terra " .
The two female heads looking in d i f f erent directions in the
center of this group may refer to the Roman goddesses Antevorta
and Pos tvorta ( see again Cartar i , Imagini 31: " . . . adoravano
�
gli antichi Romani Antevorta , e Postvorta compagne della Divini t�
quella perch� sapeva l ' avenire , questa il passato , intendendo per �o
che la D ivina sapienza sa tutto • . . ") . This explanation s eems to
me probable since in the painting they correspond to another couple
of male heads which I would identify with the Dioscuri on the
fresco ' s l e f t . Obviously the Dioscuri allude to the division o f
the immortality o f Pollux with his mortal brother . By decree of
Jov e , Pol lux i s alive for one day while his brother is dead , and
the next day they reverse their positions (Hyginu s , Fabulae 1 7 3 ) .

Cicero (De Natura Deorum L ib . III) even reports that they were born

from Proserpina .
28
The three Graces are said to have s tood on the right hand o f
the s tatue o f Apollo.The three Graces , the Hours Jand the Four Seasons
are identified by some scholar s , for example Cartari ( Imagini 409) ,
)
as "Imagini delle Hore dette anco da alcuni Gratie, e t d i Apolline ,
intese per le quattro stagioni dell ' anno , questo per il Sole che varia
le s tagioni . . . " ; ''Ma d ice poi ancho il medes imo Pausania , che tutti
quel l i , li quali posero in Delo con le statue di Mercurio , di Baccho ,
 32

et d i Apollo l e Grati e , le fecero tre • • • ". Lanfranco ' s fresco renders

all o f these interpretations possib l e . Three young women next to
Apcllo could be seen as the three Graces on his right hand . Since a
fourth young woman , who is close to the couple o f Mars and Venus ,
seems not necessarily separated from her o ther female compani�ns 1 she
may be taken as one of the four seasons . This could be Harmonia ,
the o f f spring o f the two lovers Mars and Venu s . In his Albertina-sketch
Lanfranco s till identified her with Diana by means of a crescent moon
on her hea d . Since this crescent has been left out in the fres c o , Diana
or Luna must be identified with other female Deities .
29
The ancientidentification of Ceres-Proserpina and D iana-Luna had
been represented by Pontormo in Poggio a Caiano about 1 5 2 0 (see M .
Winner, "Pontormo ' s Fresko" p.1 62 f f . ) . See further J . Kliemann ,
"Vertumnus and Pomona" , Mitteilungen des Kuns thistorischen Ins titutes
in Florenz , XVI, 1 97 2 , p . 3 1 3 f f .
30
In F . Perrier ' s volume o f ancient s tatues in Rome from 1 63 8
is illustrated as No . 7 7 a matronlike "Ceres in Hortis Burghesianis " .
31
caravaggio ' s ceiling in the Casino o f the Villa Ludovisi in
Rome of about 1 5 9 7 / 1 600 must be considered in this context as a forerunner
o f Lanfranco's fres co . See N . C . Wallach, "An Iconographic Interpretation
of a Ceiling Painting at tributed to Caravaggio" , Marsyas XVI I , 1 9 75 > 101
ff . , f i g . 1 , f i g . 24 . S . Cantarini ' s Etching assoc iates the three brothers
Jcve , Neptune and Pluto with the Borghese a rms . The gods are paying
homage to the Borghes e-arms by presenting their own crowns .
In his fresco , Lanfranco does not mate the seagod Pluto with his wife
Amphitrite but with Ceres . S ince Ceres had once been loved against her
will by Neptune this combination seems possib le (Pausanias , Description of
Greec e , Lib . VII I , XXV, 5 ) . In Arcadia there is a sanctuary t o Demeter
(Ceres) in the city o f Onc ium , where ther e were two different images o f
Demeter (Ceres) paying tribute to h e r two surnames "Fury" and "Bather"
(Lusia ) . The Fury-Ceres image held a torch in her right hand ( in our
case the halo of Apollo ) , while the image o f Bather-Ceres was not further
described by Pausanias , but s eems to have been expressed by Lanfranco
by matching his Ceres with Neptune . For the correct interpretation of
the fres c o , it may be important that both goddesses "Proserpina" correspond
 33

to both goddesses "Ceres" on the two different levels .

32 .
Claudian , De raptu Proserpinae I , 6 5- 1 1 5 , ed . M . Platnauer ,
Loeb Classical Library London-Cambridge , Mass . , 1 9 6 3 , 298 f f .
33
claudian, De . rapt . Proserp . I . 2 1 5 f f .
34
In a sanctuary o f Jove in Arcadia , according to Pausanias
(Description of Greece VIII , XXXI ; 1 - 3 ) there are two s tatues o f
Ceres (Demeter) and her daughter . "By the side of Demeter there
is also a Heracles about a cub i t high • • • • Before i t stands a table
on which are carved in relief two seasons , Pan with pipes , and Apollo
::t-t'
playing the harp" . ,. t>�aybe that the Hercules at the feet o f Ceres '
daughter derives from this pas s ag e .
35
See note 3 1 . Cartari , Imagini, 1 68 - 1 69: "Da che venne ,
che ella fu chiamata Cerere Nera appresso d i certo antra � lei conse­
cra te pure nel l ' Arcadia ; percioch� quivi era ves tita di negro , parte
dicono per dolore della rapita figliuola , parte per lo sdegno , che
ella hebbe della forza fattale da Net tuno , onde nascostasi nel l ' antro . . .
' '
vi s t ette assai huon tempo , il perche non produceva piu la terra frutto
' ' ...
alcuno . . . che masse a pieta tutti gli Dei l i quali non potevano pero
�
alla miseria humana , no sapendo eve fosse Cerer e . Ma avenne , che il
Die Pan errando , come era suo cos tume , et andando qu� , e l � ' per quei
manti cacciand o , capit � 1 � dove ella stav a tutta mesta : e trovatala
sub ito ne diede aviso a Giove . . . " . See Natalis Comitis 1 Mythologiae
Lib . V . J 5 1 7j L . Gregorii Gyrald i , Opera omnia, ed . J . Faes et
P . Colomesi , Leyden, 1 69 6 , vol . I; Historia d e Deis Gentium , 4 28 f .
36
0vid , Metamorphoses , V , 565 ed . , translated by F . J . Miller ,
London-Cambridge Mass . , Loeb Classical Library, 1 9 6 0 , 2 7 6 : "At medias
fratrisque sui maestaeque sororis /Juppiter ex aequo volventem dividit
annum : / nunc d ea , regnorum numen commune duorum , / cum matre est totidem,
cum coniuge mens es " .
37
Compare note 2 8 . The identification o f Ceres with Diana-Luna has
an old tradition; see Winner , uPontonno ' s Fresko ", 1 62- 1 6 3 ; Kliemann
"Vertumnus und Pomona" , 313 ff.
38
see Winner , Pontormo ' s Fresko 167 ff.
J
 34

39
Manil l i , Villa Borghese 1 9 5 : "Sopra le quattro por t e , son dipinte
....
a fresco le quattro Stagioni , opera Fiammenga". It is interesting to note
that in b e tween the two doors o f the Loggia a statue o f Ceres was f ound
(see Manill i , Villa Borghese) 92) .
40
I t is highly probably that the strange juxtapos ition o f Venus and
Proserpina refers to another cosmological passage of Macrobius ( Saturnalia
XXI) where the author relates Venus to the upper hemisphere o f the earth
and Proserpina to the lower : " . • . quod Sol annuo gressu per duodecim s i gnorum
ordinem pergens partem quoque hemisphaer i i inferioris ingreditur ; quia
d e duodecim signis Zodiaci sex superiora sex inferiora censentur : et cum
est in inferioribus et ideo dies brevioris facit , lugere credi tur dea
(Venus) t amquam sole raptu mortis temporalis amisso a Proserpina retento . . • "

in the understanding o f the Assyrian religion that Adonis may be under­

stood as Sol .
41
virgil trans l . by H . Rushton Fairelough, Loeb Classical Library ,
London/ Cambridge Mass . , 1 9 6 5 , 29 .
42
c . D ' Onofrio , Roma , 2 1 8 . " Come Giove successe a S aturno , e
l ' aquila sovrappose al drago , ed alle sorelle Irene ed Astrea L§ ee
our no t e 2 §7 , figlie di Saturno oppose le proprie sorelle Amaltea e
Pol i t i c a 0io � l ' ordine civile ) , per ! ' industria e l ' interessamento delle
quali parve che i tempi s i rinnovassero e risorgessero quelli antichi dell ' oro ;
'
cosi in questi nostri giorni l ' Aquila s t a in dolce complotto col Drago ,
e restituisce con verit� tut t i i beni che un tempo i secole aurei d i
S aturno conferivano con splendida menzogna . Di ciO e conspaevole tutto
l ' Orbe terrestre "/ For Astrea see no te 2 6 .
. • .

43
c1audian, D e raptu Proserpinae , Loeb Classical Librar� 345-3 5 1 .
44
saint Augu s t ine , De civitate Dei , VII , XX ed . and transl . W . M .
Green , Vol , I I . London/Cambridge Mass . , 1 9 63 , 445 .
45
claudian , De raptu Pros erpinae Lib . III 350 .
)
46
Kauf fmann , Bernini , 50 .
47
Kauggmann , Bernin i , 1 7 and 50 ; A . Borboni , Delle S tatue , Rome ,

1 66 1 , 8 1 . "E per dire il vero , chi puo rappresentare la Proserpina

. ....
rapita da Pluto che non la vegga plu al vivo scolpita dallo scarpello
del Bernino ; che d escritta dalla penna di Claudiano ? "
 35

48
Kauffmann , Bernini , 4 4 ; the group is mentioned in Ferdinanda
d e Medic i ' s Inventario Guardaroba 1 587-9 1 . See G . d e Nicola , "No tes
on the Museo Nazionale of Florence II , Burlington Magazine XIX, 1 9 1 6 ,
3 6 3 f f . ; I . Lavin , "Five New Youthful Sculptures by Gianlorenzo
Bernin i , Art Bulletin L , 1 96 8 , 242 , no te 1 2 6 ; illustrated in H . Anton ,
Raub der Proserpina , Fig . 3 2 .
49
c . Plinii Secund i , Naturalis Historiae , XXXIV, 1 9 , 20 . "Praxiteles
quoque marmore felicior : ideo et clarior fui t . Fecit tamen et ex aere
pulcherrima opera : Proserp inae raptum : i t em Catagusam , et Liberum patrum
et Ebrietatem, nobilemque una Satyrum , quem Graeci Periboeton cognominant . "
50
scritte da M . Giorgio Vasari , Parte I , ed . K . Frey Mllnchen, 1 9 1 1 ,
2 8 3 : "rapina da Pros erpina , fatta da lui, e l ' Ebrieta et uno Bacco et
uno Satiro insieme di s i maravigliosa bellezza , che s i chiamCi Celebrate . . . " .
51
Chantelou, Journal du voyage en France du Cavalier Bernin , ed .
Charensol , Paris , 1 9 3 0 , 3 4 ( 8 June 1 66 5 ): "M. l e nonc e , a demand e au
Cavalier laquelle des figures antiques il estimait davantag e . I l a dit
que c ' (tait le Pasquin , et qu ' un Cardinal lui ayant un j our fait la m�me
demande , il lui avait r�pondu la meme demande , il lui avait repondu la
"
meme chose , ce qu ' il avai t pris pour une raillerie qu ' il faisait de lui
et s '�n etait fach e; qu ' i l fallait bien qu ' il n ' e� pas lu

ce qu ' on en avait � cri t , et que le Pasquin e tait une figure de Phidias

ou de Praxitele et repr€sentait le servi t eur d ' Alexandre , le soutenant
quand il re; ut un coup de Fleche au siege de Tyr ! qu ' a la verit� , rnutil � e
e t ruine e comrne est cette figure , le res te de beaute qui y est n ' est
connu que des savants dans le dessin . " That Bernini took the Pasquino for
the mo s t important sculpture of Antiquity has been no ted even by Baldinucci
(Vi t a , 7 2 ) : " . . . d iceva per � che il Torso , e il Pasquino g l i parevano
di pi� perfetta rnaniera del Laocoonte s tesso , rna che questo era intero ,
e gli altri no . Fra i l Pasquino e il Torso esser la differenza quasi
impercettibile, ne potersi ravvisare se non da uomo grande , e p ill tosto
migliore i l Pasquino . Fu prime il B ernino , che mettesse questa s tatua
in al tissimo credito in Roma , e racconta s i , che essendogli una volta
state domandato da un Oltrarnontano qual fusse la pi � bella statua di
quella Cit t ;;-, e rispondendo , che il Pasquino , il forestiero , che si
credette burlato , fu per venir con lui a cirnento . " The same story is
reported by Domenico Bernino , Vita del Cavalier Gio . Lorenzo Bernino ,
 36

Rome , 1 7 1 3 , 1 3- 1 4 .
It is open t o question whether Bernini really was the first to
lavish such praise on the Pasquino . Pompilio Tot t i (Ritratto d i
Roma Antica , 1 s t ed . 1 62 7 , Rome 1 6 3 3 , 365-66) in 1 63 3 already
compared the beauty of the Pasquino with the Torso Belvedere . He
uses an etching to illustrate the position of the statue at the
corner of the former Palazzo Orsini, at the time the home o f Charles
Due de Crequi I . , French ambassador the Vatican . S ince Totti ' s
Roman guidebook obviously extols the Pasguino ' s sculptural quality
in order to flatter the Due d e Cr equi , possibl y Bernini i s adopting
this tradition o f p o l itical flattery . Charles Due de Crequi I I was
to be French ambassador in Rome during the sixties and was present
in Paris at some meetings b etween Bernini and Louis XIV ( 2 3 August
1 6 6 5 , Chantelou , Journal) .
52
See the fundamental s tudy o f A. Michaeli s , "Monte Cavallo" ,
RBmische Mi ttheilungen XIII, 1 89 8 , 248-274 ; P . G . HUbner, "Die
Aufstellung der Dioskuren von Monte Cavallo" , RBmische Mi tteilungen
XXVI , 1 9 1 1 , 3 1 8 f f ; H . Egger , Romische Veduten Vol . I I , Vienna 1 93 1 ,
Fig . 79-84 ; V . De Feo , La piazza del Quirinale , Rome , 1 9 7 3 , 1 1-19
£with caution) . S e e recentlv H . von Heint z e , "Statuae quattuor pedes tres , quarum
uas �Dus Constantini nomen inScri tum
marmoreae e s t , Mitteilungen des Deutschen Archaeologischen Instituts ,
Roemische Ab teilung 8 6 , 1 9 7 9 , 399 f f .
53
see R . Wit tkower ed . , Disegni de le Ruine di Roma e come anticamente erono ,
Milan, n. d . , fol . 1 1 6 ; C . D ' Onofrio , Gl i Obelischi d i Roma , 2nd ed . , Rome ,
1967 , 2 5 6-2 5 8 , who provides an interesting explanation o f the curious
assumptions of the antiquarians in the circle of Sixtus V .
54
A. Dona t o , Roma vetus ac recens , 1 s t ed . 1 6 3 8 , Rome 1 64 8 , 267-
268 ; according to the diarist Giacinta Gigl i published by C . D ' Onofrio
(Acque e Fontane di Roma, Rome 1 9 7 7) 2 4 6 ff . ) Pope Urban VIII in
1 634 had already removed the erroneous inscriptions by Sixtus V on the
bases of the Cavalli .
55
H . Brauer and R . Wittkower , D i e Zeichnungen des Gianlorenzo
B ernini , Berlin , 1 9 3 1 , 1 3 4 ff . , Fig . 1 7 1 b ; M . Winner , Zeichner sehen die
Antike , Exhibition Ca . , Kupferstichkab ine t t , Berlin, 1 9 6 7 No . 5 7 .
56
M . de Chantelou, "Journal du voyage du Cavalier Bernin en France " ,

ed . L , Lalanne , Gazette des B eaux-Ar ts XXIX, 1 8 84 , 4 6 1 ( 1 4 . X . 1 66 5 )

 37

"Il (Bernini) en �u une d ' Antinous qu ' il a admir�e et fait remarquer qu ' elle
est de tr�s bas relief , e t que c ' es t le profil d e la figure de Phidias de
Monte-Cavallo" .
57
Plin . XXVI , 4 , 1 6 : "Par hesitatio e s t in templo Apollinis Sosiani ,
Niobae- liberos morientes , Scopas an Praxiteles fecerit" . See G . A . Mansuell i ,
Galleria degl i uff i z i , Le sculture, Part �, Rome , 1 95 81 1 0 1 f f . with
illustrations and further bibliography concerning the discovery of the
group .
A reconstruction o f the complete group in the first half of the 1 7 th
Century was etched by F . Perrier , Icones e t s egmenta , Rome 1 6 4 5) No . 87 .
Guido Reni i s reported by Bellori (Vite ed . Borea 5 2 9 ) to have made
J
an eager study o f the statues of the Niobids all egedly by Scopas o r
Praxiteles . As B ernini always refers t o Guido Reni with great respec t , i t
seems highly possible that this interest in the expressive values of this
group may have been mutual .
58
Plin . XXXI V, 1 9 , 2 1 : "Spectantur et duo s i gna ejus diversos
affectus exprimentia , flentis matronae , et meretricis gaudenti s . Hanc
putant Phrynen fuis s e , deprehenduntque in ea amorem artificis , et mercedem
in vultu meretricis" .
Vasar i , Vite, ed . Frey , 284 : "Vidonsi d i lui parimente due
bellissime figure : l ' una rassembrante una honesta mogliera , che piangeva ,
"
e l ' altra una f emmina di mondo che rideva The contrast o f emo tional
expressions in Bernin i ' s early sculptural groups d eserve closer study from
this point of view. H . Kaufmann (Bernini , 48) first drew attention to
this problem .
38
 39

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1
J
 40

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41
 42
Howard Hibbard

BERNINI AND CARAVAGGIO

Our modern view of Caravaggio makes h� much more the counterpart to

Annibale Carracci than h is polar oppos it e , as was once the popular view .

Both artists made use of what may be called clas s ic compos itions , and both

made a notable return to nature by studying the model , a combination that

s ignalled the end of Mannerism and provided the necessary background for

the Baroque of Rubens and Bernini. Nevertheles s , Bernini, for all h is

emo tional ity and novel ty, preferred Annibale and indeed Guido Reni to

Caravaggio ; and in the lists of great painters that Bernini evidently

loved to make , and to promulgate, Caravaggio ' s name never appears .

Both Baldinucci and Domenico Bernini tell us that Bernini valued

Raphael above all , followed by Correggio , Tit ian , and Annible Carrac ci;
1
among contemporary painters he always s ingled out Guido Reni. In Paris ,

when a shipment of paintings arrived from Prince Pamphilj as a gift to the

royal cour t , Bernini preferred Guido ' s S t . Franc is to all others . And

when Chantelou called Caravaggio ' s Gypsy Fortune teller "un pauvre tableau ,
2
sans esprit ni invention , " Bernini agreed . Our records of Bernini' s

preferences and doctrines largely date from 1 6 65 or even later ; and consequently

we have to imagine a very different Bernini growing up in Rome in the

early years of the century , when Caravaggio and Caravaggism were together

s t ill a vital artistic forc e .

Thus we seem t o see a kind of Caravaggism in the relaEIVely early

Anima Dannata (Fig . 1 ) , which has qualities in common with Caravaggio ' s

Boy Bitten by a Lizard , which was probably well known s ince it exis ts in
3
several ver s ions (Fig . 2) . Both Mancini and Baglione mention the Boy

Bitten, and we can probably assume that what they knew in the 1 6 20 ' s , Bernin i
 43

knew too . Still , when one tries to find a Caravaggesque source for the

Scipione Borghese of 1 63 2 , it already becomes probable that Bernini ' s

painted inspiration was a Bolognese intermediary like Domenichion: by

4
1 63 2 , Bernini ' s specific interest in Caravaggio had surely waned .

Although Bernini did not value Caravaggio as highly as he did the

more conventional and "classic" artists of Bologna, Bernini was himself

one of the great assimilators-- like Raphael and Annibale and Ruben s , he

took what he wanted or needed from any source at all with impunity, while

always painting his own sense of artistic decorum. When Bernini said of

Raphael that he "assomigliava a un gran Mar e , che raccoglieva in se

l ' acque di tuti i fiumi cioi� il perfetto di tutti gli altri insieme , 1 1
5
h e was surely praising a quality that h e had hims elf pursued . What , then,

might have attracted Bernini among Caravaggio ' s pictures?

Several paintings by Caravaggio were in Cardinal Borghese ' s collection

and perhaps even in the Villa itself when Bernini was working for the

Cardinal . Caravaggio ' s David was framed for Borghese in 1 6 1 3 and has the

distinction of showing , supposedly , Caravaggio ' s horrific sel f-portrait as the

6
severed , but perhaps s till living head of Goliath (Fig. 3 ) . Ten years

later , when Bernini c arved his own David for Borghese , it too contained

a sel f-portrait (Fig . 4 ) . There i s , however , a great difference. Like

Giorgione ' s famous painting , described by Vasar i , Bernini showed himself as

the youthful and soon to be victorious David : and of course David was late r

a king , and even the ancestor of Christ . Bernini ' s (and Giorgione ' s )

point of view is characteristically optimistic and "healthy , " and contrast

starkly with Caravaggio ' s morbid work, however we choose to interpret it .

Bernini ' s David opened a netv era in sculpture by focusing outward ,

 44

extending itself psychologically and even , in a sense , temporally into the

space around i t , making contact with the viewer in a novel and dynamic way .

Caravaggio may have been one of Bernini t s teachers here , and I assume that

we all agree that Bernini was influenced by painting almo st as much as

he was by sculpture in the formation of his novel art . Caravaggio ' s Supper

at Emmaus now in London (Fig . j) was probably in the Borghese collection

7
by c . 1 6 1 3 , although we cannot be sure. In it we first see Caravaggio ' s

dramatic light and ges ture used to j o in a painted religious image with the

outside world-- with us , the viewers . Isolated in the darkne s s , and pro-

j ec ted forward by i t , the figures act out their sacred story so close to

the picture plane that they s eem to burst through i t . The disciple ' s

chair a t the l e f t , and mos t notably the outstretched arm of the pilgrim

disciple at the right , l ink us to their drama and almo s t force us to

participa t e .

Breaking down the picture plane , and l inking fictive space with that

of the viewer was nothing new. But in Manneri s t pictures the spatial

trickery was all too of ten done for its own sake , as an exhibition of self-

conscious virtuo s i ty : manner becomes ma t t er . Caravaggio ' s painting , in

i t s concentration , lighting, and drama , belongs to the dif ferent and more

serious world o f the Counter Reformation . I t unites the mimetic gestures

of the mature Raphael with a new, personal , and ins i s t ent religiosity.

This empathetic gesticulation, which goes b eyond the work of art

itself and its space to include the viewer , as it wer e , physically as well

as emotionally, is of course one of Bernin i ' s special contributions to

sculptur e . I t is seen in the David, in the Longinus (Fig . 6 ) , and in

countless other works . Even against great odd s , and amids t s taggering

competition , the Longinus manages to fill the entire crossing of S t . Peter ' s
 45

with his fervent drama of conversion, and his gestures may b e in some sense

related to a memory of Caravaggio ' s painting , or of another dramatic con-

version, that of Paul in the Cerasi Chapel (Fig . 7 ) .

One of the characteristic emo tions in Bernini ' s sculpture is the

portrayal of ecstasy : ecstatic concersion in the Longinus , ecstatic death

in the Ludovica Albertoni, ecstatic love of God in the S t . Teresa (Figs . 6 ,

8, 11) . Caravaggio was perhaps not wholly comfortable with ecstasy but he

portrayed S t . Francis in such a state very early in his career (Fig . 9) ,

and the painting was in Del Monte ' s collec tion until the sales of 1 628 .
8
Bernini surely knew i t or a copy. Without claiming an exclusive or

primary role , I believe that the S t . Francis is one of the images that would

have to be invoked in a discussion of the antecedents of the Ludovica

Albertoni . Moreover , the angel ministering to Francis also makes us think

of the great Teresa group . But Caravaggio actually produced a t least an

indirect model for the figure of Teresa hersel f . This i s his only other

ecstatic figur e , a Repentant Magdalen, which is apparently l o s t but known

9
from many copies and versions (Fi g . 1 0 ) . I t was extremely popular . The

general aspects of the Magdalen and o f S t . Teresa are similar ; and although

Lanfranco ' s S t . Margaret of Cortona is more obviously the source for

Bernini ' s group , Caravaggio ' s unforgettable image with its abandoned po s e ,
10
bathed in sharp highlighting , must l i e b ehind them both .

Caravaggio ' s brilliant spotlighting must have made its impress ion on

the young Bernini , and i t may well have been one of the sources of his

even more innovative use of real light to illuminate three-dimensional images .

Bernini usually tried to conceal his source of light in order to make it more

magi cal , j us t as the brilliant heavenly light of Caravaggio ' s paintings

 46

comes from a mysterious but obviously divine source outside the canvas ,

usually without heavenly adjuncts (cf . Figs . 7 , 9) .

In the Cerasi Chapel , and perhaps especially in the Cavalletti Chapel

in Sant ' Agostino (Figs . 7 , 1 2 ) , Caravaggio recreated stories of d ivine

Faith and Grace in powerfully imagined images painted from real models--

to creat e , as S t . Paul said , "the substance of things hoped for , the

evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 1 1 . 1 ) . It was in substantia rerum,

the substance of things , that Caravaggio placed his ultimate artistic faith .

Painters o f the F.enaissance had learned to create real-looking spaces in

which b elievable actions took plac e . Caravaggio concentrated instead

on real-looking people who , though painted , are s eemingly thrust out

into our own space and life by the darkness b ehind them . The ar tist who

understood b e s t what Caravaggio achieved in the Cerasi and Cavalletti

Chapels was Bernini , who translated the dramatic immediacy of Caravaggio ' s

paintings into s tatuary and ul timately into visual and emo tional experiences
11
framed by a chapel or even a church (cf . Figs . 8 , 1 1 ) . But Bernini

replaced Caravaggio ' s mundane people with idealized marb le figures and ,

when h e could , added real light to create an illusion o f the penetration

of the divine into what was always a consciously ar t i s t ic ensemb l e .

The Madonna dei Pellegrini (Fig . 1 2) was one of the most conspicuous

of Caravaggio ' s Roman paintings , in a church where Bernini had actually

worked . The real Madonna was a statue venerated by pilgrims to Loreto ,

and Caravaggio in this commis sion had been asked specif ically for a

"Madonna di Loreto . " Hhat he actually shows is not the transformation of

a statue into the actual Madonna and Child , however , but an apparition

that s e ems to s tand on the sill of the doorway of a contemporary Roman

 47

palac e . The reality of this miraculous presence is s o great that only

the kneeling pilgrims allow us to understand the figures of the Madonna

and Child a s apparitions--and indeed, we are s t ill puzzled about what

is actually the subj ect of the painting . Mary and Jesus have come to

beautiful , palpable life to bless and pro tect these common and humbl e

pilgrims . And they , in turn, are surely only surrogates for us who ,

in turn, kneel (at least figuratively) at the altar rail .

Bernini ' s greatness was to extend this profoundly serious and

empathetic kind of painting into three dimens ions , employing all of

the arts as well as space and ligh t , in place o f a mere two-dimensional

surfac e . But Bernini resis ted the ultimate step that Caravaggio ' s

paintings might have led him to take. No matter how empath etic and

emotional an ensemble Bernini might create , it ultimately depends

on an artistic core of white s tatuary, and never breaks out of the

class of art obj ects into that of a petrified man--as Pierre Legros

attempted with his S t . Stanislas Kotska a generation after Bernini ' s

d ea th . I t i s her e , I think , that Bernini and Caravaggio part ways :

for no matter what influences we may find from Caravaggio , Bernini

never allowed his s tatues to come to colored l i f e . This classicism ,

which was overlooked by our grandfathers but which Bernini hims elf

was careful to nurture , now seems one of the salient aspects of his

manifold genius .
 48

FOOTNOTES

1
Baldinucci wro t e : "Fra ' pittori pi� celebri poneva i seguenti

con tal ' ordine .

"Il prima e princ ipalissimo diceva essere s tato Raffaello , il

quale chiamava un recipiente srn ; surato , che raccoglieva in s � l ' acque

di tutte l ' altre fonti , cio� , ch ' e 1 poss edeva il pi� perfetto di tutti

gli altri insieme . Dopo questi poneva il Cor� g gi o , poi Tiziano , ed

�

in ultimo Anibale Caracci Diceva che Guido Reni aveva avu to una
'
maniera arricchita di si belle idee, che l e sue pitture recavan diletto non

meno ai professori dell ' arte , che agli ' ignoranti . " (Filippo Baldinucc i ,

Vita di Gian Lorenzo Bernini , ed . S . Samek . Ludovic i , Milan, 1 9 4 8 , 1 4 5 ;

first ed . , Florenc e , 1 68 2 ) . The s ame remarks are found in dif ferent

words in the l i f e by Bernini ' s son Domenico (see below , and note 5) .

In Franc e , in 1 6 6 5 , Bernini ' s remarks to Chantelou and others give the

same impres sion , but in a richer context : Annibal e , had he lived in

Raphael ' s time, said Bernini , would have g iven Raphael himself cause for

j ealousy ; on the other hand , Correggio , like all "Lomb ards" ( as Bernini

called the Venetians ) , lacked proportion : Paul Fr �art , Sieur de Chantelou ,

Journal du vovage du Cav . Bernini en France , ed . L . Lalann e , Paris , 1885 ,

222 ; (cf . 4 5 , 8 6-88 , 1 5 5 , 1 6 3 , and passim) . Bernini quoted Annibale

approvingly as having said that if one had not painted in fresco , one

could not be called a painte (256) . This remark may have been signifi cant

no t only for Bernini 1 s evaluation of Caravaggio , but also of his mm

significance as a painter , as Italo Faldi pointed out after my lecture.

I am also grateful to Matthias \•:inner for mentioning the fact that Bernini
 49

bel ieved the "Lombards" to b e inferior--al though we mus t rememb er

that for Bernini , Titian was the chief "Lombard" painter .

2
Chantelou, 1 9 0 ; the arrival of the Pamphili paintings is des-

cribed on 1 8 5 .
3
Alfred Moi r , Caravaggio and his Copyists , New York , 1 9 7 6 , 1 0 4 ,

f \
no . 5 1 , considers the extant versions lto b e all copies (including a

fourth , known to him only from a photograph , that he called inferior) .

�
Other writers have believe now the Longhi version (Fig. 2 ) , now the

Korda version in London, to b e the original . See Maurizio Marin i ,

I o Michelangelo da Caravaggio , Rome , 1 9 7 4 , 94 f . , no . 7 , and 339 f f .

All o f the works by Caravaggio that I mention were catalogued by

Marini , and will be c i ted henceforth in the notes by his catalog

number .
4
H . Hibbard, "Un nuovo documento sul busto del cardinale S cipione

Borghese del Bernini , " Bollet tino d ' ar t e , XLV I , 1 96 1 , 1 0 1 - 0 5 ; summarized

in Hibbard, Bernini, New York, 1 9 7 6 , 93 f f . (first ed . , 1 9 6 5 ) .

5
nomenico Bernino , Vita del Cavalier Gio . Lorenzo Bernino , Rome,

1 7 1 3 , 2 9 ; see note 1 above . Bernini ' s remarks in France are rich with

advice for painters to Study the Venetians , despite their weaknesses--

obviously he b elieved in taking what was valuabl e from any source .

6
Marini , no . 9 2 , with previous bibliography .
7 . •

Mar1n1, no . 30 . Supposedly painted for Ciriaco Mattei (Baglione)

and c i t ed as being there by Gaspare Celio c . 1 6 20 ; but the Mattei inven-

tories do not list it (Christoph L . Frommel , "Caravaggios FrUhwerk und

der Kardinal Franc esco Maria Del Nonte , " S toria dell ' ar t e , 9-1 0 , 1 9 7 1 , 9 ,
 50

note 3 1 , citing notices from Dr . Gerda Panofsky) . Bellori , on the

other hand, thought that the painting was done for Borghese ; and

al though that was chronologically impossib l e , it was surely in the

Borghese collec tion by 1 650 and is continuously catalogued there

( i t passed to the National Gallery in 1 8 3 9 ) . Since the painting

was not lis ted in Ciriaco Mattei ' s inventory o f 1 6 1 3 , I can only

assume that it had passed into the Borghese collection at that t ime--

and Scipione ' s appetite for paintings is notorious .

8
. . , no . 9 ; discussed more pertinently by Luigi Spezzaferro ,
Mar1n1

"Ot tavio C o s ta e Caravaggio : certezze e problemi , 1 1 Novit'a sul Cara-

vaggio , Regione lombarda, 1 9 7 5 , 1 1 4- 1 8 . ( S i� that pub l i cation is

rare , the reader can consult Burl ington Magazine , CXVI , 1 9 74 , 5 8 1 -8 5 ,

where h e gives much o f the same information . )

9
Moi r , Caravaggio and his Copyis ts , 1 1 1 f f . , no . 69 ; Marini ,

no . 6 2 , illustrates what he believes to be the original .

10
For all o f thi s , see now Irving Lav i n , Bernini and the Unity

of the Visual Arts , New York, 1 9 8 0 , 2 vo l s .

11
After I had given this talk I dis covered that as long ago as

1 9 5 6 Irving Lavin , r eviewing Wittkower ' s Bernin i , had written : 1 1 • ••

Caravaggio poses a further problem. His influence evidently goes

much beyond the early phys iognomical studies . While the two ar tists

o f course achieve very differen t results , the intense"realism" directed

toward inducing an immediate emo tional rapport between the spectator and

the subj ect represented is common to than b o th . " (Art Bulletin , XXXVIII ,

1956, 258) . Other writers before and since have pointed to various
 51

s imilarities , influences , and parallels , and I have made no effort

to do cument the relationship as perceived by critics and his torians

of the last century or so .

52
 53
Italo Faldi

AN UNKNOWN PAINTING BY GIAN LORENZO BERNINI OF 1 6 3 6

Perhaps i n no a r t historical field of �esternjpost-classical7

art has there been the kind o f progress we have seen in the field of
'i\ ev.' w1 L
Bernini studies . The progress has been gounded upon a mH1 ti�J ication�--
9--- ¢iL 9---- II
...e-f"' d iscoverilel ef works , �newly published documentation�

and certain chronological revisions . Additionally , there have been

; ""-'." h �
new and brilliant critical &�et laz e&t and especially the

milestone of the catalog of Gian Lorenzo Bernini ' s designs edited by

Brauer and Rudolf Wittkower in 1 93 1 , and the two subse-

quent editions of 1955 and 1 96 6 o f the volume on Bernini ' s sculpture

\1;1 ; lt�owev- 1">
by 1Vi ttkower . Without�� fundamental activity as a Bernini

scholar , knowledge of the great artist would not have progressed this

far, vor would this conference have been possib l e .

e� ·
And yet , at the same time , it should be noted that th� rich
. r--- ho.v� B � ,...,; "',; 's e, E;. L
'--- --
� � c�nce,rned11 � sculptur<a and architectur....,....-
_ _

studies ·

� PO<- v-.-b Vl."l_,;

than �ctorjal ADrk.
•

work far more This reflects the quantitative

re.b.�'oV\ �� p
and qualitative rap�e¥£ amoUg the various manifestations o f the artist t s
hiW<- J-/
genius and the different degre� of interest that they excit �jin critical
11
thought , from his o�� time right up to the present day.
'
c:c:
litelatttre/ the ��r::.!.:Q'"
1 ' I

In tl=ie Be?�tiui evaluation of as a

� � ,.�
painter has also been quite div� Al though his biographers considered
� A L--- 1';"\i.v( �t.-. �->
_!.t f!' marginal act±v±cy l Bernini ' s pa.:a ....fr,_,s � inste �d been held to be .
. ) ;.. . ,.,
:!"- ;;1-J< "'"""'
. ue.. 1--l.... r"-.. " + '-"· ',
- ·

-
of first rank importance by -some modern scholars . � not only ggeau3e
' �
V W!J.,\l_ .tL C,.!' 'F( - yf • ,-�
J....Jf
"f{ l, � •
•

i their intrins_ic qualitiesA but above all in re�ation' to tP.e pictor :al
1

· 1
·

� �� M a
·w, s, on T.rhich ? � eoct3had.....wed by L¥ie artil!!t 1 s ia tfte pre-eminent sculptqcg� .
J\
Eve,, ±i the view which his biographers held of Bernini ' s work as a painter
 54

1..<-­
\'\'\� �
(\ correc · _!: -,�etilEt
wi eeE!P.'l

w (.,; J,..; ""'�

reaeRea tt�� �Sl!odf'indl.c.rte that they were for the most part experimental

or occasional works , o r , in any event , works on which he exerted

�r.. ....�.-e..
limited effort and thus easily obliterated by, to put it in s eventeenth
A
century languag e , the Envy of Time and the Adversity of Fortune .
- -- ------
;rhe murals were entillStecCt"Qf;i thful , and modest ).' collaborat
.
�
because o f the difficulties associated with the technique of the
,;. including �� ,y--- -
fresco , tl<e .,,.r-ls,
'' related to �sculptural-architectural
'B/2-rrv.·.._;;-s.
ensembies ''- such as the Raimondi or Cornaro chapels . Jl4-B direct partici-
l M��
pat1on
. ·
1n �
th e exec
.
o;:...U... a1i a gzana- sea�
n o ff.. pa1nt1ngs . A-: · .
is 1 un1te d to h1s
.
Q
composi tional idea i �.� �1 though do cuments and sources attribute' to bini. works

such as the cartoon of S t . Bernard and the canvas of S t . Maurizi , b"�

_A A Lti..o ..., �k,.,p<-v ��� ca '.M;
o.r.V... _)
it is only in minor works that Gian Lorenzo exercised his talen � Y/�
with

singular discontinuit'tJ) •at pe.-iedie inter val:J I t is not surprising ,

however , if we take into account our current knowledge o f Gian Lorenzo
--t:ho--t;
Bernini ' s paintings , t tz l�c · few authentic paintings have thus

far been recognized , despite many attempts to add new ones to the cata-

log by various scholars : attempts which have often turned out to be

ephemeral .
S'�· �
In order to examine the current sitt:Iat!:.:.on o f the corpus o f Bernini ' s

paintings , I believe i t is useful to reread the testimony o f the sources

in relation to the very few works which have come down to us . Some are
"'""* I�
documented , o thers are not , so that, we haveA a body o f works without
.
documents confronting a body of documents without works .

Baldinucci writes :

(Urbano VIII) "come quegZi, che sin dai temiJO, che

1"1
- -"
d.at&a
1/1 .
San t�ta' a-z..·
v

Pao lo V eragZ i questa nobile ingegno stato data in custodia, aveva

v
 55

aominaiato a prevederne aose grandi; egli aveva aonaepito in se stesso

una virtuosa ambizione,- ahe Roma nel suo Pontifiaato, e per sua industria,

\
giungesse a prodvJTe un altro Miche lange lo, tanto piJ, perah� gia eragli

�
sov nuto l 'alto aonaetto del l 'Altar Maggiore di S. Pietro, nel luogo ahe
"

diaiamo la Confessione; come anaora di far dipignere a lui tutta Za Loggia

della benedizione: il perch � gli signified esser gusto suo, ahe egli s 'inge?

gnasse d 'appliaar molto del suo tempo in studi di Arahitettura a pittura

a l fine di aongiugnere all altre sue virtJ in eminenza anahe quelle belle

' \.
faaoltd. Non tardo il Giovane ad asseaondare i aonsigli del l 'amiao Ponte-

fiae, a feaelo senz 'altro maestro ahe delle statue e Fabbriahe antiahe di

Roma, solito dire ahe quante di queste si trovano in quella aitt� son tanti

maestri pagati per li Giovanetti.

Per lo spazio di due anni aontinovi attese alla Pittura, voglio dire

a far pratiaa di maneggiare il colore, attesoah � egli gi� la gran diffi-

col� del disegno co ' suoi grandissimi studi superate avesse. In questo

· '
tempo, senza lasaiar gli studi di Arahitettura, feae egli gran quant1-ta

di Quadri grandi e piacoli e quali oggi nelle pi J aelebri C�llerie di

Roma, ed in altri degnissimi Zuoghi fanno pomposa mostra .

. • . quantunque egli al dipignere si sentisse molto inclinato, con tutto

ai d non vi si voZZe fe rmare del tutto; e i Z suo dipignere, potiamo dire,

ahe fusse per mero divertimento; feae egZi perai� si gran progressi in

queZ Z 'A�te; che si vedono di sua mana� o Z �re a que Z Zi che sono in pubbZico, sopra
150 auadri moZti dei quali sono vosseduti
daZZ 'Eace ZZentissima Casa Barberina, e Chigi, e da quella de ' suoi

figZiuoli, e un bel lissimo e vivo ritratto di sua persona si conserva

nella tanto rinomata stanza de 'Ritratti di propria mano de ' gran Maestri

nel Palazzo del Sereniss. Granduca . . . . .

 56

. . . .
DomenJ.co Bernl.nl. furnJ.shed the same
I_,.,Ro r: Ma.t:�.) a. l �o
Reus J I ceall±L0
IN\����- )-.
u.ot co oer � 111 aSe.� -7 ?Til .

�elf-portrait i; the Uffizi, the portrait of Costanza Bonarelli

7f.... ';. b rD"'-j_t.A
in the Bernini house, which has been los e ftfl4 earry±Bgl' the number of
1
paintings by Bernini from one-hundred and fifty to two hundred .

Various kinds of documents also alert us to a few other works which

have not come down to us , such as the portraits of Fulvio Testi ( 1 63 3 ) ,

.of Agos tino Mascardi (before 1 640) , of Cardinal Rinaldo d ' Este ( 1 649) ,

and o f Alexander VII in the Casa Chigi.

,
As we have seen, not only are the specific references regarding

individual paintings furnished by the two principal biographers very

limited , the information about numerous paintings in the Casa Barbarini

and Casa Chigi also h �ittle basis in fac t .

Of the paintings in the Casa Barbarini today, the only one, which

remain are the one �ith � porto\;;:t{fi gures of the apostles Thomas
and Andrew , do cumented in 1637 and now in the National Gallery in London ,

and the painting of Urban VIII in the Galleria Nazionale d ' Arte Antica

in the Palazzo Barberini .

At this point we should note that in the Barberini inventories

published by Mrs . Aronberg-Lavin, except for the cartoon of S t . Bernard ,

executed by Carlo Pell egrini , and the two paintings which I j us t mentioned ,
2
there are only another eight paintings , all of which are lo s t .
Finally , o f the Casa Chigi paintings there remain only the David

with the head o f Goliath , documented in an inventory of 1 6 5 8 and from

the collection o f the late Marchese Giovanni Incis2 della Rocchetta, and
3 �b ..
the painting of a boy in the Galleria Borghes e . � the o ther source �

there is almo st nothing on Bernini ' s ac tivity as a painter from the diary
 57

of Chantelou other than the insignificant episode o f the copy of a

portrait in his hand executed by one of his student ') but which he re-
othe.v J e h �,._(_
touched and then switched with the original . There are also some� con-

siderations
/
of a geaeral n& Euli'.e.�ch as· his declaration that he was
born to be a painter rather than a sculptor because of a certain ease

with which he produced paintings , 1� aphorism about painting and

!/: (J "' &{ tv..' s

t;h.wt -f:t..,... " "-'-

sculpture : � is a truth, and therefore
A
��ceitf and illusion, the work of the

a saying from Annibale Carraci that anyone who had not painted a fresco

could not call himself a painter �e sum of our current knowledge

o f Bernini ' s paintings is thus quite modes t : no t counting the at tribu-

tions which have not stood the test of t ime and which have not been

full � assembled , we mus t admit that we know only about a dozen paint-
-tk�<M- .
ings . �ome o f 11hieh have controversial dates but �r the most
�
part , date from 1 625- 1 635 . In this disheartening situation, I believe

I am making a useful contribution �ringing to the a ttention of scholars

a new painting by Gian Lorenzo Bernini to add to the tiny group known

today.

It is a small ( 6 6 x 50 em) canvas which I saw a number of years

ago in a house in Rome, just in time to photograph it before I lost track

of it completely . Since then , although I have done a great deal of re-

search, I have not been able to track it down again. Therefore, I apologize

for not being able to present a good color reproduction.

That this work is indeed by Bernini is attested by the writing on

.,r!.u 'c.t,_ I
the reverse of the canvas ) ;l£ not the signature which i t appears to b e ,
y
Jk is surely of the same time as the paintin �'Jt-discovered during the
VIM
• .

58

relining o f the canvas _itself , and is clearly legible : "Opus Equitis

Joannis Laurentii Bernini 163 6 . " All evidence indicates that it is

a private work, and the measurements indicate that i t was destined

fo r fu W<H" \<. w-M­
for the head-board of a bed rather than�above a domestic altar . � txe-

cuted with a rapid series of brushstrokes �hich in many places on

the background barely cover the canva � �ven in reduced form the
�

painting has a monumental c�st and a surprising emotional intens ity .

The small figure of Christ is contr��ted on the large, crudely carpen-

tered cross , rising out imposingly from a low horizon agains t a stormy

sky. The heavens are shot with lurid clouds and illuminated by violent

raking light �hich fall� from the upper left corners--exactly the
�wl
point toward which Christ directs his gaze-idiagonally s trike </the J
ir'l 1., )-
figure� an evocation o f drama tic penumbr � and cast � into high relief

the face of Chris t , the loincloth , and the clouds in the upper right

hand corner. Lacking any graphic suppor t , the image is realized entirely

by the pictorial drafting, which gives the work an extraordinarily immed-

ia te , almost improvised character .

In the corpus of Bernini paintings , which until now has consisted

.., t-�1).._
of portraits or a t least head s , this Crucifixion, 1okeee daLe falls probably
,i� ,/Y"""' W<• <-k<·'-
St t�O edges Q� �the best documented period of the artist ' s activity , is an

unicum.

For thematic affinity, one could compare the idea of S angue di Cristo ,

but it would not be a useful comparison because o f the diversity as much

"
in the iconographic motif as in the composi tion and for span of time which
1
v.ro-1�
separates the two
1
.. TT ;
59

I believe I can conclude with the affirmation that the painting

which I have presented seems to confirm the extemporaneous and almost ,

.
,
p "" "-+-; '5
.

k.'. .C.!eM.+ ""'

private character of Bernini ' s painting � � pe eXercise �ither v

to d emonstrate �ility in this field too , wit � the ambition of being

considered the Michelangelo of the century l:lREle.. the auspices ef

)._.. OV1- )V"Y
-ttl!'lz,jo,a
<lt�
I-v
vi'J'
If-i or � particular occas ions"' a ' fiitr:po.s:es-rest.,..i etieEl te a
1\
more immediate enjoymen � as in the case o f the portraits and sel f-por-
f:.fl-v,'� 'of C!/JIWS t.
trait V J:
;,
·,
,,"1':
b""n
ne
e.,
zea.3,
1-y, .l>yll.contrast!>with his work as an architect , sculptor

and stage designer, all of which address the larger public . Th� public
J-
vJaA �0"'� ;;
� no t� � spectator� bu )�tself participated and became involved
""- -
to varying degrees in the spectacl �
�s critics have amply demons trate��
' A
The exception is the "Veri ta scoperta dal tempo" which even if
)
the only sculpture the artist execv�ed himself without a patron, was

certainly not a private work. On the contrary , it was so widely pub-

lished even during the artis t ' s life that i t turned into a proverb :

"La verit � n1 che presso il Cavaliere Bernini . "

60
61
 62

Ursula Schlegel

THE CRUCIFIXES OF THE VATICAN ALTARS

Despite their high artistic level , the crucifixes at St . Petei ' s virtually do

not exi s t , not only f o r the general pub l ic , b u t also in large measure

for scholars (Fig s . 1 , 2) . Only Roberto Battaglia in 1 942 and Rudolf

Hit tkmver in 1 96 6 made them the obj ect o f serious consideration.

b-
Nonetheles s , to date they have not found a precise plac �.ong the
purc'Gr.i_�
masterpieces o f the' � The fact that so far there has been no ge� erally , 1

'Q� ""-
lt.6 v- e.Su..L:t:'i i"l £\
� l 'f\.1: ,.;
accepted attribution can b e ascribed � 537Fa"' .l ogr..,ee to the d i f ficult;/ �
.ho'M>- \!r��� ��-'" ?�c.e_ v-"e_.. :t:·, L M o,IA �­
jt.RaFactEtS:: ?ing �ew. Vccausc they exo p1 �zea oe � ' but �a �
..

1
:o � b (<!.A"- cte..v-;ve� fv"'"
-t(,e. J<>c:t-fd,-.rz- o_.. t;._ "1 'Ch<..;"' @ -

E:....tcnt to H-Ie ci:rem:rstance-- o-f 'Bernini and Ferrata �collaborati.sR/.

BetHeen 1 6 5 7 and 1 6 6 1 , Pope Al exand er VII provided for ne« altar

services for the Basilica . The .documents concerning the commission and
� .ro "tlW•-
the lsaa?s� o f work are preserved in the archives of the Reverenda Fabbrica
1
V! "'-' '-'·h.
-
•
>

2
d i San Pietro , aaQ were published by Battagl ia . From these it appears

tha t , among o ther things , the stanchions , crosses , and c i f ixes � w·ere
al'ld.. v,e.rt...
executed according to Bernini ' s des ignsAunder his direct control . From

June 1658 to March 1 6 6 0 there were . payments to Ercole Ferrata for executing

models of the crucifixes and for cleaning waxes of the crucifixes3 cas t
r '
in bronze by Paolo Carniefi from October 1 65 8 to February 1 6 6 1 . �

��;-�odel
.

Early on , in June 1 65 8 , o f a crucifix that �vas to have

�
portrayed the dead Christ was mentioned , Jef. only in May 1 6 5 9 was i t noted :
ivo/ \
11un altro modello d ' un crocifisso V'/co s i ' ordinato da S . S . ta . 11 It followed
I '
ll,iW. c.. h .,v....c-
that in ou tfit ting the altar s , � conceived according to the same scheme, the

crucifix also had to be repeated as one type , that of the dead Chris t . Only

at the express desire o f the Pope and af ter nearly a year Has the model o f
 63

the l iving Christ created . It seems that the Sacred Congregation did not

entirely approve , since , as I have been able to ascertain, of the twenty-

three cruci fixes in the church , only five are of the l iving Chris t .
5
Accor d 1ng
. to the d ocuments , twenty- f 1ve
" cruel" f 1xes
" were cas t . One o f the

two missing crucifixes is in s torage at the basilica, as Prof . Pie trangeli

has kindly informed me . is shown in an old photograph by Alinari o f

It

, freP,resents
the altar of Michelangelo ' s Pieta, and � the dead Chris t . Even

i f the missing one was the living Chris t , the ratio nineteen to s ix ,;auld

s till be s ingularly unbalanced . The manufacturing process does no t explain

- 6
the imb alance , since Ferrata executed the last waxes only in March 1 6 6 0 .
� dress St!.'.l!-k.if!.t...'(!:., �J... C..!�r-6:-�r P ::; \'A«-11.-
The is:;w,; uere is no t the arguments about11 � j udgment <7h..
/l
and r_eference for the various crucifix typologie ) G-f ao entecaU, cennrr��
�' however impor tant this may be for Bernini and a church such as S t .

Peter ' s . Rather we will confront a far more immed iate and no less essential

ques tion : are these cruci fixes to b e seen as the work of Bernini or of

Ercole Ferrata? l-lhose ideas do they reflect and who se imprint do they bear?

The slender sums paid to Ferrata for the models are clear evidence that

the inspiration carne from Bernini . The fact that Ferrata had the molds o f

the ttvo crucifixes , a s noted in the inventory for his tvill , does not reveal
••
much , even i f expressed in the follm·1ing terms : Il cava del Cristo vivo e
7 '7\ 1'\U-- .y .�
morto del S . r Ercole" . 11.. Ferrata/-� had taken over the meticulous execution of
,.J:t:-
the model y �st not have hesitated to derive from them forms to his own
" ca.v-."'o� t'h'-'ii.ttS�",""'- '1--
advantag e . On the o ther hand weAignore howiprecise Bernini ' s direc t ions
A
may have been . \.Jere there drm•ings ? Or terraco tta sketches? I t is also

conceivable-- think of the angels on the bridge to Castel S . Angelo-- that

iff M c..._ pt:�.-b /.e. "J-.
Ferrata RaE t:fle a'Bilit) � interpre
,...y
Y'b
\ ernini ' s direct ions . The elus ive
 64

connection in compo s ition and style b etween Algardi ' s crucifixes at S .

1
Marta and the one of the Pa�avicini type (Figs . 3,4)
_'tvould s eem to confirm a

s imila� hypothesis ; they are specifically mentioned by Hitt-

�
kower , yet without arri\ ing
I
at a d ec1s1ve
. . a t tr1' but1on
. el; tI<e
�
l-atter to
8
Algardi . I t should be noted that more than once Bernini dre>< upon
c.,�·�,, -�w�'-"'\·'-'; '--

formal s�he��sJ��o �he�s �ut ? e then achi ev ed artistic results

J �-
vJ\,;� e_l V.•AVM'i>\�1<.'-"-'o�
t�lrga'a±y/ldiff er�l' from the model .

Ferrata�eems)esp��ial l;} to have fashioned the dead Christ by

adopting features from the Algardian prototypes . 9 Ce tainly there is z
','I\ .t�,.,e... �
':'�; o�n�d�e;n�c�� e��� A_c_o_m�p_o_s_l
_
._t_
i_n�, a_t_t_
o_ tu
. l_ d e�,__a_n_d���' f o r__
___ ma solution o f the
"' li _ I. . 1 0
__

- _
}�
I; '
"""" "-"
girdle•. ""'"' compar4ng- the Christ and Algardi ' s Santa But in
•

execution the contrasts could not have been greater . In Algardi , there

is a soft , relaxe modeling

: 3fSt�f;fo�
" � a lifeless body ; the legs are

limp and l ifeless,1 ><ith the right one lightly tur_

' nward . From a
1/
'"'j .___,
ro-o IA'i, 1'0� irJ
frontal vie><, 4,.t.�vi:_ible Efr.rt the/lthigh and knee 1�
I
The mortal silence that issues from the body is attenuated by the in-
£4�
cl ined head (Fi g . S ) {s o r r , thick hair framing a face o f perfect beauty .

The smile hovering about the eyes and mouth recall the words of John the

Evangelis t : 11consummaturn est" . The peace and silence of death are · shown

in such convincing guise here that one almost forgets the cruelty being
11
shown .

There i s nothing similar at S t . Peter ' s . Here Christ has just expired .

The tension o f one who was just alive and--according to Mark 1 5 : 3 ?,w4,
�.
with a cry-- remains in the entire body . The head , sharp and pointed , hangs

on the breas t (Fig . 6) . The hair on the left shoulder s t ill �<ave hin the
air following the brusque movement . The body is like a sack hanging on the

cros s , with the arms strained and the knees bent forward . Even the edge

of the freely falling girdle is connected with the body ' s las t violent
 65

9------
I A
hem i s lightly raised . The girdl':J �ashioned
;s ak
with no pretext of decorative autonomy ,A coarse fabric t'tvis ted ener-

getically and ''i th edges that fall in an apparently arbitrary manner .

A large knot swells on the right hip while a small edge res ts without

particular articulation on the left hip . I t would b e hard to imagine

a greater contrast between Algard i ' s finer clot �t h its manifold

movement , although the way they are tied i> analagous .

we... Y t.o... L� � >.!,..
On�e one �as eeeeme a�arc af this quality o f the dead Christ at

the Vatican, let alone of the relational coherence of all of the figures ,

i t is difficult to recognize intervePtions by Ferrata or even to speak,

as Wittkower does , of "lessened vitality . " 1 2 Already the fundamental

of
quality conceiving of the figure a s rich Hith tension i s missing in
/\
all of Ferrata ' s �vork. Unfor tunately , not even one crucifix proven to

b e from his hand exists as an exampl e . 1 3 His manner is characterized

� ���;�
{ '- _/ b y flu id compos i t i on j:cr:�
: det ail
� �D�� �:;;:�
,_
's
:����of��:
c ' ' "'::·: ��: ·.
_ .
a context which is generically vali&�undoubtedlyl\ for its rre8Hrr
es� �
�

1/:;.Jf\ I \ (

a vast group o f s tudents . Ferrata ' s extraordinary capacity to identify

himself with another made him an ideal collaborator for Algardi , and

i t also enabled him to translate Bernini ' s direc tions--Nhich , we must

suppo s e , were quite precise--convincingly into his language .

Wittkower found confirmation of Ferrata ' s hand in the modeling of

jl:.,\ ....,;,;l s
the dead Christ at S t . Peter ' s also comparing it with �, bronze cruci-
b;} 10:0;;...-
'
/!

fix for Philip IV at the Fscorial (Fig . 7 ) 1>0- BeLi.t:b1>bout three years
4
ear 1 1er
. .1 He thus ignored the fact that Bernini never repeated himself ,

since each work was conceived in relation to its destination , so that �

�
:w.-
intimate formal nexus had to b e supported by analogous premise r
· regarding
 66

the contents . The s tiff body on the Escorial crucifix discloses max-

imurn concentration, rendered more apparent by the nearly horizontal

of
folds o f the girdle , here too o f te �energetically twisted material ,

al though in the body ' s central area. Just as the body is nothing if

not the simula crum of one who has passed away , neither does the beau-
a
tiful head furnish a reflection on an earthly pas t nor refer­
A
ence to a precise moment of suffering . This crucifix was destined for

the funerary chapel of the Spanish Kings . It is an ideal representation

of Christ triumphant in absolute perfection on the cross , comparab le to

5
the triumphal crosses of late Gothic Germany . 1 On the 1atican al tars ,

however , the interpretation refers to the nexus between the sacrifice

on the cross and the actual one on the altar table belmv .

As in all o f Bernini ' s works and that o f no other sculptor o f his

af
time, the determining criteria fo the a fresh confirmation

of his authorship was the intensity with 1vhich he revealed a certain moment ,

a certain thought . This was no less true o f the bronze of the l iving

Chri s t , which is fully accepted by Hit tkm<er (second edition , 1 9 66) and

by Battaj 'lia as Bernini ' s invention . The genes is , however , is identical

with that of the dead Chri s t . I n this case , too , Ferrata executed the model
16
and again, it is instru ctive to compare this with Algard i ' s living Chris t .

I t i s immediately clear that Bernini transformed Algard i ' s d ivine image

of a sweet figure o f beauty into a drama tic assertio n . Algardi ' s Christ
�

,.!,.1 '"'\ ! •. '

(Fig . 8) evidences silent resignation: 11Pater in manus tuas commendo spirit-

\'Y'- .
urn meum'' (Luke 2 3 : 4 6 ) ; Bernini ' s Christ reveals a fO tlon of rebellion over -

flowing with sorrow. His cry : "My God , Ny God , why has t Thou forsaken me"

(Matt . 2 7 : 4 6) throbs through the entire body . The head fal� to the side,
 67

'I '
�v,_c- A-�,_y.u)
W:: ' '

as in Algard � ith the throat raised in cry, an effort which displaces

the body from the axis . As a resul t , the hips j u t out from the other

side, and the legs are bent in the same direct ion .

appears in the edges of the girdle which tightly b inds the hips : the
tvl /--
drapery here canno t be called beautiful as _#;.. that of Algard i . As with
11
the o ther crucifixes , here too every detail is explained as a function

o f the whole and is thereby necessary. Algardi , however , does not hesitate

to satisfy formal d emand� by letting the hair on the upper left flutter
17
freely with no apparent caus e .

As for the question o f whether one o f Algardi ' s students , that i s ,

Ferra ta, was capable of arriving at this extreme concentration of form

and content of the vatican crucifixes , the answer can only be no . However ,

we are inclined to declare that b o th types follow Bernini t s instructions

down to the last detai l , even though the models are from Ferrata ' s hands .

Bernini was gif ted with the art of making capable sculptors produc e work u;,.t..-U L �: � .
�-

.:... L :t.,_.._ �{J (.,_�A ' ..x. �.-n.-...<.. �7(_0

'"1 �·-1 � '-"
"
.. ... .
..

as if i..t-l-we-� tis gaida,te� . This must be kept in mind 1;hen assess ing

the models <?hich have been pres erved . I t should also b e added that where

there is such a d ivision o f labor, the search for absolute authenticity

-�.:A,.,�: : .'c:;..w;:..e.. 12
loses -�w;:t:a•Hee;...___

S taatliche Huseen, Berl in-Dahlem

68
 i
69

Haurizio Fagiolo

BERNINI A}ID KIRCHER AT PIAZZA NAVONA :

The End of the Great Flood

�..:_, vJ_..
There are works whose global signif icance continues to escape us :
1,
one sensational example is the Fontana d ei Fiumi in Rome, started by

Borromini and then completed by Bernini and his shop b etween 1 648 and

1 65 1 . Until the complete cultural fabric in which similar works are

g enera,ted is clarified , their meaning \Vill continue to elude us . Festi-

vals and shows played a special role in that cultural fabric , for through
�--,__ ,·
"':')
them the pm<ers that b e spoke and the public understood their iHteations 0
__

This essay empha sizes the importance of studying fes tivals for decoding
1
important architectual sculptural works .

I will discuss s everal fes tivals :

"--
�af Pope Innocent X to the
'
papa�y{
. (Piazza Navona i s the ideal

"court" for his famiJy palace) ; the festival in honor o f the Pontiff
fi,ol :"9 "}
given b y the Duke o f Bracciano ( 1 6 5 3 ) ; and finally the famous "Piazza
A
'\ . _).-- "
Navona 1-a-lte!' which until now has only attracted the a t tention o f j ourn-

alists interested in folklore rather than art historians .

At the outset, i t should b e noted that rarely did Bernini give

birth to works which lacked meaning j his b iographer underlines tha t :

"Sua opinione sempre fu che 1: Z buof'l.o archi tetto dove sse semvre dar Z.oro

fi_
z ze sicrni ficata vera avvera aUudere a case nabili a

vere a finte". On the Fontana dei Fi um i , in particular , on the base of

the raised spire , there is a very precise declaration : SITIENTIBUS POTUM/

MEDIT.4NTABUS ESCAM and again INNOCENTIUS DECflcfUS P. M. AMOENAM SALUBRIT.4TEl':l

CUM MAGNIFICA ERUDITIONE LITERARUM HERMETICI AENIGM4TIS LAPIDEM A QUAE

 70

VIRGINIS PONTI IMPOSUIT AD SEDANDAM CORPORUM ET A CUENDAJ.! INGENIORUM

8ITifl1. In short, the water quenches the passerby ' s thirs t , but it

is also a pause which should make him reflect . In sum , it is s till

tightly l inked to the image , this exponential esca per l ' ingegno .

In the Fontana dei FiUTTli , the "Holy Dove" (of the PamphiJi , o f "Inno-

cent'J o f the Holy Spirit) confirms (recalling the ancient con trap­
of 1-ht.. 'i-ped::.::.i '-
tions in which the dove ''as the high pain �) the global synthesis o f

the worlds (animal , vegetable , minera l , human) of elements , of temp-

erarnents .
roc.k.j b� ·

In this vein , it must b e added that in Bernini r s work the roccia

has a particular meaning : it appears in the equestrian monument to

Louis XIV, in Palazzo Hontec.itorio , in the Louvre , in the proj ect for

the Catafalco Beaufor t , and it is a l�Yays linked i..J ith the "mountain o f

virtue" o n which Hercules o r h i s human translation (pontif f , general ,

sovereign) triumph s .

On the o ther hand i t i s precisely Bernini who declared i n Paris :

"Io sana malta arnica dell ' acqua . 11 And in each of his fountains a

concealed meaning can b e traced , evidently clear enough to the families

-tv
for i.Vhom the fountain was des igned and also � �he public which was to
A
enjoy the benefits of the water and the flavor of the s ermon and the t al e .

But l e t u s s tar t a t the beginning .

On 2 3 November 1 644 representatives o f foreign "nations" and some

noble families gathered to celebrate Innocent X ' s elevation to the papacy,

c
the b eginning of i.vhat one source (Nariani) calls the Innocente secolo
A
2
�ll ' Oro . Piro technic displays were held the evening after the cortege
/o 0Go<"H '\ -{,," lc
•.

ta1te poSsession of the Lat eran B asilica . At Piazza Navona there was
1,
 71

a machine with Noah ' s Ark resting on the Ararat . In the Piazza of the

French embassy there was an apparatus shaped like a mountain with a

triumphal chariot pulled by two tigers and a woman as an allegorical

representation of franc e . In Piazza di Spagna was a hill-shaped dev � ce

I
with Caves from 1-1hich dragons emerged , de cora ted t-lith the Pamphi lJ' arms

and also with a live bull sporting rockets and Catherine-wheels . At

C!.oh--lvv. JO-b-?,.)
the Teatr_:}(di Marcello there was a maeftirie 'tvith Romulus , Remus and the
concluding
/
she-wolf , with a A fire in which a pigeon emerged from Romulus .

Finall�i , in front o f Palazzo Borghese, there was a machine with a recon-

s truction of Rome triumphant , preceded by personifications of the four

continents . L . Banck offers a precise description:

ante ipsum paZativft structura .quaedam satis magna erat errecta

quae Arcam No� , repraesentabat, cui in svftmi tate calumba erat affixa,

qua significabatur, pacem jam Orbi & Urbi esse restitutam, nee unquam

coZvftbvft iUam sen INNOCENTIUM DECIMUM a liquos beUi tumuUus moZiri

veZZe, dum diZuvium statui R omano, bactenus satis moZestum fuerit .

Cvft vera facem structura, artificiosissime eZaborata, ab omnibus satis

esset visa, tela iqaea missi Zia, pyrobolos, fZammasque stupeas, in

aerem supra modvft emisit, donee tota consumpta & in .fumum dissoluta esset.

Nee deerant interim tympanistae, sc l�petarii & tubicines qui quasi

interscenia, suo sonitu & strepitu, suppZebant .

Sumvtibus tamen & inventionis novitate, reliqua omnia superavit

artis i Z Zud miracuZum, no mine christianissimi Regis GalZiae, ante ejusdem

v

Zegati extraordinarii ��rchionis de s. Chamon t , paZatium erectum : Structura

i Ua molem quandam prae s e .ferebat, quae Romam triumphantem repraesentaret,

in cujus parte dextra insignia Papae, scilicet calumba cum ramo Olivae &
 72

tribus ZiZiis affixa ce�aebantur; In pa�te vera sinistra� insignia

a
Regis GaZZiae elaboratissimo mode fact� appensa ePant. Ante eandem
• /1
u.
Romam , quator mundi partes Europa , Asia & America admirando & plane
/1
stupendo quodam artificio erant coZ Zocatae� eaeque omnes puZvere ni-

trato ac pyroboZis forinseeus vestitae & intrinsecus oppZetae fuerant.

Cu� autem iZla moles esset incensa� ipsa Roma Triumphans se aliquantis­

per cum reZiquis mundi parti bus� movere & locum �utare ineepit.

Inter quos Europa adeo eminebat, ut i l Za sola Caelum petere visa

fueY.it reZiquis sese invicem minutatim consv.mentibus, donee ignis

magis magisque per partes proreper-e�� tandem spatia fe1�e duarv.m

horarvffi nibil praeter pysobolos flammasque missiles oernere licuit:

Postea demum tota i l la structura simuZ erat incensa, unde Zv.men per

totam fenne Urbem sparsum, r>eliqua Palatia, domos, & plateas, suis

radiis iZ lustravit . . .

From A . Gerard i ' s repor t :

In Piazza Madama furono le due sere suddette fatte due grandi

'
girando le con tal artifioio che vennero a cadere sopra la vioina
'
Piazza Navona & a ricoprirla tutta con straordinaria vista.
I
L 'Eccelentiss. Signor Conte di Cir>vella Ambasciatore Catto lico
1\

fece la prima sera comparir un Toro con una sopravesta piena tutta di
-
.

1
razz 1 , e soffioni, a Uo sparar de qua li messosi in fuga i Z Tor>o, si

.faceva far> piazza per tutto dove fuggiva, con gusto del PopoZ c;, che
' \
non pati per>o danno a lcuno. Fece in oltre alzar davanti a l suo Palazzo

'
una grin machina rappresentante Z 'A1"Ca di Noe, con la Co lurriba sopra e

' '
auro questa mac h.�na
' un 710r>a grossa a gettar razz� ( . . . } .
•
•
 I.{;_ 5
73

L 'Ecce lentiss . Sig. Marchese di San-Chamont Ambasciatore Straor­

dinario di Sua Maest d Christianissima, i l Marted ? fece buttar a l Popolo

dalle Finestre del suo Pa lazzo varie monete d 'argento distinte in tre

baaiZ.i in buona sornma_, raZ Ze£711andoZo insieme con u.-za Fontcraa di buon­

i ssimo vino . Et in luogo d 'a bbrugim' batt� fece alzar d dri ttura, com-
A
�
iciando do. l le Chiavica del B U faZo, fino alla Piazza de ' Cruciferi, qv.atro
Jl

a l tissimi trav{ ricoperti & addobati tutti di fascin � Ze qv.ali sembra­

vano ta:ate Colonne ardenti : onde incredibile fu i Z gusto che per la novit d
' ' I
ne senti il Povo lo. Fece di piu Sua Ecc elenza la medesima sera del
A
'
Martedi, alzar una gran machina di fuochi artificali nella quale si

scorgeva ROMA Trionfante, a he nella destra portava l 'arme di Sua Santi tj_a,)
,...,

e nella sinistra aue lla del Christianissimo Ri di Francia; & avanti d lei

erano le quattro Parti del mondo, EvYapa, Asia, Africa & fiJnerica, ciascuna

con la sv.a Impresa; figure tutte vij qrandi del naturale . Questa machina
I
. •

similmente, come le fu do.te fuoco, fece belissimi giuochi, durando gran

A
'
tempo a spa1'are, e mando.r fuori razzi, e soffioni, restando al fime tutta

i lluminata; i Z che rendeva belliss'ima vista. . . "' . .,,ur.-ts/;

1: { -i: "'-' .'>'-
�

Unfortunately there are few visual source� 1, /n this case I know en-
: .., r�r_(.��- ·
gravings of two�Des carried only in Barick ' s celebratory book, and
_:..G� e.. 2 .- ,

)-
even at that only in the secon:i edition '\vM-e.q-is'· stored in the Vatican
I\
� -- ,_ .·. � ; ,..� fro . : : ! . c. c , � f ,. '�
Library ( 1 656 : in-t-he-f-i-rst··cnr<rof-i 64-5-""they are '.iliSeU:t/ and for this

reason escaped the attention of historians) . There are two sources for
s k \\,.1._ ;, !-r,.,. -.... BV..J.-'" : c. f..- 's.. b�� � lv
the Fontana dei Fiumi «hichi!Jgf;··e fro.n it. The first is an allegorical
,_

vista o f Rome before '"hich rise the larger than life personificatio� o f

the four continents , each one accompanied by an animal symbolic o f its

attributes : it is 1 1Roma triumphans" over the universe. In the second

 74

is the mythical Ararat on which Noah ' s Ark rests and on which the Dove

appear s : at once of peace and o f Innocent Pamphil1 ' s family . Here

already are t'tvo sources for the mos t remarkable parts of the Fontana
dei Fiumi : an allegorical transposition of the universe represented by
the four Rivers in place of the continents �esting on a mountain
�......)�
which alludes to Ararat , A the first sign of the peace achieved between
the heavens and me'V on which the Dove rests (by means of the obelisk) .
This is already a s tep toward explicating a work 'tvhich appears,
indicate;
as the inscriptions on the baseA quite dense with meaning . But
another festival seems to clarify the meaning of Bernini ' s operation :
Innocent X, guest of the Duke of Bracciano , was feted on 27 October
1653 with this clamorous mis'� en-scene :
Lunge la riva del lago da queUa parte che guarda le finestre di S. S.

a Olfai due miglia si vedevano grandissimi, e la Terra di Trivignano

situata a Z l a riva di esso otto miglia dis tante da Bracciano dalla

parte di scirocco, si vidde venire per esso una gran paZomba di fuoeo

arma deila S. S. che anoQVa sparando razzi, che pareva, che uscissero

da U 'acqua stessa; e caminando per il lago, venne a riva sotto le fines-

tre del pontefice, le quali soprastano ad esso quanta suole sopr>astare

'
·
la cupola d 'una ehiesa aUa piazza, ma con pz_u distanza. Questa figura

di fuoco neZZ 'acqua rendeva una diZ.ettosa vista.> perche mentre andava

una ca lumba sopra i Z Zago, i l r1:]Zesso faceva parere, che ne andasse

un aZ.tra sotto>· siccome quando s--Z spiccava un razzo> se ne vedeva uno

' '
in su> ed uno dentro a Z Z 'acqua andare in giu> che qvnndo di sopra toPn-

'
ava a basso, andava in su a congiungersi con l 'altro giusto a l la superficie

deU 'acqua.
 75

In this fetec.!_he two elements 1vh: ch contrast most 1vith one another
almost ��rror�ne another symbolically ��der the banner

of a precise Baroque rhetorical figure: the oxymoron . A paradisiac

inferno , or rather an infernal paradise .
But in my vie1v the issue once again concerns a Biblical representation :
the "gran palomba'' is that mythical one that flew over the great flood in

search of Noah ' s ark . All is in perfect harmony with the true nature.
Another step toward understanding Bernini ' s idea is found in his use
o f water . Apart from his clear and allegorical ��v�ntains ,
Bernini also gave an eloquent theatrical performance ( 1 638) . The following
is P description from the sources :

Pi� da Vicino si vedeva i l Tevere, il quale con modi fint! et eon rara
A
f
invenzione andava crescendo, volendo i l Cavaliere dimostrare quegli efetti
•

che Z. 'anno passato puT' trappe s 'eran veduti quando i Z. TeVeY'e stette per

inondar la Cit�. Pi� propinqua al Paleo dove si recitava era Aaqua vera
"

sostenuto da aerti ripari ch 'erano stati distribuiti appostatfamente per

<.-

tutto i l giro de lla saena; et si vedevano huomini reali i quali ocaupati

i luoghi piu
\
bassi del la Citt�, havesse impedito i l aomme � , come appunto

successe l 'aano antecedente. Mentre ogn ' uno stava attonito peT' questa

apettaaolo, andavano diversi �1inistri rivedendo l 'argine, aaaomodando

. }
tY·avi e r�pa��
. a;"f�nc
" he; �. _[ t ume non sommergesse za c���a
· · · '. /�a
" a l l ' �m-
"
·�
. '
"
proviso casco l , arg�ne, e l 'aaqua sormontando sopra i l paleo, venne a

aorrer fv.:riosamente verso l 'Avilit.orio, e ouei ah ' erano pi� vicini dubi-

tando veramente che Zi rovinasse� si aZ.zarono in piedi per fuggirsene;

rna qv�ndo l 'Aaqua stava per aaderli addosso si alz� al l 'improviso un riparo

nel finire de l Paleo et si dispe�se la medesima Aaqua senza far danno �

:;
person.'< alcuna.
 J .{ t
76

The exchange o f water and fire can also be seen in a scenographic

work by C:,riTT�a1di where the Tiber appears in a s imilar 'tvay in the fore-
��
,-. Angelo alight with fireworks in the background .
ground and Castel San.;
[\
But Bernini escalates the exchange b e tween reality and make-believe by

bringing into the stalls a true flood o f real water (while sources such

as Sabbatini had predicted i t but in a more tranquil fashion, and

-d""- -:;-Pfi'r·-'- td.'e�... J a (s /)

Peruzzi and Borrornini also experimented with � with allegorical mean-

A
ings) . Taking an actual fact , the frequent flooding o f the Tiber, B ernini

m-ae-e'· � fac..r
w;;..s .,
s/frightened\ because
�
if=--·
publi � the water r s presenc 7,

j us t as the next year , a performance called "La fiera di Far f a , 11 preci­

;a c-6MU-
patated dismay because o f a\\ �a--fire . · ,, . s__

The �II
o"f �·la ter is par t o f -"
"" ""'�"�'a ��:��he--theat-e�
y /

cf.. �· £-.. . (...�. (/'h ( (//,.--

then , beyond that o f one who � complex allegorical problems in
.P,_XO I"VVV � JLDt.::../h� ill--
images . At this point i·le must -;icrify the value o f the �Piazza Navona
Many have written about this periodic ceremony (Cancellie-ri even wrote a ,
' C s �u tc. -r: )
. e , c
_

book about i t in 1 8 1 1 ) , but no one has l inked it to Bernini ' s m 1 �-en-scene .

The custom of innundating public squares is found at other s i t es (Piazza

Farnes e , via Gi v.,.lia) but here it even finds an archaeological meaning

(a collusion with the antique naumachia) and an enhanced popular interest .

.�L,.d.-·: '""
J
The custom o f the "�" , which had already been suspended by the t ime o f

Innocent XI f o r health and sanitation reasons , was periodically taken up

and suspended again, al'tvays because of fears about epidemics , until the

cus tom was finally abolished before the end o f the temporal reign o f the

papacy .
d.
e: ,
vv.--
' 1' ·u
Q��. ..) (A- ? 1:.�- -r ..v lo'.-'). ;.,. v-•.-
\\lith regard to �des liril::e : :d-eo antique naumachie, it should be noted
1
that there were already allegorical ships in Piazza Navona at the t ime of
 77

the grandiose Giostra del Saracino of 1634 , b eyond which there is another ,

not unimportant fac t : Innocent X intended t o give the piazza a 11maestoso

risoluzione , " and tq that end planned to use an obelisk found in the

Circus of Haxentius �h
� :;
e diarist Deone gives the following account :
, LSel:>
"Giovedi doppo desinare i l Papa fu a S.L_gstiano per vedere la Nawnaohia

distrutta, sta rovinando per terra un obelisoo grandissimo per farlo ris­

aroire et erigerlo in mezzo Piazza Navona imittando in ci ;; H vestigi di

Sisto TT. "

The pontif f ' s desire for grandeur would compete with Sixtus ' s

recovery o f the antique, but it was l inked with far more ancient structures

such as the naumachia .

The introduction o f the Lake goes back to 1 6 5 2 : the first source

is the diarist Gigli . I t s story is analyzed by Cancellieri :

1'\ '
· Berneri n� fa alcun motto del Lago del Foro Agonale nel Mese di Agoste,
I
; che pur sappiamo di certo dalla testimonianza di Giacinta Gigl i , essersi
' -'
· introdotto molto prima, b enche a suo tempo da molti anni fusse g�a s tate

intermesso . Poich� egli narra nel suo Diario . A ' 23 di Giugno nel 1 652

in Piazza Navona � pie della Guglia, e delle Fontane , fu aggiustate l ' Acqua,

/ che a benepiatito formava un Lao sopra in Terra , e t serviva per spasso del l e

Carro z z e , che v i passavano sopra . Questa per altro e la sola Memoria, che ,

dopa mol t i s s ime ricerche, ho potuto rintracciare dell ' introduzione di questro

Soettacolo , di cui non � riuscito di trovare negli Archivi d e ' Tribunali

delle �' e dell e S trade veruna indicazion e , o not; z i a . Questo �-

"
timento , che s i da in tutti i Sabbati , e nelle �meniche porneridiane del
'
Hese di Agost.Q , consiste nell ' bJl agil)!1ft.n..!:9._della Piazza, nella �. che

resta fra 'l Palazzo Panfj l i , e l a Chiesa di S . Giacomo degli Spagnol i .

 78

"
Siccome il � f a Conca , cosi l t Acqua ��L&!p�, che si dif fonde nella

Piazza, fuori della Tazza della �an� chiudendosene gli Sbocchi , nel

mezzo divien molto alta , e in qualche s i t o , arriva quasi all ' altezza di un

Vomo . Il Popolo s ta affollato alle Sponde a rimirare , e particolarmente

"
sulla Scalinata della Chiesa di S .Agn��� La Nobilta, e la Cittadinanza

in quei giorni , in vece di andare al -

Cors o , o girava in Carro zza per questa

0 si dis tribuiva per le Lo.&g_i$� e per le !-��!E� d e '!.!:.� �' e

-
delle Abitazioni poste all ' intorno per godere dello Spettacolo , malta

grad itO , e una volta piacevol e , in quella calda Stagione .

Questa diyeLtiw�� introdotto nel 1 652 dur � sequi tamente per soli
0 0
24 Anni . Poich� fu sospeso nel 1 6 7 6 . Ha dopj 2 7 anni , essend¢si affatto

dismessi tutti gli altri Giuoch i , e Spettacoli di sopra descritti , fu

nuovamente introdotto ne ' principj della scorso Seco� , ed ha sequitato ,

v ' 4
come bedremo, ad esser di l1.Q.9.§.., uno alla sua meta . "
I

Even i f a precise document is missing , one can reasonably suppose

that Bernini and his expert counselors were responsible for the introduc­
XLoiX"" ,,�
tion of the "�"!. It should be noted that the spectacle first appeared

immediately a f ter the inauguration of the fountain, and naturally during

the mos t propitious season, a fter the sys tematization of the various levels

o f the Piazza . And it is also a rather sensational response to Borromini ' s

doubts ( the placement o f the eliptical basin is probably due to him, heyond

a first design nm.; in the Vatican library <olhich is in fact a b i t s terile)

about the possibility of bringing water into the piazza .

An anecdote told by B ernini ' s son Domenic is meaningful (and retold

-tlr.£ c- + . .�t 'r.., 1. � h- 1. (�'I�
from Baldinucci to Cancellieri) regarding Bernini ' s Ea�tagtcra�t· ;/
the vie,.,er
��
(almost mosaic) J..e-r , surpris �r ough the use o f v;rater !
 j�· r 79
tr

'
Zrcsi gia aondotta a fine ques t 'opera� quando volZe w�darvi i l Papa a
\ e.
vederZ.a�e dentro gZ.i steecati_, e tend� che Za tenevano anco occulta
fl
agZi occhj del pubbZico, entr� Innocenzo col Cardinal Panzirolo suo

Secretario di Stato, e con cinquanta de ZZa sua Corte i piu confidenti .

'\
La vista di Zei supero neZ Pontefice Z 'aspettativa, e divenne maggiore
"
deUa fama. La giro attorno notandone con ammirazione ogni part� e poi

per mezz 'hora ferm�ssi a vagheggiarne queZ. tutto_, che da ogni b�ada
'
rendeva uguaZmente maestosa Z 'apparenz . ( . . . ) Due vo Zte i Z Papa tento

e pur due vo z.�e

'
. "" . . "' ' a vagheggiarla,
d� par&�rs�� a� nuovo toPno e finalmente

richiese, 1Quando l 'acqua si saria potuta veder cadere ? 1 .Rispose i l Bernino

'
a bella pasta, 'che non cosi presto, richiedendosi maggior tempo per pre-
,a.r \ . '
pa le la strada, ma che haverebbe procurato di ser-vir Sua Sant�ta con
�

ogni soUecitudine ! AUora Innocenzo datagli la benedizione part 'i:zsi.

' '
Ma non fu giunto aZZa porta del Vicino s teccato, che havendo iZ Cavaliere

con mirab i l 'ar>te_, e secretezza concerta.to i Z modo, con cui ad ogni suo cenno

dovesse l 'acqua in gran copia sboccar per la fonte, che sentissene un

0
mormoria a Z. trettanto sonar_, quwzto meno aspettato�
' et aZ Papa che rival-
� -
tdssi indietro, comparve uno spettacoio_, che Z.o fece del tutto rimanere

estatico per las maraviglia .

•
As to the symbolism of Noah ' s Ark in the Pamphil1 ambienc e , let me

point out three other instances :

1) The commemorative medal for the foundation of the church o f San t ' Andrea

al Quirinal ( 1 6 5 8 ) built by Bernini and requested by don Camillo Pamphill

contains on the back the peak of Mr . Ararat from Hhich emerge t\vo wooden

beaTn G ( the cross of S t . AndreH) while the dove fl ies above . The motto

.
1s .
E r1t m1' h 1' Arca .
5
 80

2) One of the illustrations for Roccamora ' s book about the Apocalypse
'·
(and probably a reflection of forty-hour devotion ceremonies) published

in 1 6 6 8 and 1 6 7 0 consists of a Barri}re engraving . To the triumph of

the Eucharist above a gigantic o1 ive tree is counterposed the divine

appearance on the rainbmv, and H t.. Ararat upon tvhich the ark sits , with

the animals having partially des cended .

3) For the Pamphil \ villa i n San Pancrazio , Borromini conceived o f a

complicated encyclopedia of knowl edge ( " s tudio d �atematica

_,
pratica" ) .

The re i evant passage from his memoria reads as follows :

'�irei� che tutti Zi viali e teatri del Giardino avessero i parapetti

� muro> in mm1iera che dopo haver goduto iZ Giardino Za mattina col

passeggiarvi� mentre che coi Convitati si pranzasse� si potessero innon­

'
dm'e tutti i predetti viaU e Teatri Ze commodita e abbondanza delle

acque dei vicini condotti, a segno che Zevatesi da. tavola con piccole

barchette si potesse anda.re per tutto> dove prima si andava a piede

asciutto> i l che rescirebbe meraviglioso> per la prestezza di innondare

' . �
tutto i l paese e t alla Citta porterebbe piccolissimo �ncomodo > no levan-
""

dosi l 'acqua che per un hora ne mancherebbe anche modo di non Zevarla

nem1che per detta hora. Chi volesse aggiungere una cv�iosit � bizzarra>

e di non malta spesa: Direi che si facesse un ' Uccelliera o Zuogo per
'
Animali i-f?. .forma del l 1Area di Noe> di macchina tanto grande che divisa

in tre ordini_t com 'era de l l 'Arca vi si potesse camminare per ciascun

ordine per ii mezzo di essa, con ritrovare de l l 'una e dall 'altra parte

Ze CeUe distinte per gli Animali, con.forme si desegna detta Area da.i

Scrit�ural i : e in dette celle vorrei riporre gli AnimaZ i veri di que lla

sorte, che si potessero avere. Se le dette cose appariranno al perfetto

 'f
81J
··�

giudizio di Vostra Eminenza spropositi, ne incoZpi se medesima in havere

doman!la.to parere ad uno svropositato come son io . "

For the continuity o f Bernini ' s response to the problem, I will indi-

cate two star ting points :

1 ) The systematization of Piazza Colonna . Bernini 'tvrote to Chantelou on

25 June 1 6 65 :

"Ha parlato in seguito di una sua propo s ta al pana per trasportare la

\
Colonna Traiana nella piazza in cui e l ' Antonina , e di fare due fontane

che riempissero tutta la piazza : essa sarebbe stata la pi� bella di

Roma . ''

2) The continuity of the idea of the Ark in the design of Carlo Fontana ,

his right hand man wherever there was building in the Rome of Innocent
11 ' "' ho'· ,.f 1·
and the Chigi s . On the occasion o f a fete £-e-r,. another peace treaty

(Rijswick 1 69 7 , putting an end to the conflict b et•<reen France and the

countries which were adherents of the Augsburg League � he des igned an

allegorical boat built to resemble Noah ' s Ark, in which the Pope was to

embark and plough through the waters of Anzio , a tangible all egory o f
6
the end o f the Floo d .
A
� relationship b e tween Bernini and XiTc h <r has b een resolutely denied .
"

And yet i t surfaces again with the case o f the erection o f the obelisk of
1/ c
Hinerva : the Barberini (Kircher was recalled to Rome from France precisely

as an expert on hieroglyphics) wanted it erected on the grounds of the

Palazzo Barberini around 1 65 8 , and Kircher published it in Oedipus Aegiptacus .

As to the Fontana dei Fiumi, in the Oedipus Aegiptiacus ( 1 6 5 2 ) Kircher

explained tha t , " i Uum resarcire fuit necassarium " ( . . . ) "Quod cv.m swnmo
Lquesto
Architecti studio fuisse feZicissime peractv.m . Dope/ prime restauro Z 'obeZisco
 82

appariva ancora 'deformis 1 � '�rehiteeto evffiprimis� uti et eoeteris

pendenti iudicio negotiwn ponderantibus, expedire viswn fuit, ut

eiusdem obelisce Oedipus Kircherus, pro sua sagacitate et peritia;

mutilv.m et mancv.m hierogliphicae litemturae contextv.m de suo suppleaaet".

In the Obiliscus Pamphilius :

Cl
"In A"rehiteetum vera se Z.igitur Laurentius Berninus Equ.es� Persvicatate
A
•

ingeni;i aingularia, quem architectonicae artia aive aculptoriae Micheli

Angelo Bonarote exce Z. Zentiam spectes� uti nobilissimas eius� quibus

urbem exornavit� opera satis demonstrant� paene supparem censeo; cui

fide Z.em manum adhibuit Ludovicus Bern.inus frater. "

res toration :
Bernini participated in the I ( . . . ) ut in eorwn loca fragmenta ex eodem

lapide Pirite aingulari industria inferta, obeliscum suae integritate

restituerent " ( . . . ) "Illuxit praeterea in coagmenta:adia partibua singu-

lare ArcMtecti ingeniwn, dv.m partes partibus sine ullia ferreia retinaculis

tam subti Z.iter connexit� ut ex unieo saxe e minus intuentibus confectus

videretur. 11
jLoot� 1�
Beyond the date of the 1 1� 11 appearance and the indirect arguments

in f avor o f the hypothesis that Bernini designed the "spectacle , " there

is another f ac t .

The problem o f the uconsultant11 i s always important in a Baroque enter-

prise. Bernini , for exampl e , was guided by Lelio Guidiccioni for the great

undertaking of the Catafalco di Paolo V ( the one which earned him the Cava-

lier ' s cros s ) , and we know how important Elpidio Benedetti ' s role was
'
(regarding ventures for Franc e , and especially for the staircase o f Trinita

d e ' Monti in celebration of Louis XIV) . In the case of the Fontana dei FjV,mi , ,./
c.o1 LSu(f:.o,, �
the program ' s ��r� has been identified (by E . Sestieri and N . Ruse) as
 f. ' · '
83

.,
-1 '
r; ( 1., ,�.• " ,_I� I
R9� yet
'

Michelangelo Luald i . had characterized the role of the

I•

true "consultant , " the thesis did not seem solid enough , at which point

the pages s eemed one o f the many laudatory descrip tions ( in prose and

poetry) which accompanied the inZ uguration of the Fontana rather than

indications o f Bernini ' s program .

I t is logical that Bernini the des ign precisely by

the Jesuit Athanasius Kircher , an almost mythical figure of s eventeenth

century Rome (and who , with his difficult personality , remains largely

unstudied ) ; he applied himself to decoding the obelisk from the Circus

of Maxentius (discovered in 1 64 7 ) .

During this period Father Kircher elaborated all of this allegorical

knowledg e , destined to be concretized in many books which tended to

summarize human thought and the possibility of a universal language

which would contain Truth . In particular , he worked up an allegor-

ical Genesis tale, moving right from the problem of Noah ' s Ark--the image

rendered by Bernini .

The book Area Noe was published in Amsterdam in 1 6 7 5 . In reading

the dedication to Charles II of Hapsburg and the preface to the reader ,

it is clear that his interpretation of Genesis went back at least twenty

five years (and we are back at the Fontana dei Fiumi) and had already

been preceded by various conferences . The structure o f the Ark is

presented in an unrelenting s tudy, while Bernini ' s work is all ac curately

concealed : it is enough to compare Kircher ' s fables with what we can now

call " the allegory of the Flood with M-!-. Ararat encircled by the four
,II r
,
t t::l ! ; J, �·'f•

continents and :mee&",by

-
the Dove" to see that basically, the real hermetic
�

operation ( immediately forgotten) was �he vulgar one by Bernini.

 ' 1 :.
84

The global meaning o f the appratuS in Piazza Navona is really related

to the atmosphere of reconciliation af ter the Peace of Westphalia (con-

eluded in 1 64 8 ) : the quiet that the Pamphili reign assures the world

is confirmed by the end of the flood ( in this sense my contribution

complements that o f Marcello Fagiolo on the S)�bolism of Borromini ' s

>"- '6
building o f the Lateram) .

When B ernini and Kircher died ( the same day, Pascali tells us , their
'
remains were on vietv a t Santa 'Haria Maggiore and at the Gesu) they

brought to the tomb that bro therhood conducted in enigmatic hieroglyphics.

For perhaps in Piazza Navona there is yet something els e , related to

Kircher ' s "Egyptian" culture . The 1 1lake" occurred b e tween June and Augus t ,
/"'
almos t the same time as the mythical over flow of the Nile . That antique
v

floo C:, meaning well-being , fecundity, and health happened when the sun

;f
;
entered Leo and was pposition to the "equus marinas " , a symbol of

des truction and evil . Is it only chance that these t1vo animals are

prominent in the fountain ( and that the sources a t tribute them to Bernini

himself ) ? Additionally, Kircher declared : Amat natura d ivina stare celata

et abscondita , and also 'Nuda e t aperta expositio Deo et Natura est inimica .

In
.
the Baroque mentality, sy�bols and allegories coexisted , sometimes
.-.. o.,<. EY'c nc
...'·· '. ..y
' ,. (. L-
'
:;t.1..o..
" .,
'
t\·� \ O V'-
<�-4-

even . contradict�, b u t it seems es s 1 iable as e v er that the l earned

f �

egyptologist wanted to give �-"l�.P.-:.·�n:tng te- this ephemeral apparatus

85
 86

Rudolf Preimesberger

BERNINI AND GAULLI AT S��T ' AGNESE IN AGONE 1

'
Upon the death of Prince Camillo Pamphi}J, in July , 1 6 6 6 , his widow,

Olimpia Aldobrandini , Princess of Rossano , took over the patron ' s role
-1 '\-.v r)
! ·• J-tJr building the family church, S . Agnese in Agone . Theirund erage son,
0
Giovanni Battista , first born and future heir , in the meantime b egan

his 11grand tour . " 2 The princess ' s administrative style was quite

differ�nt � that of her deceased husband . She entrusted all deci-

sian-making power to a Counc il ;;.;hich me t weekly and over ;;vhich she pre-

s ided . The most important people involved in the undertaking took par t ,
I ,, .,,_...; e_"
including the/OOas:e architec t , the church ' s architec t , and the s t e\·7ard .

The minutes of these meetings are pres erved in the "Libra deUe oongre-

gazioni tenute per gZ 'affari ed interessi deZZ 1Ecc . mo Signor Prenaipe

Don Giovanni Battista Pamphilio durante la tutela e aura o amministra-

zione deU 'Eoo . ma Sig . a Prenoipessa Madre, Donna Olirrroia A ldobrandini

Pamphi7 ( • · !:.3
"
'"hich I found in the family archives some years ago . They
t'
allow us to follow the proj ect ' s weekly progres from inside . In partic-
)
�lar , they allow us to reconstruct with some accuracy the genesis o f

the frescoes in the pendentives , that is , the full and complicated story

o f the patron ' s participation , her administration , her architec t , the

person 'I:Yho conceived the iconographic program, the painter Giovanni

Battista � dlll l i , and finally one person who , in Lanz i ' s words , "era quasi

l ' arbitro d e ' lavori di Roma . . . " and that with " . . . is tradar . . . Baciccio ed

altri alla pi ttura , influiva anche in essa col suo st ile . . . 11 4 that i s ,

s eventy-year old Gian Lorenzo Bernini . In fac t , based upon the documents
 87 r'·

in the DOria Pamphilj archives , Gaulli ' s frescoes in S � Agnese. which

contemporary literature on the arts already declared 11autant l ' ouvrage

5
du Bernin que le sien , n are worth considering as examples of the topic
"Bernini and his influence" .
As has been noted, Pope Innocent X initiated the work on $. Agnese .
After having built the large family palazzo , constructing a gallery with

a benediction loggia for its facade) restoring the shape of the antique
arena to Piazza Navona, and erecting a fountain surmounted by an obelisk,
.

the construction of a church constituted the final s tage of the Pope ' s
grand design Cor making his birthplace the "Forum Pamphilj . "
6
In July
1 654 the Pope made his personal program clear, revealing his intention
of accumulating palazzo , galleria , benediction loggia, obelisk and fountain
on the largest piazza in Rome at the time. He contemplated trans-
£erring the Apostolic Palace and some sections of the Curia to Piazza
Navona. He even wanted to take up residence in his family ' s palace, a
7
truly uriique intention in the modern history of the papacy. After his
death his nephew Camillo Pamphil j , head or the family , had the financial

and administrative honor of building S . Agnes e , at first with Borromini ,

after he ' had been certified with a college of architects , and finally
with his trusted archi tee t , Giovanni Maria Baratta . \i'hen Camillo died

in the facade and bell-tower were still incomplete, and

1 66 6 , the
had not
large external staircas �1been touched . The marbl e revetments were on

the walls , and the sculptural decoration of the altars was under way .

The entire upper part--pendentives , tambour, and cupola--1;vas still un-

finished .
These were the problems addressed at the Council ' s first meeting on

Two weeks later , on 1 8 August , the Council discussed the

9
1 August 1666.
 88

the pendentives . The name o f the painter in the notes appears to have

been undisputed : " . . . Per l i quattro medaglioni il Bacciccia Pittore

(}Y[ tiA "'"' / <::.
f accia i1 d �segno As ;;ve knmv, Gau 1 li , s artistic -13eginuin::g5
. ,.10
... a are

obscure . After arriving in Rome from Genoa in 1 653 o r 1 6 5 7 , there is

evidence o f early ac tivity in Rome for the Genoese art merchant Pelle-

grino Per i . He have infonnation about contacts Hith Mario d e ' Fiori

and of a collaboration with Abraham Brueghel . Some o f the drawings from

this period can be dated , but Gaull i ' s activity as a painter before 1 666

is practically unknown .
1
; pne of the few pieces of evidence is the
. ., J, '
,rfMGiv &t.tf.·-r
.
r ,,
� .l>orlA surely 12
· ·

altarpiece a t S . Rocco ,t\ not date prior to 1 6 6 6 . Hithout

a doub t , a crucial event for his career and artistic evolution was his
13
encounter with Bernini ,.,hich occurred at the latest in 1 664 . Bernini

not only got the young painter monumental commiss ions , but the biographies

even relate that he instructed Gaulli in hm., to draw the body . In Ratti ' s

·word s , "Qualora poi venivagli occorrenza di dipingere auadre s toria t i ;

14
il Bernini s tesso gliene formava i mod elli . . . " In Mariette ' s words ,

Gaulli was an instrument which Bernini used only so as to translate his

/
own ideas into paintings , his "hand that paints " : "Le Bachiche etoit la
/
!!LC!.;!.n , donJ;:_:te B�_r:n._in__q�e_Aervoi � pgn r e xpr_j.m_g_��-J?..�.�-�t:__ure: -� es pensees
__

. 15
neuves et pJ.&.!!_ an tes . . . ,.

From the earliest years o f Urban VIII ' s pontificate , Bernini had

plannea p i c torial works . This aspect of his ac tivities gives rise to

r- o..cl­
almo s t irresolvable critical problems , given the quantity � produc�
16
and the complexity and diversity of personal relationships . Just think

of Carlo Pellegrini , Guidobaldo Abbatini , perhaps the mos t faithful exe-

. 18
cuter o f Bernini ' s ideas , and o f Gugl�elmo Cor tes e . During the ' 60 s ,
 89

after Cortes e , Gaulli became Bernini ' s preferred painter, ascribing to

him the role of the "hand that paints " . But it would seem that quite

soon he was also ass igned a nelv role: he became an important figure

in Bernini ' s mul tiform political program for ensuring commissions .

Because of his enormous talent as a coloris t , the young artist played

an important role in B ernini ' s attempts to influence and , so to speak,

monopolize the artistic life of Rome . And in effec t , we do not find

"-
him working only on the master ' s pro j ec t s as weF� Bernini ' s other
' A

. }...'(}-; VV'I
•

painters , but we also see how he influenced highly significant comis­

/. A

'
sions--that is , the frescoes for the Ges u . The procedure is clear

here : Gaull i , with his talen t , maneuvered by Bernini with his influ-

enc e , sweeps away competitors and seizes the chanc e to make a name
19
for himsel£ . We can observe an analogous process for the first time

s everal years earlier a t S . Agnese .

In the spring o f 1 6 6 6 or a little earlier, Bernini presented his

• 20
design to Prince Camillo Pamphil! and managed to secure for the young

painter, who as far as we knm.;r had never been put to the test working

with fres coe s , one o f the most impo rtant commissions in Rome at the

time , that is , the frescoes for the pend entives at S . Agnes e . At the

same time, by means of Gaull i , he sought to corner control of the building .

By November o f that year, exactly what oneHould expect had happene d . Per-

suaded by Bernini ' s criticisms , or by those of third parties , or by intrigues ,

Princess Pamphil t suddenly l o s t all faith in Baratta ' s designs . Work was

. 21
1nterrupted. The minutes of the meeting on 9 December 1 66 6 laconically

note a new supreme enterpris e : "Il Baratta � auando siano a£gius tate le
. .
case con 1" 1 Card inale Azzol1ni ed il Bernini � non s tr1nga . . . 1 122 Then
 90

-.
the direction o f construction passed to Bernini with the cultivated and

refined Cardinale Decio Azzolini , friend of Queen Christina of Swede p

�
.
'o•�
as sponsor of the project and ernin
-- - - - '
t
� --
d cl �sely tied to the Pamphill i
- � �-:_...,;,._ --
' '

23
interes t s � B y means o f the Cardinal and o f Gaulli , then, Bernini

managed to gain control over one of the largest Roman build ing proj ects

of the time . He immediately made decis ive interventions in the construe-

tion, modifying the center of the facad e , eliminating the second tympanum

and depigning two large flying spirits . Inside he began a funerary monu­
24
ment for Innocent X which I have described elsewhere . One of Bernini ' s
t'..J:exv<:-w-b o..;3
aee�n es· which was a determining factor in the interior involved the area

of the pendentives . In its early form, the attic Has not interrupted as

it is now, but continued even beneath the pendentives. Here , in one of

the aesthetic nerve centers of the building, Bernini moved in forcefully ;

he had the attic beneath the four pen den tives knocked out . The first

consequence was a different s tructural sys tem for the entire space of the

church, and the second was that the pendentives assumed . a rhythmic and

upright form . For the sake of effec t , B ernini even altered the pendentives .

In fac t , they support the most important work he created for S . Agnese ,

even i f to fulfill it he made use o f Gaull i . In reality , a synopsis o f

,,f -m_v�S0i/V-
� C.OI1Af'_-- " ' �;t.____
•

the archival do cuments , s tylistic and iconographic arguments , and - �

Hith o ther works allow us to aff irm �� t the frescoes of the

Four Cardinal Virtues are in large measure the 1vork o f Bernini. This is

a complex issue and merits full study on its mm . Here I Hill only give

a brief summary without the full critical apparatus .

From 1vhat we can reconstruct o f the historical circumstances , it s eems

clear that Bernini exercised massive influence over the frescoes . He

 p.
91

-. brought Gaulli to figurative painting , procured the commission for him,

enlarged the pendentives and designed the stucco cornices for the frescoes .

The "Libra delle Congregazioni" clearly reflects the particular role he

played in the genesis of the fresco es . From 9 December 1 6 6 6 on, where-

ever there are references in the minutes to the execution o f the frescoes ,

the s t ereotypical formula 11Cavaliere Bernino" appears at the top , and only
26
rarely that o f Gaull i . In fac t , in the Bernini phase o f the long story

o f the contruction of S . Agne s e , architects , plasterers , sculptors and

#
painters \Vere limited to executing designs by only one person, Bernini .
A
The way Bernini handled the process o f building S . Agnese clearly ended

up with Gaull i , like the other artis ts , s imply executing Bernini ' s designs
:i:; tk
wit �� � bility of designing freely hims el f . The archival documents

speak clearly: the frescoes were as much Bernini ' s as was the funeral

monument o f Innocent X designed during the same period .

We canno t establish with certainty whether Bernini communicated his

ideas to Gaulli orally or \Vith drawing s , 'tvhether he intervened in Gaull i ' s

h'j wMti.v.. �
� I A A.
:;-,�
sketches only giving advice or actually correct� . n them , that is; whether
'
����"'i-t-"'-- C..!.ouO\o\.!. •
...L '

in part he Gal)· Arnodifiee., In any event , hmvever one must imagine the

genesis o f the frescoes , in particular how the collaboration bet"tveen t1vo

very d i f f erent artists may have varied from fresco to fresco , mo tif to

moti f , figure to figure, even a superficial analysis establishes the

eminently Berninian character of the iccnological concepts and of the

composition .

I found the notes for the iconographic program of the fresoces in the
27 �
archives , written by the Pamphil i s librarian and secretary , Doctor Niccolo
. 28
Ange1 o Caf err� . They describe the program of the four cardinal virtues
 92

proposed to the Council by the archi tect Baratta , but almo s t surely

reflecting Camillo Pamphilj ' s decision, between 26 August and 4 September ,

o'< '-\:' 2 9
1666 When Gaulli received the first par t . This progra�,
J �

which merits separate analysis , provides an interes t ing

f,e;;-,_ Gp e.e..-fa"y.e_
.L ·-. � the
IJY>-

intellectual world of th� author of an artistic program during the

e,.'-
seventeenth century . Caferri mention� Cesare Ripa, Pierio Valeriano ,
e.
he kn¢wf Angeloni , Cornelius a Lapide, and naturally the allegorical

Virgil of Ortensio Lamber t i . His proposal to combine the four virtue s '

with the four r ivers o f the world and o f paradise i s most interesting ,

a proposal which reveals a comprehensive vision o f the monumental Pamphilf

complex o f piazza and church , relat

A
� ernini ' s
�V<�,;J-, fountain o f the four
30
rivers to the interior of S . Agnese .

Comparing the program with the fresoces reveals a great dis junction
ivv
� the iconological technique . The plan enumerates the virtues . The

frescoes instead reveal surprisingly original 11concepts11 of a high intel-

lec tual level . Allegorical action takes the place o f the isolated virtues

Let us take l
&
n exampl e : the fresco Fo r t i tudo .
31
Fortitud e , with helmet
9
and armor , is on her knees ; at her shoulders is � column as a symbol
A
of her f irmnes s . She is the constituent el ement o f a "concept" : with

outs tretched hand s , she is in fact ready to receive the cross '"hich an

angel in flight delivers . The group is the visible equivalent o f the famous

Biblical metapho r : "Everyone has his oHn cross to bear . � _A metaphor

ft. 'fll>--twr e.. '1 .... ...:.. "---
translated into a figurative concep t ! �t 1h eA11cross" �ich Fortitude

takes on is cl early expressed : martyrdom . The instruments o f martyrdom,

in fact , are spilled on the ground .

But Christian Fortitude has triumphed over them : they are broken

and she tramples �� . Paganism is also defeated . Fort i tude has dr iven
 93

back the pagan sacrifice : the pagan ' s brazier o f incense is overturned .
Idolatry is finished ; the antique divinities collapse . �vo putti are
busy destroying statues . The metaphor is obvious : Christian fortitude
kneels on the ruins of paganism. The motivation for martyrdom is also
represented : the figure of Charity . The putto with the flaming heart
··-....._
and the one sleeping at her breast define her as the personfication of
the love of God and o f � ighbor . The figure points to the cross
for Fortitud e . The meaning o f the fresco i s the following : martyrdom ,
sacrifice for divine love .
Hho then is the author of this complex poetic concept? Certainly
v.Jt'�k !J-­
no t Doctor Caferri, whose simple program we are familia0;� And
�
certainly not Gaulli . By chance we knmv some o f Gaulli ' s independent
32
works from the same years , the fresoces at S .Marta al Collegia Romano .
They are extremely simple allegories about the virtues which do not
exceed Cesare Ripa ' s instructions ; it is an ingenuous iconological

s tyle , far removed from the originality and intellectual content of the

concepts at S . Agnese . Ny argument is that at S. Agnese , a third factor

was introduced between the Conceptor o f the program and the painter, namely
Bernini . The complex iconological style is his--the same phenomenon is
33
present in the fresco o f Justice . Here the new "concept" is an illus-
tration of the psalm 1 1 Jus tice and Peace Kiss . " I believe that Bernini ' s
influence is also apparent in the composition . To be specific: Bernini

imposed upon the painters who worked for him not only individual invenzioni ,

figure s , or "foreshortenings , 1 1 but also his pictorial conception . 1.Jithout

lingering on its history or its connections '\Vith contemporary painting ,

34
we will s imply call it "sculptural painting . " He have Gaulli ' s drawing
35
for Justice . \fuen compared '"ith the fresco it is apparent that the
 94

compo sition was rearranged . The grouping o f the figures in the fresco

is to be understood spatially : the principle o f sotto in !!.te is applied

with complete coherenc e . I would see Bernini ' s corrections in this . Only

the fresco is obedient to the demands of his "sculp tural painting" principle,
u-�«·
which Bernini imposed on Gaulli . I bel ieve we can discern a direct inter-
A
vention by Bernini above all in one detail which is only in the fresco

above Jus tic e : a strongly foreshortened putto in flight and seen from

below penetrates the painting , an illusionistic motif which altered the

character of the fresco . Giving a compo s i t ion a final plastic-spatial

accent is a typical Bernini touch .

here.
There are a numb er of o ther interesting issues whic� r can only l i s t .
1
�:�;...ther tRan disc"£8 ,v Among these are the extremely interesting chrono-
36 VI tYtv
logical - ;e c0nstruction o f the cycle, � Gaulli ' s trip to Parma and
37
Hodena to "study from Correggio" after painting the first fresco , Prudence .

. )
One could also d i s cuss the coloristic and compos i tional d ifference bet\veen
.:A.?.. !,;'._V(,,l '-'
'
Prudence and the rest o f the cycle , and the genetic relationship with Domin- -

ichino ' s frescoes in the adj acent church o f S . Carlo ai Catinari . Las t ,

there i s the iconological analysis and the allusion t o the family crest by

the patrons an � their "Panphilia" ethic , which made the frescoes in S. Agnese
38
a real Pamphili monumen t .

I have tried to outline the complex relationship bet\.Jeen the two artis ts·--.

\
and once again I would like to affirm that Gaulli was much more than Bernini ' s
:
:��,�-t � , � hand . He infused the frescoes with something Bernini could no t : an enormous

instinct for color--painting in the truest sense ! Another exampl e , then , of

the limits o f the phenomenon of "Bernini and his influenc e . 1 1

Free University , Berlin

95
96
--- v
97

Sandra Bandera

READING BERNINI TEXTS :

Some Discoveries and New Observations

Bernini and his son Pietro Filippo gathered together a group of

do cuments which are now in the collection of the Biblio th�que Nationale

in Paris . Among them is a letter from Cardinal Antonio Barberini to

Gian Lorenzo :

Molto Illustrissimo Signore ,

Io non so ringraziar V . S . a bas tante che fa ni� in fatti che in parole

... '
che me n I ha di gia gettato il Christo col quale io sapro pregarlo come

dovere • • . Intendo ancora che la si accinga al 2" gettito della testa

della S � Memoria di �apa Urbano . Da questa ella deve r . conoscere che

io me lo s timi singolarmente venuto --- Di Parigi , li X Marzo 1 6 5 6

Affettuosissimo sempre ,
1
Cardinal Antonio Barberini .

With these word ; written � in Genoa enroute to Paris ,

e:;.rLc'�.-v
the nephew o f Urban VIII repeated his request of seve�al menths e"r' ier2
1 p'�"" c o."' ,� .. :
,----
t
for a bronze portrai� Most l�k� his bus t is � the one on exhibit in
· 3
since
the Louvre which has been . part of the royal collec tion a t least
l\
1 6 8 3 . 4 It appeared in subsequent inventories ( 1 707 , 1 7 2 2 , 1 729) 5

along with the bronze crucifix ( �eady missing in 1 7 8 8 ) which

had also been commissioned in Paris (Figs . 1 , 2) . Close ties between

Antonio Barberini and the French court dated from the era of Urban VIII ,
6
when Barberini served as Cardinal Protector of France . This suggests

that the bronzes represented two of what we know were the numerous
c!;t.(,l . :.· l t.H :� . l� rt....L '-;
gifts Barberini gave to the sovereigns in exchange for the t:>sks entrustee <;l "-V...C:...
"
 98

When he and his brother Francesco took shelter 'in Fr-ance ' "'-" ·

evade
1 64 6 to the sanctions of the Pamphili Pope, Barberini was able to

consolidate his ties with France even to the point of being

Bishop of Poitiers in 1 6 5 2 , almoner of Anna of Austria in 1 6 5 3 , and

Archbishop o f Rheims in 1 6 5 7 . All o f this was in addition to l>a·dp_g L

jurisdiction over the major pious and cultural works of the nation, the

hospital at Ouinz et Vingt in Paris, and his posi tion as one of the
:>ppO>.H*':� for 7 r.J<- <�A-<.£u.(.-- ���
judges .Charged with the docents 1\ the Sorbonne . � 1�r iend (/
· ·

11
of Bernini, as he called hims e$s �
inal Antonio was certainly
Bernini ' s ,_
among those who helped spread A name in France . The Cardinal served
+' W0,o �tC<NU..
as intermediary �A the commission for Richelieu ' s bust between the

1 630s and 1 640s , and then_ for the Virgin with Child executed by Raz z i

for the Carmelite Church in Paris . He was also among the first (begin­
10
ning in 1662 if not earlier in 1 6 4 0 , under pressure from Mazarino)

to insist that Bernini travel to France--recognizing , among other things ,

the --
bd!EiltD )- of resolv-
11
ing the growing tension between the Vatican and France .

� has been lost since the eve of the French Revolution.1�

Al though
-t lw-t
we can offer no hypotheses about the missing crUcifix, �ces in French art 1 3
,._
allow u s to .make some· observations about the bust o f Urban VII I : -- I t is

· disconc·erting; in its free and loose execution and difficult

but
to comprehend in the context of Bernini ' s work before mid-century , the
A
softness of the face is touching and the tone is accessible, approachable .
even
The bust has not received adequate attention and has A been considered a work
the Bernini 14
f rom I' s choo 1 . Only fairly recently d id Valentino Martinelli and

Rudolf Wittkower re-evaluate i t , although they disagree on the

 99

A
()v..:f\.t_ �U>w)
Ss .Ea.,7 the death of Urban VIII the atfendant hostili ties against �he
6 1-wo­
Barberini fam�ly and the dead Pope\1
; A seemed to be the
possible as
latest�dat eJ(
for the bronze , as well /1 for the busts of Santa Maria a
Corsini,
Monte Santo , Palazzo: A and Prince Enrico Barberini . ::>

- �n reality , we know that by 1 648

the situation had so changed again that the Barberini were received by

Innocent X , the Pope who had cons trained them to flee two years
""�
11
earlier. The Barberini family once again received honorific posts , and ,
•

in the words of a contemporary :

furono da papa Innocenzo fatti e dichiarati per suoi nepoti, e se ne

dimostra fuor di modo contento et disse che vo Zeva che i Barberini

17
vedessero che non era morto papa Urbano .

Bald inucci failed to include the Louvre bust in his list of works

by Bernin i . A careful examination of that list reveals how incomplete

a point to which
it is (. 1\ I will return ) , for it is nothin<Z but a more

or less up-to-date version of one compiled by Carlo Cartari in 1 6 74 and

·based upon contemporary guides , as documents at the Biblio th�que

l..nv v v- "- _,--
Na tionale reveal . The bust � is notewor·thy above
• •

all for the face, which has been underestimated even by those who , like
t'I M-"
Wittkower , understood how modern the work � in the richness o f its
breadth
contraoposto movement of the folds and in the A of the shouldelS .
appearance
Bernini rendered Urban ' s aged 1\ with the touching involvement o f one
�
who had been in his company a great deal/\�who had
{J..l. ;;.v-b" 'I
had an affectionate relationship with him which had brought .Jl;>m"A early and

incredible good luck. Such liveliness and intensity of representation

were possible only for someone who had known Pope Urban well while he
 100

was alive, and it is ye� more touching �.<.. one thinks � the
&1-

�
bronze as a recollection and a pos thumous salute to the Pope .

·Irr..Fram:e ]uring this period . tee st) lc w�s--sdll ) oj:he gallery

;.
of portraits typ�cal of the 1'1� ,-r; l<...
prev�ous centurIN.._ J���
�, with the analytical and
18
detached glorifications of Philip of Champaigne and Robert Nanteui1 ,

and the sculpture o f Jacques Sarrazin, Francois Anguier, and Jean

Warin . 1 9

sculpture as well as Bernini ' s

estimated, for it was a mature and f i t ting expression o f Bernin i ' s

conception o f the portrait.

�nini , who was summoned to Paris to design the Louvre ,

tv
must already have been known � French artists
u'L-e-.MS
el� for his portraits . ia
;

I t was no coincidence that �liiillYJ portra i t . artists among those who followed

his work after his arrival in 1 6 6 � (J!

20
Robert Nateuil , Jean Waring, Philippe d e Bryster , Claude LeFebvre are
� Ml-<1\-r.' �,-\
among th1 mast frequently � in • diary f Chantelo � the last
t'"'- p_w-h� z,.,:t.v��qj..-'fu� ,.,;l � �
two � he. a· 'ncarished/1 par ._i._al_ar .admitat=i sa iil:iild-;'�have been s ingularly

disposed to learning from hio .

Philippe de B yster j?
tioned � in the Journal under the �
!-"
and has thus ; 1-la- W<uL -c-t-. � .11 i:h..t-
� name of Bistel 1\ escaped attentio"(!) ,<.also kt' · ...,_t I

B ernini �t�borium in Val-de-Gr� ce ���\ ped . hustle about

to find a block of marble for Bernini which would be suitable �

21 D SS-l. � S___.,L-- ­
the bust of the King . In light of this obs ervation , we must �er

this sculptor in a new way . Among other things , just a few months after
1).
the bronze of Urban VIII arrived in Paris , d e B]Y ster executed a series
 101

22
of portra � t� (Fig . 3) for the Laubespin mausoleum in Bourges Cathedral .
a c-it...-�
;j,:U..
Although traditiona , they
/l
�\"' Oif(..
qy sr,._ a good deal more free than the agitated

and realistic masks common to French

funerary sculpture and to his own work � the time . I wonder whether the
!l,en>.ini' s � c..Le..tt-<--
intense vitality of the bronze of Urban VIII and 1\ evide<l.t affimation
iJ.u. 's
of � ,.
ignity do not find an immediate echo in this work.
A
But let us turn to the summer of 1 6 6 :; with Bernini now in Paris .

On thE pasis of a letter from Mattia d e ' Ros s i in 1 66 j we can affirm that

Bernini ' s proj ect(designed in August 1 665) for the transformation of the

Parisian h� tel in rue Neuve des Petits Champs A

f r
Hugues de Lianne had

been effec tively completed .

23
On � �- e ' Rossi i'-.fl�'·ia�
w"- returned
;-"' I-'"'-'- 'd ���&
to France tHe preoiotlS autumn , to execute the models of the Louvre and ,
� '' 9 w '{ J"-""·"- f(o(.. .::l 1 j_[ 1 R o S C I '"

_
to direct the works on behalf of the master;"" responded to a series of_ _

questions from Bernini :

Illustrissimo Signore Osservatissimo nella sua delli 1 3 ottobre passato

sento che haverebbe accaro si Za fabbrica di monsu .di Lione si e mai

spedita conforme il disegno di V. S . , si sono messe le colonne all 'entrata

della porta, si � ingrandita la porta, si e fatto la scala conforme il

disegno di V.S . • , ma Za balaustra sopra il tetto non si � fatta, perche

gli pare troppo spessa, ma dice Mons� Lione che la fara poit con un poco

.._ . 24
di tempo; di quello che e fatto ne e sodd�sfatto grandemente.
'

who
A diplomat o f no little importance was charged with important
A

foreign missions , Hugues de Lianne had not suffered the repercussions

a number of times : during the war against Castro he commissioned a

family portrait from Pierre Mignard , and another time he managed to get
 102

close to Quee � Chri /

C::: in 1 664 he escorted Cardinal Flavia Chigi to

France.

�of political texts , elected Grand Master of Ceremonies by

Anna of Aus tria, Hugues de Lianne could consider himself a memb er of

2
the mos t favored clas s , even though in 1 6 6 5 he was deeply in deb t . 5

Nonetheles s , he was able to commission the Royal Architect Le Vau to

d.J.jv,'c..t" 26
build a palatial residence for him in the ljYa.-•Qr which became
� 27
fashionable after tke l"ets(on the Ile S t . Louis had been exhausted(V
LG..c. l; """ ,;.....
Although a bright architect and not •,TitJote.,s � J. ideas , Le Vau had
w-eu· J,._
more than once brought projects to hasty conclusions � led
;
to undeniable imperfections , technical defects apd a tendency to

ignore proportions � �e also overdid decorations to the point of strain-

::
• wf,..A' � uL
ing the load-bearing capacity of the walls and the b eamsJ . arous �
2 29
the criticism of Chantelou, Colber t , 8 and Hugues di Lionne .

Chantelou· refers to three on- the-spo t investigations by Bernini

a t Lianne ' s h�tel (on the 1 7 , 20 , and 23 of Augus t) pour remediera

/ 30
a beaucoup de defauts qui v sont . The building , demolished in 1 8 2 7 ,
31
was designed by Louis Le Vau around 1 6 6 2 , and b y 1 6 6 5 it was already
�
inhabited , eve �hough the vestibule and access to the staircase were
)
32
still in the works .

. Waving identified a series of trouble spots , Bernini

�·""""
proposed the necessary additions and �aBsfgr=zt�e�& , and even fur-
flc..w. (drawn by · aJOf' k..J.. 7�/
nished the �g•igns Matthia d e ' Rossi in 1 6 65) which were � during
A
the last half of 1 6 6 6 after de' Rossi ' s return to Paris . We know Le Vau ' s
 103

project on ·paper �hrough Jean Maro t ' s engravings (Figs 5 , 6 , 9) , some

.. / .,.
plans drawn when i t became the headquarters of the Controle Generale

des Finances in 1 7 5 6 (Fig . 7) , <,f!"-j-,'"'.l�±-'

· plan� ;, fromp<hem ""'-··
i t became head-

quarters for the Ministry of Finance in 1 800 (Fig. 8 ) , from descrip­

33
tions in ancient guides , and above all, from Chantelou ' s precise
34
report . A comparison of these various sources brings to light a , . , .

/;t.. �...... ,;;r <M c;0. <A::.<-,

previously unknown intervention by Bernini in France and , /L .:.ttdicat
�-I/ � Wafi-a..Q.s:o h-,H-&v.d...
i"g hi", P' • ur" in the field o f private residential architecture, /.
Q_.:., clearly enlarge,trthe range of his influenc�
.
By comparing Le Vau 1 s

primitive proj ect with this other evidence , then, we can attempt to
w-L'� ,'J.-.o«. v.. cul--
isolate the modifications B:re1:1g"R1i aBgy� h•r Bernini .
A

� ;� rl.-l-��t·
•

� e ' s observations and the changes proposed an �a,_ ,

,.
\,J..-
� I•
' I
f-L_·k.x._
.
vvi-'-'a" ss ns"'
ccomplished appear, superficial and merely technical interventions;� · is not
i.1 ' I\_<.{_ cL..-. ·�
\'
IT"

U.J.Cv,.. � ' 35
if ene �oes no L falF'back on -• the unwritten law:' that Blunt ) Babelon

36 a-� �-t.- c. �r.A -ft�·�- . � ) �h..c. �t.\ \ 1 1 -, , "

·.
recogniz ed p,in t-he charael:er of
..

Braham , and Smith palatial

residences. In reality, Bernini ' s proposals bring

into focus the absence of order and grand ��., , the . compliance with d«-�.L.

methods and practices �; ch hae been -at pas�ed *' the,l,-;nd the ··

generally heavy effect which dis tinguished French b� tir (and especially

Le Vau ' s buildings) from Roman architecture .

As the Journal makes clear, Bernini deplored the wretched proportion 71

of the principal entrance , as well as the absence of classical order and

proportion � the parapet The portal was in fact enlarged

(Fig . 5 , 6 ) .
so as
(Fig . 7) on both sides laterally and raised to surpass the firs t floor
A
fenestra tion level . It was also flanked by Doric columns , as was the

French fashion especially in this new quarter, where , although completely

 104

Jd,..,t._ .,...,-L.<.c �
lacking in classical maj esty, ;it •as �added as
r;..--- a)./W ed,..
� � (e-ae tflinlts oT the nearby h� tels of La Vrilliere and
ati�

Bautru-Colbert) .

Bernini did not even eliminate the recurrent leonine decorations

which derived from s ixteenth century Italian and especially Michelan­

giolesque s chemes 1l�s the numerous French engravings of the Porta Pia
y ��/
establis � _ - ;£ the
�
Journal indicates /. fe � nini limited
A
himself to proposing a new des ign which we can imagine as s imilar to
37
that o f the fourth proj ect for the Louvre ' s principal facade , in

whi ch num ;:; ous decorative elements , and above all large leonine masks ,
y-t..-0"' {)
constitute an important a,ddition ,.;,tb re"pss< to the first three 1�f:(� -_;;

design? which
,
were keyed to the fashion of the time . \ fY'' � �

According to what Bernini said during his inspection trips , the s till

unexecuted balaustrade were not to be placed level with the trabeation

(Fig . 9) as Le Vau proposed , but with the dorrners probably to hide the
)
irregularity and elevation of the roof and to give the illusion of an
38
I t a1 �an
. terrace. Bernini had also of ten lamented the absence in French

architecture of what he recalled having executed in the Palazzo Barberini ,

that i s , logge in front o f the facade . A remedy was proposed here , too
J
t "' +t...._ -\ov 'M. 15',
'
as the eighteenth and nineteenth century plans seem to indicat e , plaein�
"?l;.ce.d.
four projecting colurnns against the pilasters on the same line as the
A
39
curved walls which closed the internal angles of the courtyard (Fig . 7 ) .
� /fs
{!;o lfextremely dark!J " darkened
with
The interior of the house seemed Bernin

vestibule and heavy open beams of the· type used during the first half of
. .I ' I I ' '
.J.-..,.-(11. "'""' '!"". �",,..._ �� � �- )
' •

0....
40
the century , �: not yetvfully eclip sed by the fashion o f stucco eel" 1lngs
" .
�
o.
With shrewd ingenuity quite differen J\ tha� �londelJ
�
RfV'M .r.!-
�
" 41
A
 105

the possibility of rounding the upper corners of the cross beams

resting on the load bearing beams so as to insert plaster arch

sec tions withou ���eighing them down.

Bernini was�a ttentive
� - to the relationship between plan and elevation , � French.
v)�
-treatises rarely place d� reciprocal relationship .A2 ?
the
also offered suggestions fo pictorial decora-
�
tions needed for the various rooms : the small and deep vestibule

would pave gained grandeur with fake balustrades and sober monochrome

decorations o f flower garlands . The chambre principale on the first

floor, which was too high for its width , would have acquired greater
ov.v-. 5'''1" �(0 O--J:£-..
· equilibrium with largor tban life/painted figures . This ��-·J �•ay ef
-b ytWI.D w..\
iHter�retiBg the problem was far from the polemics between Abraham
A
Bosse and Charles de Brun on the necessity of perspectival representation�
· ) ;� w-v- . topic
V � at the time��a particularly lively A at the painting Academy .
43
Bernini ' s

interpretations introduced l to � a new problematic for the decoration

,,-;;;:;:_Aw.'-;,� w-AkU<. /--
o f ceiling s ,
-
within whichfo the frescoes of the cupola o f Val-de-Gr�ce �
�� w �
�
� 1665-1666 � 4
;70re pr8ffiJ'tl)" iRSe-Eed/ an tfien(fhe steeply

foreshortened decoration executed in 1 6 7 1 by the most famous specialist

-!i-u.��u d -t.. L..: ""' " e.-'!> @ . '--

of the genre , Agos tino Mi telli, right in :. /l palatial dwellint/"f llugu�

Finally , Bernini took special care with the poorly designed and poorly

illuminated s tairs . Initially he considered remedying the poor disposi-

tion of the three windows (Fig. 6) by opening a single source of light

in front of the central flight of stair s . I n the actual execution , he

instead chose �NO

windows (Fig . 7) aligned with the lateral ramps so
of
as to avoid the inconvenience a direct light source) and also probably to
A
 106
-
'
(,+' (!1'- �()
;_e. .
c�:�:
·

create the
--r; f.
t;;;:: �
rakingA �gh , u lccl �,.vet-
- which ran
� ./ Steps 1\ the full length of the ves tibule had to serve the same
<7�; r- '-
�cr � with these steps B ernini transformed the lowest part of the stairs �i>'/-<C
b '"' "1 ':'::>
'br ingiti,i them considerably forward . The two columns Le Vau had placed in

the vestibule (Fi g . 6) would now be situated on an elevated first

v-isibL':J
floor (Fig. 7) and would lessen the narrowness of the ascending ramp
A
··isiol1 upon entry, and the Nestibule would be low and deep toward the' steep and

narrow staircase. These were concepts and solutions which Bernini had
46
already studied two years earlier when he was designing the Royal Staircasa .
t�
oJ-:' The
/ relations between Bernini and the city o f Lyons ,�
�
�., � l,ee...,. &v<-<LtoW__;
�ieh are _
,_ largely ankuow�o have been close . Bernini

was greeted in May 1 6 6 5 with the honors generally reserved for Prencipi
47
grandi (as Cardinal Chigi had been honored a year earlier ) . Matthia

de ' RoSsi boas ted �. Bernini ' s welcom e , which included, in addition
48
to the Italian colony and the local nobility, the artists of Lyons .

Tne city was very wealthy and well-known for its curieux and collectors ,
49
as scholars working on Poussin and S tella have shown , and it was not
artist
unworthy of the attentions of the � who transformed the face of Rome .
wt_,'(e_ � ..; � (Jv_ �
�e:re is ue Feeml\to discuss the P,revailing artistic directions i.n Lyons , �
4'-'4
will list what Bernini seems to have executed for Lyons� A� �8�� .
· g � tect� soQi
�
to
1
which two local artis
-
;;& ;
e e ��t .1:? remain indifferent- 0:
�
_ -
C:: -!hom ;;-;� -:,--:;:�
a
50
and the budding Antoine Coys

Upon his return to Rome , Bernini executed another copy o f the

�
bronze bust o f Louis XIV which t!lt eity expressly requested ( · as �
��o l"e!j'AtG-I'�.l)
o thers whom Bernini lumped under the generic term ale �
princi FJR · of it
�e himself gave notice in a letter, probably to Colber t , where
A
 107

Bernini sustains that l ' Idea d i Qua Maesta 1 1 which he had continuamente
'' 11

. n n . J
davanti l ' occh1 and s c1�lto nel core1 would have allowed him to execute
'vl oM ""' tk � I-!<A- ��� "'-0 '
the portrait also without t�e fsFeaa
A
It is pesaiPJe •Ra/�e bronze
in the Kress Collection at the National Gallery in Washington, �

,as Ulrich Middeldorf indicated, is similar but�ot identical to the

I) {-f-- ;n derivef from
) J-
bust in Versailles either refer.s to orj 11 the one mentioned in ·

52
the letter.

'S(rrr-""'""t
Additionally, if we want to believe a tradition ?liE ttP- ,. /
by Andre

Clapas � on , the Lyons dilettante who· wrote · the best and most trust­

worthy guide first published( J

in 1 7 4 , Bernini executed the

designs for the campanile of the Ospedale della Carit� which still stands
<L--

in the Place Bellecour, and for the imposing tabernacle for the � h,_\,h.._
altar o f the Carmelite Church which was destroyed during the Revolution
53
(Fig. 1 0 ) .
)-:;:-
-1'ei the campanile (Fig. ll)
�
1!-.,
r
1r?
shown
-bo
here in an old photograph
�{-
which indicates � relationship · � !.. the small and -simple hospital
today , and �k,,q...._ b.u-,._
�
church �either one is in existence /\ .. only the upper part ..1as to 1e
;:; ·�
�:?igas. An o ctagonal structure with tWo orders o f
executed according to Bernini ' s
C.<Ap ai ...
pilasters (doric and ionic) , it is topped by a �•lett� with a lantern .

� f'v�..., Lo I.V-I)-.
not correspond with theAsec tion Ht!ml.. Jeneat]i .
s 1 !""-.1. {-..-. ) 5 4 Unfortun-
"'--· ·
ately neither the s tyle of the construction nor even less the typically local

vaulting )

\. (from the two towers of Guillaume Ducellet at the H� tel Dieu

of 1 637-45 up to Soufflo t ' s cupolas) seem to verify Andr : Clapasson ' s

attribution, nor does there seem to be archival documentation to support o r

' Met.-�.
(' 'A v u..� 1t . The fact remains , nonetheles s , that there is an extraordinary
 108
') Is I r;_

coincidence o f dates , the campanile having been initiated in June of

55
1 665 and completed a year later .
There is a turn ,
1\ possibility tha t , wanting to do a good 4 Bernini furnished

the designs upon his return to Rome (and the Bernini archives in the

Biblioth�que Nationale indicate another triumphal trip to Lyons in 1 665)

o{..� �
and that they were �Faas:s ;m@€ and adapted to� local taste of the ma9ons

of the Lyons hospital� - This would introduce

a "minor" Bernini who furnished � s and pro j ec ts without charge

� (._��
and then withdrew f rom the execution . c · · · g to what his earliest biegrap:
. .

ers had toA

say,
56 �
h.....-,_
such ges tures mus t have been cus tomarxv ....., .....,.. already �

.confimed e:mcab e Ehe!" thiuge in an unpublished letter

noted that
from Cardinal Santacroce which Bernini was in effect the author--as
A
Pacifici has already said--of the very s imple and humble sacristy of the
II
( Tijol i duomo , d esigned as a gift for the Cardinal , and again without
� 'A.C�l.'-{.,(... � 57
being eeE:eented ,.ith its realization.

The destroyed tabernacle that adorned the maj estic high altar of

the Carmelite church in Lyons must have been far richer. Whether or

not i t was Bernini ' s work, it

�
ensemble . · and important model
�
Bernini ' s ideas for ecclesiastical complexes were widely known .
58
Marcel Reymond already noted and illustrated this , but limited the

origins o f this influence to the Val-de-Gr �ce altar .

According to Andr �
Clapasson ' s description, this �tabernacle 7
placed on a concave and convex plan, that is , more or less l ike the
;.���- i
first design o f the Louvre sent from Rome . In this cas � the central

� A
)
part n the form of a loggia)is open ) with an order of four Corinthian

intertwined serpentine columns , on which rested a

�u...�-..- pediment
 109f
'·

topped by a gilded bronze figure o f the risen Chris t . To the sides

o;f
of the pediment were �o kneeling angels) likewis e gilded metal . The
A
interior of the central part carried a niche with pilasters in hard stone,

disposed in such a way as to form a converging perspective containing the

representation (we do not know whether in . bas-relief or something else)

of Chri s t ' s Supper at Emmaus with the Pilgrims . The wings of the taber-

nacle again contained serpentine columns , three for each par t , with

stone niches filled with s tatues of the four Evangelists and topped by

angels'. carrying censers . The entire ensemble, finally, was s tanding

on an agate pedest al J; esting on brecaia nera antiaa .

Y
The work was probably commis sioned by the Marshal � Villeroy, pro- ,
/""" � "tL v.-0 � ;-: v'), ��-'
wh d aS:?a�ted BcLau�wa.s p-r.e�ent
y
?
�""""'- ""'l'o.n'
tector o f the church and governor of Lyons
� 0.:.-
60 � --- -� - - -
(
linl"ing this jSatttte:fl;.
-
·

The work was to be executed between 1 6 7 5 (a

""
date for which neither Spon in 1 673 nor Born bourg in 1 6 7 5 mention a taber-
. v
61
nacle in their meticulous accounts) and 1 680 , a period during which

Bernini continued to maintain relations with Lyons . An unpublished

document dating from late 1 669 attests to regular relations , exchangesJ

bt--Jw_u,n-• • 6 2 �
•
and letters of recommendat1on rJ>"
� � Bern1n1 -� ·� peep 1 e from Lyens .
�

If the plan had to b e the Roman type (in fact it recalls Rainaldi ' s
63
tabernacle in Santa Maria della Scala of 1 64 5- 1 6 4 7 ) the grandeur of
and
the ensemble, the precious material s , the us e of free-standing columns
A
seem to be ideas worthy of someone who had designed the imposing taber-
- 64
nacle o f the Sacramento chapel in S t . Peter • s . New documentat1on con-

f irms i t s completion in 1 67 5 , that is , at exactly the same time ( F i r, . 1 2 ) .

'rt
.fy ")..\ +---' �
In a
vU. Y\ owl..
different S�fleTe inspired by the ancient, glorif
A
6?*'- gf tl••_)--
65'
heroes , Bernini designed the base of the bust of Louis XIV so as to
 110

suggest a s culptural, group o f monumental scale. An attentive reading

of the Journal and some_ lucky coincidences helped me discover wh:at

trophy was planned to decorate . the globe which , as a symbol

of Louis XIV ' s power , was to support the bus t . According .to Chantelou
66
again, the proj ect was to be an allegorical treatment of one of

the treasures in Louis XIV ' s collection, that is, the ornate armor

o f a bas-relief figure attributed to Giulio Romano and which was

mistakenly believed to have been a gift o f Francis I , Duke of ¥Bntua.

Although it has been ignored in Bernini studies , on the basis of the

{first inventor �Louis XIV�where i t appears with a description

IV-;t.A-
entirely analogous to that o f Chantelou) it aes been the object of
cft'�t-;
research by specialists in ancient military armor , and � wasf identi-
""""' l c.<. M;..,..., k-<v-'"'. r.-u.-- (r�.J.... r,..... . (,- <--t
fied .
)-r ; <,
purrently at the Louvr e , it hes i!ee;a eleimsti ._ o date �
on exhibit
,._
67
back to Henry I I and to have been the work o f Etienne Delaume .- The
. C.O I'I.,._,·� K '}-
upper part o f the dossiere �A two angels ( Fi g . 1 3 ) holding a crown ,

which was probably what inspired Bernini . An engraving by Cornelius Verm-

,..
eulen from Pierre Paul Sevin ' s design for the frontis piece of ' Tratto
"'

pel diritto della guerra e della pace d i H . Grotius·; dedicated to Louis XIV
68
in 1 687 , gives an idea o'f wllat the base was to look like. Evej'l though the
- -

front� spEI:ece illus trated _;Antoine Coysevox' s portrait o f the king , it :J

· · (""'presents the requisite features Bernini

��;:;f}J:;rthe base o f his bust (such as the great �� t!zc wo tl)"';.d

the tapis resting between the former and the portrait of the king)

(Fig . 1 4 ) , although here , as Lavin has noted , the Journal does not men-

tion the presence o f allegorical figures .

 111S 8 1

It was , then , a glorification, filtered thr·ough

ancient classical heroes and the iconography o f ancient busts--as Irving

Lavin has already noted--not only of the moral qualities and military

I» �\U..
might o f Louis XIV, but o f his descent from winners � l)o
conquerors �A
'c;...-hr,r�� � , to

which the use o f the armor mentioned above alludes . The combination

o f the figure of Louis XIV and the armor (which held a place of honor

in the 1683 inventory) was a clear and cus tomary symbol at the time.

One thinks of a painting by Jean-Bap tiste Blainde Fontenay where at the

foot of Coysevox ' s bust of the king rested the corset of our armor
69
s een from behind (Fi g . 1 5 ) .
(}yo. w,'r-..>r
One last word, finally , to present a elo�i � {Fig . 1 6 ) from a private .
'S he c.o t
(
collection, surely ·by Berni ni";':)" wh ich can be linked to another f<>glio d-'l«.W ��j
;O
now in Leipzig . The latter was published by Brauer and Wittkower as

one from Bernini ' s own hand (Fig . 1 7 ) , and they identified it

as an early idea for the iconographically quite different composition

J--.
o f the Sangue di Cristo known through Spierre ' s engraving . The back �--

can be referred to the technique of the designs which Ann Sutherland Harris
7 1 w C...'J...
. .
has identified as preparatory drawings for San Longino � seems to guar- �
antee the authenticity o f this new drawing • :)
,.l;w
�s the owner indicated to me, attempts to ascertain!' the
w

\'W'-
artist will be made by Peter Dreyer , who was able to see the design
�
personally and who first formulated the theory that it came from Bernini ' s

circle or from Bernini himself .

·� .72
� Irving Lavin, , following K. Lanckoronska and F . Haskell , has

already hypothesized that the Leipzig composition is in reality an early

idea for the cupola o f the Ges � painted by Gaul l i , then it would s eem to
. .
112S B I L

1'-t:­
be confirmed by this drawin�-represents one definitive idea for
- v-------�

the central part, even if it is lower and closer to the oculus (which

is also indicated in the drawing) than in the completed fresco (Fig . 1 9 ) .

to o thers
Although I will leave iconographic interpretations of the subject
A
which Lavin, following Panovsky, calls the Intercessione della Vergine
73
di Cristo , it should be noted that the claim that the ideas behind
, were Bernini ' s
Baciccio ' s frescoes for the Gesu was made by contemporaries with great
1\ • � 'flj'u ve:- .1 ,.._
insistence .
74
. . .,·0�;+-
_

Jv1'of. � -yw'r- ••

.........,� • C-e"h..� f-n.... c.. f...'�

Earlier,A � France , tthe FoalieatisR o f the cupola o f Val-de-Gr�ce
-----

By Pierre MjgparC! dllring Bernini ' s 1risit te Paris , mer1ted h1.S �ctv±ce.
'
75
ri:gillc , �.J._)
-
Consi-s t!'nt with Mignard 1 s work which was always impeccably
) . �;.
-- ,_ ) ·:. J_. ,. ----
the-; �
� �
Fig . ,..
20) o f Val-de-Grace was executed from 1 665-6 6 , and not
.>VJ(.. � ·:!- in 1 66 3 . In the imposing cehter o f ' the Trinity , seen from sotto - in su,
Ct.t�
and surrounded by clouds , the � conforms to that grandiose machine

which Bernini suggested to the French painter as the center of the

76 � s.-te.w... c..e.w,_ � �, .....__
whole compos i tion. A Bernini ' s advice fiii'Vl'eii1'i tg 'Ravg 'bgen the determin­
fM+- 1..-w,., . .<-, tk.._

ing factor when we learn that pre� isely in the Trinit� se�tiga
A
L
I C-
Mignard I s work moves away from the � con sgr•r�'� simpl i city and two-
• •

77
dimensional construction demanded in the detailed contrac t .

The comparison, which seems persuasive, of Mignard' s figure of

the Eternal in Val-de-Gr �ce and the one sculpted by Antonio Razzi based

on the master ' s designs in San Tommaso di Villanova at Castelgandolfo

78 .
(photograph reversed) (Fig . 2 1 ) after Mignard had left Rome �s more
M� and gi8��ne
evidence o f the lilB"i'
\ '('(\�
� of
'

the concepts introduced in

France by Bernini .
 3 113

Michel ange l o ' s centralized s tructure and Maderno ' s nave were com-
pleted . Gugl ielmo d e l l a Porta ' s tomb for �ha
1 �---"'
Fan'l -a&e=�e' ( P aul I I I Y
I
h a d been conc eded a p lace i� the niche of the s outheas tern p ier , a
1f't• 1-'.••l�.}""-
t emporary c o l location -<vi�idl-y _di13.cus sed with Mich e l a�elo . When
.to at'a <rile{{"' ,;::,,-¢-;. '.s •ne,..n-tM. a-...c.- �- ,

a d e c i s ion was finally reached ;fo� t:w , e-st -ni-ches ··1'6'F-;O:e4-1:t:-·I'o-rt-;g-Ls'

I k- <!.OW'� tJi
. - · �o�ument �o �he Barberini pope (wh i ch-had-hee�
·

,,.;(?,� f'1!�� t,1 ch o 5/

.
·. .

IVJ.U::. u.:t-.. 01-v

i-it=thesworks s ince 1 6 2 7 )/, Bernini no doubt p l ayed a p art in the
decis ion , mos t likely with a mind to securing the b e t ter il luminated
-1::-vwc. b
northwe s t ern niche for his �oytrait ·of Urban VIII . To b e sure ,
Jd"�
r; �I I"f !....

the s ou'thwe s t ern niche obs cured the bronze f i gure o f �

-
.
� even from a moderate dis t ance . On the other hand , Bernini
tR� ;;.. �: { £..
aeEtUU" d �he me -noo to ac commodate his papal figure/�- - -·· --
by means oJ/ -

---- -" .. -·- ·- ____ ..

'. imp er ious g e s t iculation and heavy model �o the special condi t ions
/ . ---·-·- __

- . ·-
:�- � �� �:;
ig approach in th no t e rn nich He conceived a � � ��:� ):-
powerful , forward thru s t ing g e s ture o f the arm r a i s ing the cop e ,
whereas the left hand , with i t s b ar e ly percep t ib l e arm , i s
r e aching down t o the throne . The art i s t shaped the f igure with res -
pect t o the approach from the a l t ar o f S t . P e t er ' s and therefore
£,;/.f.• '
,.,g.� responded
_... f,• �
; ' '.. •.

,ens -
.

turned the head to the left . One c an gauge how

to the p arti cular condit ions in the church by comparing this statue
-t"n c.-t o.f
with11 the payble statue of the same/ Pope at the Cap i t o l (1635-40) as
an autonomous monument o f the t erritorial ruler in a frontal p o s e .
Furthermore , Bernini a l s o had to keep in mind the a l t ar yet to b e
ere c t ed in the central niche . In May 1 6 2 7 , the congregat ion ex-
_l..u.; �.-�v-.r-t. DL-d"' "" t. tl'"'-"<- l�f. bU.�<_
f � c t e d 1 a repre s entat ion o f the Del ivery of the Kevs , withOut: having
y�.-ocft O � -� ,;�1 ..:;: ) to
..

de�i d�d� whether it should t ake the form of a p a inting or a r e l i e f .

fYVvl 7Jt.::tJ d� � ;L WC!-1 ec(
.:wz , � '

· s t:i>tc c e:.ry a, t, \an t i c ipate1, that the Catt edra P e tr i llli gbr
- lat :r
t<£ '/e))_
,.-i-rnp
-t1-ce.. \il ew -

VI I I ? At any rate , a frontal� -

r
·
�the torrf of Urban
repre s entat ion did not prevail in Bernini ' s s o lution for the proj ect.
 114
4

The two Virtue s next to the sarcophagus were subj e c t t o

the s ame calculat ions . Instead o f being p erspect ival ly aligned ,
b o th have their left sides displaced backwards on a diagonal . Both
o f these richly formed marb le statues can thus b e ful ly seen and
appreciated in a s ide- view where
. '
they appe ar wel l - l i t b efore a
J_h..- A ,(t(-t -(::, ..; .,_._ ,/-,
;.... 0

- -�· - dark background . W tF. the sx�eptie>R sf the put t o cowering by

the s c a l e s at the feet of Justitia , the attribut e s are also given
due c on s iderat ion . Fina l ly , Death , who i s busy with his t ab l e t ,
s i t s t9 the right and turns toward the cupo l a . From that p o s i t ion ,
the approaching viewer s e e s them in a kind o f t e l es cop e d arrange ­
;; " ,_(,_ d5
mont . We do no t , for examp l e , exp erience a change o f view iR the
a.
fashi on � Manner i s t tors ion o f the body f which adds intere s t
through variety . In truth , the lateral approach merely heralds
what the frontal view will confirm . /Tlte vieto from afar eornrey&

One cannot t e l l what p o s i t ion the Fogg ' s beaut iful statuet t e
o f Longinus had among the twenty-two bozzetti which Bernini showed
Joachim von S andrart in Rome in 1635 . It mus t have been produced
before 1632/3 , when ful l - s c a l e models were being t e s t e d /in th9
a t-
��efies sf the � ers � A S t . Peter ' s . Just prior to or even during
work on the marb l e s tatue ( 1634/5-38) , the S acred Congregat ion
a l t ered the p l ac ement of the four monument a l figures which repro-
s ent the mo s t prec ious r e l ic s a s sociated with the Crucifixion ,
iA.Jf-../v?-
.'f and a l s o o f the four re l i e fs/\ glorify� the s e r e l ic �abo"?o tl;ta;nj
In the end , Bernini ' s Longinus was a s s igned t o the northeastern
rather than the s outhe a s t ern pier . Duquesnoy felt hims elf at a
-s·�· #< ,�:!-,... ����·-J: '
disadvan t age when his ·S , .:\flo� was moved from the northwe s tern
• 3 j:;;J\
- i il lume e la veduta11
to the s outhea stern niche : ' 'mutargl �a.e.>>e've "
yY·
 115
5

Bernini , who was in charge o f s afeguarding the artistic cohe s ion

o f the entire group o f works , @cguire q/thereby) the b e s t l it niche I

for h i s own s t a tue . 4 In the Fogg ' s bozzetto , the exp ansive ge s -
tura l qual i ty of the Longinus i s already e s s entially Fre s ent , but
i t was to undergo further change s . The bozzetto confines the
s i int ' s g e s ture to the frontal p lain r i s ing over the edge of the
p l inth ; in the marb l e , he advance s his right foot and arm beyond
this boundary and sharply raises h i s head . With its st eeply
s lant e d front , the execut ed marble addr e s s e s the viewer entering
from the nave , so that the s aint r eve a l s hims e l f at once . In the
bozzetto , body and drapery are brought into dramatic counterplay .
As long a s the southeas tern pier had been int ended for Bernini ' s
Longinu s , the marbl e s tatue based on this bozzetto would have r e ­
quired such characterizat ion . I n the execut ed large marbl e s t atue ,
the ponderat ion a l l ' antica yields t o sudden arre s t ; Longinus
gathers hims e l f ; both arms are spread in broader ges ture and
reflect the Cruc ified One on top of the t aberna c l e . �-the
....-....-- ··
bright ly l i t northeas tern niche , the s ta tue al§o.-syml:i ol i z e s the )
convers ion o f Longinus a�� gl_�_ fact that he was healed o f the
--
)
"
b lindn e s s he suffere·J � fter he pierced Christ ' s side with the l ance - ­
__

��: displays in such exha ltation .

Bernini found quite different cir cums t ances in Raphae l ' s
Chigi Chap e l in S. Maria del Popolo after 1652. Around 1520 ,

only two o f the four intended figure s had b een p laced in the
niche s , Lorenzett i ' s Elias and Jonah (with an antique head o f
Antinous ) , prefigurat ion s o f the Re surrect ion . A t tne sugges tion
o f Lukas Ho l s t e inius , the custo dian of the Vat ican library and
adminis trator of the Biblioteca Chigi , Al exander VII co��i ss ion e d

5 :-.; tl1.
'
. ,;
/-.; - (. r :. :
-
c
 6 116

Bernini for the two m i s s ing s tatues o f Daniel and Habakkuk . Con-
W-"""-' -pl<Ao. A
trary to the init i a l p lans , Daniel :endea up in the niche to the
' '

,_,

e. in pr ayer;--and-he-a�so. . --:i:nc-luded-Tought-ly. .-carcv ed-r,�y sPats

- -j{.c-v. c,�tUi
Then1/ Bernini comp l e t e d the ma s s ive , dramatic and strikingly ani -
11 OYQ � l ,,:., �
' \ -' '

mat e d images of the praying I)an i e l, wf'th his comp a s s ionate lion ,
. I'
b�A. -t- --W; n'e_d
- •
. •

and ij�bakkuk , who r e c o i l s from the imperious angel and 'e£ is �

v

exeets4 �y him ( in s t a l l e d
• • -

� 1661 ) . Upon entrance to the chap e l , then ,

Dan i e l i s imme diately v i s ib l e in t h e s i de view . W e are fortunate
in having two preliminary sketche s of the Daniel , more advanced
than the Vatican bozzetto and already quite c lo s e to the marb l e . 5 .·

- r::s�_
_

In these sketch e s , Bernini c l arified for h imself the s ame ge stural

og f!,.,.e.. !fiqc..y e... OJU>.. La.;,
pietu. ei/ ;i� fro'm two di fferent poin'ts -e"' "ie•• : from the front
and from the left , or the chap e l entranc e . The draft sman has re­
corded two
�a�s
ees in
S h; K ht:r.;,
the 1, ehange� o1£ view .
D�1 :tl f::>
Furthemore , Bernini
proj e c t e d h i s figure farther beyond the n iche . Dan i e l and Habakkuk
have a mutual emot ional rapport , and we s e e the back o f the niche
behind Dani el open to the threaten ing precipice o f the l i on ' s den .
A l ands c ap e i s v i s i b l e behind , a s i f through a window o f the Chigi
chap e l , conveying a locality beyon d - -remeiT� er that the C ornaro
Chape l with the a l tar of S t . Ter e s a had j u s t preceded the s e works
�
( 1 6 iJ(.. l 6 5 1 ) .
Light i s memorab l e a s a di s t inctive value in the impress ion
Bernin i ' s s culptur e s make : centers o f expre s s ion are brigh t ly
�
l i t} Zhe art i s t enhanced the marb le ' s brightn e s s by -po lishing it
to a high sheen . Al though not in their orig inal locations , the
yJ't e...'(\ c.. e_
two e ar ly works o f S S . L-a'clr:rtius and Sebast ian are an��ated by
'

l i gh t ing from above , which ful l y i l luminates the fac e s b±..aure::tins

 117
7

is 11iee eyed ana Sebastian' s eye-s-are-e-ros-e&./ Along the s ame

l ine s , the Anima b e a t a holds her trans figur e d face up to the l ight .
The virginal purity o f the rigidly erect Daphne- - in the s ame h a l l
o f the Galleria B orgh e s e as it is to day , but at that t ime again s t
the wal l 6 - - i s manif e s t e d in an a lmo s t sha dowl e s s phy s i c ality , bright-
er than neighboring tone s in her hair and on Apol lo ' s body , brighter
than the encroaching bark or the sparkl ing and shadowy laur e l
l e ave s . Her unmq dulated brightnes � clarifies an aspec,t of h� , 1

're.n t;;;.s_, -tt-, e.. rc, ost' V-<- \O I > m c 'I J r tu e.. acc.,-ycL, "-5 {_.., t!c.v-""' "·< _.;
persona l ity . - . _ a-1-±yl\ related to -ehe Veri tas /tf<e
"j) � phYI� .
most suM4,�:a--e-c--"'v""i�y'; figural repre s entations of them
7
could be exchanged- -Veri t a s could t ak e th e form of Daphne . Bern ini ' s
s tudy sheet ( Le ipzig , c a . 1 6 5 0 ) 8 with a coup le o f p en sketches for
his Veritas (which has been in the Galleria Borghes e s ince 1 9 2 4 )
i s t e s t imony t o h i s s e lf-rel iance and persis t ence a t a t ime of
dwindling reputation after the failure o f the tower at S t . Peter ' s ;
i t presents only the undrap ed figure o f Veritas without the sub-
s e quent addit ions o f the revea l ing Kronos and without surrounding
ruins . This rapid sketch puts great store in the bright appear -
i rd::. t..v ; o v- rv'\ ov{ c. \ \ \ "':5 J
ance o f the body wi thout deta.:.l l\ 'tvhich i s r e s e rved ,.._ for , ' f
� \ o ,o (.. 1 o r·.ce.. e-v e Y\ a. i\' t. M C9-Vd -c. "- � o e.y'h 1M Y1 ;..e
the drapery and t!=ter eb)'i 3:-B one instabee-.-Bernini 1 euder s t-.er irl', a
'- �
mest delica��i � he sculptor indeed abandoned his t o o l s
\,u_"" ,· .,_..; \.-...-
V\ o o \ "" s. <:V e c..·t- J 0 V 1!..-V j , 'I( e. - ->-i3 -€..
when he s aw the poue1: of itlaw.:.nalicFl en his larger than life-

�i�ed and larger clbu l lW marb le figur e . In the former Bernini

p a l ace (via d e l l a Merc e de ) , acc ording to a drawing a s cribed to

G . Baciccio Gaulli ( Fogg Art Museum) , pure li ght l ay over the
. /- . .
-:.,�, --� - .:... �
figure looking s oulfully upward and a l l owrng her s e l f -to be carr ied
�
9
we hav-e� " l a port an i par 1 ' a ir , " as Bernini said .

Emerging from a crevic e in the rock , she l e ans to the side and
counterbalan c e s her ge s ture of offering the s o l ar d i s c . The
 118
8

r ichly curved marbl e g l i stens above the coarse grained orb between
rough hewn rock and deeply furrowed drapery . One might a sk
whether Miche langelo captur e d s imilar contr a s t s o f l ight and tone
� in his Piet� at S t . Peter ' s and in the Bruges Madonna, or , even
more s o , in the figure o f Night in the Medici Chape l , in order to
N\ lA c.:k
give lus ter t o h i s nude s , however � the weight and intensity o f
n �� cl.,ffo,-
.WiGiiae1arrge:}o-!-s figur e s may depart from the f luid and continuous
curvatures o f B ernini ' s Ver i t as .
'Bernini re turned to the theme o f Ver i t a s in the tomb o f
Pope Alexander VII , who had ini t i a t e d work o n the Cattedra Petri .
This monument received i t s permanent p l ace in S t . P e t e r ' s only after
some changes o f p l ans . In the niche o f the tomb , there is only
indirect l ight , and a door l e ading to the out s ide and a winding
co� e..
s tai� Bernini darkened the niche even further with flanking

/
:/
columns of somber color , and dark p i l l ars , by ins t a l l ing proj e c t ing
dark marble b a s e s on which the Virtues s t and , and by adding the
d.r�·'P "-
b i l l owing redd i sh yellow marble �r� He p a r t i a l ly obs cured
the door , which is interpre t e d as the gate to the tomb , as Death
emerges from it with the hour g l a s s raised above the carp e t . On
the right Veri t a s , nude unt i l 1 678 , l e ans back and holds the
s o l ar disc int ent ly to her che s t , i��er s e d in reflec t ion . She i s
the only one o f the Virtues who turns toward the light , and the
,/1
colored 0-.eaJjJe:( which par t ly enve lop� s her ( by contr a s SJ makes her
'(" � !';> � 'D r------�

b ear even l i ghterp

Let us now turn to S . Maria d e l l a Vittoria . �Tom the nave
looking toward the a l t ar of the Cornaro Chap e l , one i s first draw�
 9 119

into the company of the four e c c l e s i as t ical p atrons , but the

eye falls immediately on the figure o f S t . Teres a as she r i s e s
from a cloud into the fully l i t golden atmo sphere towards the
-
dove in the vaul t , her left arm and l i s t l e s s hand and the bare
left foot dangl ing to the side . The order of p i la s t er s with
forc efully protruding ent ablature which l ine the interior of
Maderno ' s church is interrupt e d where the left transept opens up
by a fluted b lack marb le p i l a s t er : s igns o f a s epulchral chap e l
are co�firmed by the s ekletons i n the floor mo saic . ;�long
be::oFe t+.±-s-;-Reubens ·-0 6 3 0/ 3·2 ) had p ainted- S t :-·Tere s a--for...her-.

�-he-€-a"!'lll"e-l·i-t.e...C
.. oo:r:-eh-in-An-twe.rp-as.-i.nt.e:r:ce&&OE-4&r­
_so'Jl s jJ;t Purgator-'iJ Inserted q elow the large order o f p ilasters
is a smaller one l inking the lateral wall s with the altar wall of
the Cornaro Chap e l . Thi s smaller order gathers strength as we
move from the lateral doors o f fict ive tomb chambers to the ex-
truded b a s e s and twin col��s of the altar shr ine i t s e lf with i t s
crowning gab l e . Here i n the aedicula o f the altar , the vertical
axis predominates , and the sma ll order of p ilasters approximat e s
human s iz e b y comp ar i s on to the altar space i t s e l f and the lateral
figur e s of the patrons .
The Cornaro Chape l surrounds us with an ingenious gradat ion
of l ight . Dark marb l e o f subdued color covers the wall o f the
chap e l . Red marbl e with splashes o f white frames the entrance to
"'
the t omb chambers and the grey covers of the balus trades have broad J
\po-rd�- ·rs
.
s la t e - c o lored ::riBges . The persp e c t ivally rendered galleries ex-
tend into grey depth , lit with res trained touches o f - gold . On the
al t ar wal l , dark and l ight revetmen t s alt ernat e , and the pilaster s
 1120
0

and c olumns repeat a saturated green . The bright marbl e s culptures

pvc-t�GI/ -:;-ta-l i s
are united in a triad . Behind their ba.1u'st;'l.'-a4e , the members o f the
Cornaro family emerge into sha l l ow relief with the ir heads
a l one ful l y rounded . Their mod e l ing i s given life by diffus e l ight-
-
ing from the transept and nave . By contras t , the figural group o f ·
the altar hovers ful ly rounded in i t s own e l l i p t i cal spac e , and i t
i s bathed in the l ight f i ltering i n from outside through a hidden
yello'\v g l a s s at the top . Unlike the ange l , S t . Tere s a turns her
face t�ward the l ight , and unlike the o ther heads in the chap el ,
her head i s without shadow . The marb l e group acquires an even more
J-�-)
� lstr.?.�
----�

luminous pre s ence b ecause S t . T er e s a /is shap ed

with only very few horizontal folds which might cast shadows under
the light from above . The p o lished surface of the figure is en­
hanced by th ;t rough and shadowy c loud and the agitat e d , a lmo s t
hatched p l e a t s o f the ange l ' s garment . Tere s a experiences her
vis ion a s an i l luminat ion . The differing qua l i ty and inten s i t y
o f l ight r e late the lateral r e l i e f s t o t h e wor l d o f the beho lder ,
a s if we were ab l e t o look into adj acent spaces of the transept
o f S . Mari a della Vit toria , and removes the event in the a lt ar
shrine into a sphere of golden sun l ight . To the right and left
we are engaged by tangib le and meas urabl e spatiality- - in the manner
� o f the S c a l a Regi a . Perspectiva l space draws us in , and makes i t -
At- c.'" ".\--J.r
s e l f acces s ib l e from eye - l eve l .
'
DR the altar/ .hc�;e aer l'!!.___a_ sphere
' r. l 'I
{}, \ Y\"<:: "-"' c.,-, >< \· e.4 I t'\1
o f iiTLmeasurab l,J
"
ana enha� lum:Lnq! s� and unearthly tran s -
•

·;\�;;( . figurat ion opens up . ��Y-Qt,::><_s!'r:ine ;::H'�!J"S�end�e-i�. "!!:'"&_'-1'!9

With the Raimondi Chap e l o f S . P i e tro in Montorio , the
arti s t s e t s out in 1640 on the p ath which leads to the achieve-
 1 1 121

-,

ment o f S . Haria d e l la Vittoria ;' man in the presence o f the divin�

The Raimondi Chap e l contains tombs o f the p atrons with portrait
bust s t o the side s , and over the a ltar an external ly lit relief
o f the trans figuration of S t . Francis; over a high dado rises a
columnar order . The oblong· space o f the chap e l i s t inte d whit e ,
no touch o f color he ightens the i l lumination . By contrast with
the Cornaro Chap e l , the ep i taphs are ful l round and the a l tar i s
-rt��
in relie f . �
G.e�ni-n-i-rever sed tLeh r elat-innsh±p-i-rr�

�hap� Despite i t s daring concept , Bernini ' s Veritas i s not

confin e d to the i llus ion of a p aint ing or relief , but ins tead
p o s s e s s e s the three dimens ional presence o f a full marbl e figur e .
Her " s o s t anzia" 1 0 a s sure s the truth , repr e s ent s real existenc e .
This i s what Bernini s aid in Paris in di scus s ing the paragone
/ /
b e tween painting and s culpture : " . . . l a s culpture e s t un ver1te , '1 1 1 .

ko \lo'J.J "-'). a .::,t.

and here he agrgsg wieR s ixteenth c entury opinion . }Was
it thi.s I
�

/
�e.... o f--verae-ity . . that Bernini ;· who · had-treated--Daphne-" s/ 'S Tt-l
.. .
.
'

'>
me.t.amorpho s i s in Ill<:!r..P le_, wLshed .to .. convey-;it:!-l=fi e-vi-s-i--on-of
_ _ 3t . '.

\
Tares a sg tha-t-.che....mir.a cle . of. her - ascens ion ·on ...the c l'oTrd·�an·a"11er)
/
e.ncm,mter •vith-t.he-ang.eLw.aulcL.r.eally o c cur---in-t-hi s·--=1--p tur::r;l /
..

eml3edi�Iedt ande-:1!'--fr-hea-ven-±y ligh'!!) Did he wish t o render his

images the more real the further their subj ect was removed from
our common experience ? By contr as t , •·s sse the eight members o f
ewe...
the Gornaro family in the fictiona l space of perspective s imilar
1 ,
V I evJ e-'11.
t o p a inting , so that we rslate them �� our horizon and cons ider
them present with us .
I f we look for antecedents for the use o f light in the a l tar
of S t . Tere s a , then an examp l e of such mis �n- scene / from the 1620s
 12 122

v ,· .,. ; o. .....
emerges with Bernini ' s first a l t ar s tatue of S t . �- She
s t ands above her own and her mother ' s tomb , surrounded by her
f:> l � :;') ,_u .--::.
att r ibut e s ; the martyr }eins in the motif o f her s tanc e and her
drapery the Renais s ance adap t at ions of the Aphrodite-Hygieia figure
of Phidias . Bernini ' s s culptur a l r efinement , richne s s , and brill iance
far surp a s s the abil ity of his predec e s s or s . The saint doe s not
remain a l t og e ther independent ; rather her s oulful g l ance and raised
hand connect with the c e i l ing fresco by P i e tro da Corton a , in
which qod the Father , surrounded by putt i , c a s t s h i s g l ance down
to her and extends h i s hand in b enedict ion . Furthermore , Bernini
opened the choir vau l t ''ith a discreetly p l aced window which ad-
mits natural light and c a s t s i t direc t ly on the a l t ar s tatue ,
(\
especially on her bus t , face a� d 7 a i s e d right hand; (��
W �� c-..... Go �, :.�ul
aRGieflt ges t ure4:'f-J'n•-a-ye-r )/ t;he me-ans o-f' her expre s s ion . From her
eartng surroundings , the s aint r i s e s into a sphere of increasingly
bright l ight flooding from a my s terious source . I t tran s figures
her features miraculous ly ; suffused with the vita b e at a , her gaze
lifts t oward the h e avens and her g e s ture g ives t e s timony to her
faith . She i s gran t e d a vis ion , toward which she s e ems to reach .
Fifty years later , the monument o f B l e s s e d Lodovic a Albertoni
( 1 6 7 1 - 7 4 ) , at once a memorial and an a ltar figur e , re turns to the
s ame kinds o f effects found in the Cornaro Chapel in a new type of
I :v �-� ,� ';i. i··t. C.e,..\<\1�t.VV \Jj
s cenic s e t t ing . Bernini had t o contend with a �uattroG� chap e l
in S . France s co a Ripa . He change d the cro s s arm o f t h e smal l domed
chap e l with its chiaros curo lighting by cutt ing an oblique arch
opening of a s ort known from the P a l a z zo Barberin i . · I t is comp arable
Cou'{)�....<;f;
.
MareLioctaess
..

to the niche of the Mathi lde , and even c lo s er to

the s e c ond proj e c t for the t omb o f Alexander VII . 1 2 Behind the new
 123
13

a ltar s l ab , this perspectival ly deep ened arch extends the s e tting

in the manner o f a s tage into a brightly lit depth . There rests
the marbl e figure o f the saint . Above her on the back wall i s
1__./
0 1 e
G . B� G aul l i ' s altar painting of S t . Ann , the Virgin / and
� �
J
Child surrounded by marbl e cherubs and placed there for succor
for the dying . Bright l ight floods the space from an invisible tall
window , which may originally have had its c omp l ement in a window on
( ; ,s_-t: II
the opp o s i t e s ide . This l ight s trikes the headJ which i s sharply
A
"
thrown •.back) and the breast with the convulsively moving han �
As it diminishe s , the light throws the knees into relief and spends
i t s e l f over the fo l d s o f the garment and marble carp et o f reddish
yellow hue , an attribute of the hour of death which frequently
app e ar s on tomb monument s and epi t aphs . One is a l s o reminded of
Bernini ' s exp lanation to vi s itors at his Paris s tudio that a
drapery in front o f a sculp ture such as the portrait bust of Louis XIV
both d i s t ances and i s o lates . The marble drapery in front o f B l e s s e d
Lodovica d i s tance s the white marb l e sculpture and , a s in the tomb
.. . .. ·rr: -
o f Alexander VII ,'enhanc e:§Jbrcontra s t ':le- its c olor \ the luminos ity
-- ---· --· . . -·-· .....

of the figure . /Blessed

:Codov:i:ca-·bre:at!Te"!r-- crarrs-c:-endan:ce ander pur ttf'

<light() I

S ome years e arlier , Bernini had summed up h i s expre s s ive meeR�

in the figure o f Con s t antine ( 1 6 5 4 ; 1 6 6 2 - 7 0 ) in order to realize

V't\O S--t-� Q trY �.e..V'I. fo u...-�
v
a h i storical personality in its innermo s t and oensaqus:atia±- exper-

ience . J.B. Co lbert , in his corr e s p ondence v7ith Bernini during

the prep aration o f the e questrian monument o f Louis XIV , propo s e d
that the monument to the king r e s emble the figure o f Constantine .
On 3 0 December 1 6 6 9 , Bernini answered forcefully for the difference
 124
14

b e tween the two by explaining his concept o f Cons tantine : "Que s t a

/
S tatua s ad: d e l tutto divers a d il__q_�e l l a d� -�?_s tant�n9L _ perchfl C o s ­
-
t ant ino s t� in atto d ' allll1) :j.r_ll);:LJ.? Cr_Qs;_e �he g__l ' apparve e que s t a del
__ __ __

- ....

di Mae s t � e di commando . . . " 1 4 a distinction whi ch ,

-·--·� · - .... _ ·--··- -----

REl s taril in atto

:.:;:_�=-:;;...-;;;.;...;o:
..; . _
______ _� _ - .• -- -- ----�· -- - - . - ----�

with a grain o f s al t , may recall the differences b e tween the two

p ap a l figure s of Urban VI I I , the one in S t . Peter ' s and the o ther
on the Capitol . If I am corre c t , i t was an innovat ion t o repre-
*
s en t the Emperor on horseback beho lding the vision o f the Cros s .
C-?l p f�So �
Thi s fsieeft1l1 idea t ook form only gradua l l y in the art i s t ' s imagina-
t ion . Preparatory s tudies ( in Madrid and Leipzig ) and a mas t erly
but damage d bozzetto ( in Leningrad ) , articulate only the sudden
fright when horse and rider forcefully reco i l . When the s tatue was
exp e c t e d to occupy a narrow niche in S t . P e ter ' s , Bernini re con-
sidered it and gave it the appearanc e o f a soulful rapture .
The Emperor i s struck , more overcome than lordly and expansive - -his
g l an c e i s riveted on high , his mouth op en , his face transfixe d .
1''-' c c.u >. h.:t'
C on s t an t ine ho1 gs £as� in an express ion o f highe s t t en s ion l ike
o v- 1 ' (
Longinus , and like the latter , does not speak1 through g e s ture .
�n the s ame ma� � oth are overcome by the experien c e o f divine
lig ht . The ma �:��b�� ch alk s tud y o
� (-�;e;: ,�e.a � '--i�_,;,��o �2�:ot j�d ��� wl--; J___'
,
Cors in i ana) - -memoraB-le a l s o b ec ause ·sf as en face , as-,.,the vis itor
'21 '-" cl. t-V t-v; � ,' s
s e e s (ehe, et..peroJ:11 upon ent ering from the piazza r e t t a ' " repeated
•

\A "- ' li''i::"• c; �XD rchi'v e_

in the pen sketch o f the cro s s 1 5 - -this deeply m�voel,{ face i s b arely
/'
more than a s ilhoue t t e , a l l l ight , with hardly any mo del ing . Thi s
corre sponds to the view o f the who le (Leipzig) in wh�ch Bernini
defin e s pre c i s e ly how hors e and rider were to app ear :' th e marbl e
-/
' ' i ./ \... ,: .
<. - .
 15 125

group was then already finishe d , and he wished t o present i t

r.�(.l '( e.. V ; Jl1C:I Y\
bath.�<!_ :i,:r: ligh t .
__ And s imilar t o the �1:-atudi of St . B.H>M-ana W'huse- ,
'� -- -- - - - - --- ----------- -
�ches�a d , --
and hand are l i t dire c t ly
...--
)(_�h�
the marb l e s t atue of Con-
h � C. L o� ·1 \A�i. f-.::J t S i.t , -\ \1\ p{
\
d ;-"-. (.'-2.-Yj...) __)
�
_ __

s t an t ine was to r i s rom shadowy areas �the mo s t i;t �n; e e a s t -

A � t. A
ern light : light �� i s channeled through a nearby part ially hidden
"
aperture in the entrance t o the S c ala Regi a .
·r&-· "' The Emperor receives
-
-
f:'J i::'h L r.s h.�
a mi s s ion emanating from the Cro s s , with his :rai s_e,_Q,}eyeS),A he
. �,

accepts it .

,Bernini increa s e d the expr e s s ive power of h i s s t atue beyond

any thing that might have been p o s s ib l e according to the original

p l an ins i de St . Peter ' s . The large drapery in s tucco provides a

dark foil shot through with gold thr ead , shaped in response to the

tall s o c le and the diagonal , forward thrust of the hor s e . I t pro-

vides a dark niche breached only by the r a i s e d glance of the

r i der who beho lds the light . An accentua t e d p l ay of light and

shadow contras t s dramatica lly with the brightly l i t figure of the

Emperor . The drapery r e c a l l s the idea of a vel lum from which ,

ever s ince Raphael , Ver i t a s s trugg l e s to free her s e l f , as do

; r-- r ,____
Elias and Jonah 1 (the Chigi Chapel at S . Maria del P opolo Y as a _)
symb o l o f Reve lation . Overall , the eque s trian monument is mo s t

effe c t ive s een from a d i s tance . The long atrium o f St . Peter ' s

channels the persp e c t ive approach through i t s shadowy northern bay

t owar d s the light anteroom at the foot of the S c a l a Regia ,where

the mir acle of light o c curs at the piano reale .

The re lationships b e tween s i t ing and il lumin at ion sugg e s t

a careful con s i deration of Bernini ' s blurring of d i s tinctions

b e tween s culpture and p a int ing , for which he has s ome t imes been
 16 126

c r i t i c i ze d . The ma s t er ' s own words appear t o offer a support for

such a view , for example , his at once proud and cautious s t ate-

ment in P ar i s a s recorde d by his son Domen ico that , 'in the hair

and c l o thing of the eque s t r ian s t a tue of Louis XIV , he had won

from the s tone ,a. degree o f p las t i c i t y comparable only to wax .

.
'I I .\-\.-.:_'> l"�t the ,;1.__ .0� 1-'1ci >,-. ,( �> f·"'J
vJi i"·�
1
. . .
By l;:J;'cat:loi'igt- th e s t atue �n t h � s manner , h e c 1_a�me d to h ave b een

16
ab le to " accoppiare in un certo modo la pit tura e la s cul tura , "

t o b l end , a s i t were , paint ing and s culpture �ndependent of our

approach and view , however inter e s t ing they may be to us , Bernini ' s

figures and s culptural groups are always calculated for one domin-

ant view . The form and p l acement of the p l inth determines and

betrays the or ient at ion of the figures . Yet the general criterion

admi t s o f excep t ion s . �

�ither An o l l o and Daphne nor the tomb of Urban VIII addr e s s

only one s i de , and t h e sketches for Daniel and Con s t antine a t t e s t

to Bernini ' s fully rounded idea of the body Q hoPever Feme-vee! fr-t::>m/
.»annerists-:£-etation- ( The concept of the "painterly" i s not suffi­

cient for the examp l e s we have adduced as long as it s imp ly means

a surface quality or an atmospheric percep t ion . The ideas of our

Ma s t er p lace him much clo ser to the realm of s c enography . We are

dealing with effect and narrative purp o s e . H i s u s e of l ight ini­

t i ates a chain of events in which the protagon i s t reac t s vis ibly

and p sycho l ogically to the light .

� ,
- i.. ,...
......:O ....,
At the Fontana dei Fiumi ,
; ..... ; --
;:�·� Y'f'l2< ::.� ("(' l!.·'..'l."'t fu...v C.i-'C.l..
the

Rio della P l ata and the Danub e adroi:e �the ob e l i s k , s o l i sacer ,

S '1 Y'rl b o I _s(c '('] c. c:._
. �-ge{ of a ray of ligh t . The former rai s e s h i s hand and � in
:
admirat ion , the latter gre e t s the l ight with open arms . The
 127
17

face o f the Anima beata and o f Cons tantine reflect the light as

a divine phenomenon . Their physiognomie s bet ray emo tion , they r e s ­

pond as i f by reflex . The divine light i s exp erienced b y S t .

\/\ -:0-.r.---
� as a me s s age from on high , by S t . Teresa at the s i de

o f her ange l , and by the B l e s s e d Lodovica Albertoni as a spiri­

r�z c e;\ ,, <' 3 .-:- {. \ tC � b s.rv � l. .i c.�
tual experience -which has to be- accept-e-d . Nore powerfully than

in a p a int ing , this interplay can be r e a l i z ed in s culpture . Ber-

$ U11j.. (,'J 11,-1,-'{�.
I '
-t'Di.N �v�( t,_.,i" �
nini dir e c t s light ,�e-r-B &s.-l:he- s e t ting,· pr e c i s ely1 on to�-hi-s-fi·gures,�(
't(\ ; '( "C. lA \ ? 'J.-'\ �' � '� ; h LH -�
-w�n --detach ·ehel!lssl ves. in a miraculous manner , s o as to reveal

the tran s c endental in the natural .

128
129
/ 130

Not e s on the mi s e - en- sc�ne o f Bernini ' s statuary

Hans Kauffmarn
Unlike his marb le and bronze portrait bus t s , many of which
are no longer in their original s i t e s , almost a l l of B ernini ' s
figural works are s t i l l where the patrons wanted them or where
Bernini recommended they b e . A rare except ion from h i s early
.
period ( o ther than the �ma�\jl1 er ��than-���
Lt :� �-� :-�
Anarb le
( - · �'!
figure s of St .
� . ·!.: ·. ' r ·_, . . ..·
I .L .
.

� and St . Sebastian , which apparently were never installed

in their int ended location) 1 is the life - s ized marb l e group o f
Neptune_ and Triton , ca . 1 6 2 0 , commi s s ioned b y A l e s s andro Cardinal
Peretti for the garden at Villa Hontalto . / After p a s s ing through
the c o l l et?_t:i or::/ o f Sir Jo shua Reynolds ( 1 7 8 6 ) and Lord Yarborough
-·

,. £,{1�¥1 "l -f:v /--

•-

( 1 9 5 0 ) , i t eventually encled up � the Victoria and Albert Mus eum . I. L.

.
S ince i t wa s placed in the open , one need not recons truct the
particular condit ions of its placement as one would have to do
,z_;tcepb a t·v � - -

were it intended for an int erior . Another case ; n-p��� is effer� ·

,/ 1-..._.
/
--Jry- the two angels �riginally wer-e! des t ined for the bridge of
the C a s t e l S ant ' Angel o , but i��..:n . accordLlg-t:-o-t-fl.e-wi�=o£--the
'-'--' e-.-"·-)/.._ . na-v�
Res13::.gliosi pop--e-±11 1669 ,.-.th� were f.et em,P laced there s o as to
l.L
rr.::;:;;J }'r�ve.r
protect them from weathering . 1-rr-wha:cver �;ay they may have been
s e t up in Bernini ' s house (where they remained until 1 7 2 9 / 3 1 ) and
however much addit ional refinement Bernini may have given them ,
their removal by his grandson Prospera Bernini t o S . Andrea delle
Frat e , the art i s t ' s parish chur ch , deprived them o f their intended
impact and of the calculated oblique approach of the p a s ser-by .
_ Replicas fashioned under Bernini ' s supervis ion were erected on
the bridge j{t
r:: �
hey convey how much has b e en lost by p la'c ing them
in S . Andr e a : the animat ion in the t o r s ion and balan c e o f the
/"
body , the brill iant pl ay o f light and shadow , the counter play
.....
 131
2

o f their l ight ing and the wind bil lotving their garments from
below . All o f this has b een weakened by their emp lacement in
S . Andrea delle Frate . -
�- A drawing by G . Baciccio Gaulli captures how the Veritas
t o be s e en in Bernini ' s o�� r e s i dence ( s ince 1 9 2 4 it has b e en
Galleria Borghe s e ) .
After S t . Peter ' s and the Gal leria Borghe s e in Rome ,
the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard boas t s the large s t collec tion o f
Bernini, s culpture s , with the significant difference that tho s e a t
Harvard a r e bozze t t i . They are in no way b ound to part icular
site s , can be free ly turned and lit . As a rul e , they give no
indicat ion of what kind o f larger context Bernini had in mind
for them .
/'1 o�-e- cwG.
Il=le aa:.n l;;o cy of h i s creat ions ,i.e- s t i l l to b e found in

the original s i t e s . In contrast to a work like Giovanni Bologna ' s

Rape o f the Sabine , which is genuinely neutral to i t s surrounding s ,
vexL{
� the , sUbj ects o f Bernini ' s s culpture make i t difficult to think
of them in other than their original locations . In their original
� w. c.. n· m v.....-

set t ings , we can obs erve how the artist� integrated his work int o
ot�, u f.',..,.,�J
given arch i t e c tural s e t t ings , and1 how � other eases he managed
to adapt exi s t ing s culptures to his own . In every c a s e he cou l d
f e e l chal leng e d to d o j us t ice to h i s own p o s tula t e : "Chi vuol
\ '
vedere aual che un huomo s a , b i s ogna me tterlo . in necess ita" . Follow-
ing are a few examp l e s .
The t ombs o f Paul I I I and Urban V I I I were the fir s t to b e
realized in the new church o f S t . P e t er ' s , and for tnem the mo s t
dignified niche s , those in the we st ern tribuna , had been d e s ignate
This special d i s t inction was res erved for the popes under whom
132
 133
-1 -
'

ON I LL U S I O N I S M IN THE VAULT OF THE GE S U

Irving Lavin

In view of the dual a sp e c t of our commem o r a t i o n - -

Bernini ' s art and its influen ce- - i t s e em e d to me appropr i a t e

to r e c o n s i d e r br i e f l y o n e of Bernini ' s latest a n d g r e a te s t , but

in s om e r e sp e c t s a l s o mo s t n e g l e c te d works , the d e s i gn of the

... I
\Y
vault d e c o r a t i on of the Gesu (Fi g . 1) . As eve r y o n e k n ow s , the

decoration wa s executed under the m a s t e r ' s influence by his

prot �g ( G i ov a n n i Batti sta G a ul l i , called il Baciccio, during

_ba.-o;; I C-
the last few years of Bernini ' s life ( 1676-9 ) . The c onception
;,
'
of the Gesu v a ul t m u s t be r e g arded as Bernini ' s f inal i rnp o r -

,��/
tant a c h i e ve m e n t in th i s d o ma i n .� I t s a p p r op r i a t en e s s for us

lies only partly in its date , h ow e ve r , f o r whi l e it has a lw a y s

been r e c o gn i zed as a crucial m o n um e n t of Roman Bar oque c e i l ing

d e coration , d i s c u s s io n s of its e xtraordina r i l y vivid e ffects

h ave dealt mainly with the t u mu l t u o u s b u t uni fied c o mp o s i t i o n

br-_"r-a (-./
o f mas sed f igure g r o up s , t h e -!ilcr.-a-ma-t�i:·9 c o n tr a s t s between areas
;1

of l ight and dark , the i n t e rm i n g l i n g of archi t e c ture , s c u l p t ure

and p a i nt in g . My p u rp o s e is to focus on certain other aspe c t s

of its de s ign that con tribute in a l im i t e d ye t , I th i n k , sig-

n �f i c a n t w a y t o an u n d e r s t a n d i ng of its position in one of the

m a j or traditions of Italian art .

The d e s i g n may be said to i n c or p o r a t e t hr e e basic con s t i -

tuen t s , e a ch of which had a long h i s t o ry prior to B e rn in i and

each of w h i ch he left in a very d i f fe r e n t s t a te than he found

it . One of th e s e was the imago c l i p e a ta , or framed image held

a lo f t by winged f igure s who t h e r eby expr e s s its spiritual con-

ten t . The mo t i f was c o mm o n l y used in antiqu i ty for tomb par-

 134
-2 -

traits (Fig , 2) a n d · with the transformation of pagan genii into angels ,

,3
i t b e c am e c3 s t an d a r d C h r i s t i an emblem · of s an c t i t y . v

By the e a r ly s e ve n te e n t h c e n t ur y , in the C a pp e lla P a o lina in

Santa Maria Maggiore , it had been used as the centerpiece for

a major altarp i e c e (Fig. 3) . B e rn i n i r e v o lu t i o n i z e d th i s idea

by e li m i n a t i n g the s ep a r a t e a r c h i t e c t u r a l f r am e w o r k for the

a lt a rp i e c e and se tting the a n g e l- b o r n e image fre e , as i t were i

. Ls� .

ln the �e S l lv a c h ap e l in S a n t ' I s i do ro of the e a r ly 1 6 60s , he

fl. .
even e x p lo i t e d the veining o f the c o lo r e d m a r b le on t he back
4
wall t o s ug g e s t a c lo ud - f i l l e d space (Fig. 4)� The a lt a rp i e c e

is thus no lon g e r a static emb le m of h o li n e s s , but a s up e r-

natural event . The p i c ture within the f r ame is no lo n g e r the

s o le f i e ld of i llu s i o n , b ut t he f r am e d p i c t ur e itself is seen

as an o b j e c t m i r a c u lo u s ly suspended in the r e a l w o r ld , which

has in turn b e c om e the v e h i c le for i llu s i o n .

....
The s e cond ingredient of the Gesu v a u lt was the con c e i t

of the f e igne d p i c ture , w h i ch provided a means of r a t i o n a li z i n g

the sp a t i a l c o n t e n t of narra tive scene s placed overhead. The

device d e v e lo p e d in two c omp l e m e n t a r y forms in the course of

the s i x t e e n th century. With the quadro r i p o r tato , or trans-

f e r r e d p i c t u r e - - t r a c e ab le at le a s t to Rap h a e l ' s Vati can Loggie

(Fig. 5 ) -- the n a r r a t i ve depi cted on the vault w a s given a

frame of its own and treated as if it were an e a s e l painting ,

e x emp t from the perspec tive for e s h o r t e n i n g required by the view

from b e lo w . The c o nv e r s e of this r e s u lt may a ls o be an ad-

vantag e , n a m e ly , that s in c e the image is u n de r s t o o d as a

 135
-3-

'' c on v e n t i o n a l , '' framed p i c ture , its spatial c on t e n t doe s n o t

cut a hole in the vaul t . A t the turn of the seventeenth cen-

tury Ann i b a l e Carracci made the s e e ffects into a de v i l i s h l y

clever vi sual pun by c o mb i n i n g the quadro r ip o r t a to w i th its

exact o pp o s i te . Th i s is the quadro s fondato , o r p e r forated

p i c ture , in which the s cene is p a i nt e d in p e r s p e c t i ve fore-

s h o r t e n in g again s t a r e c e d in g aerial vista. In the Farne s e

G a l l e ry he used v a r i an t s of both type s s i de by s i d e - - s ome s ub -

j e c ts are seen head on , o t he r s more or less f r om below

(Fi g . 6) . S ince they have e l a bo r a t e f rames of the i r own ,

all are p e r c e ived as pain tings attached to the vaul t , wh i c h

,5
remai n s intact behind t h em .

The them a t i c c on c e i t of the imago c l ip e a t a and the visual

concei t of the feigned p i c ture were first un i t e d by P i e tro da

C o r t on a , Bernini ' s great r ival in this field. In C o rtona ' s

vaul t of the Chiesa Nueva of the m i d- l 6 6 0 s , an i n t e r v e n t i on of

the Virgin during t he c on s t r u c t i o n of the c h u r ch is repre s e n t e d

as a sacred painting w i th its f r a me held aloft by God ' s me s s e n -

gers (Fig . 7) . It is v i ewe d f r om beneath , howeve r , as if the

miracle were taking p l a ce in the open air a b o ve the vault. On

the one hand , it is presented as an obj e c t no deepe r t h an the

surface on which it is p a in t e d ; on the other h an d , it sugg e s t s

an infinite e x t e n s ion of sp a c e beyond the s ur f a c e . Carrac c i ' s

p i c to r i a l game has been t r an s f o r m e d into what c an only be

d e s c r ib e d as a divine i l l u s i on , an an g e l i c quadro s fondato .

The third c om p o n e n t of the Ges � vault was the familiar

 136

t r a d i t i on o f op e n vaul t i l l u s io n i s m s t em m i n g f r om C o r r e g g i o

(Fig . 8) . Here the bu i l d i ng itself is r e pr e s en t e d as open

to the s ky and f illed with a heavenly v i s i on . The space is

cont inuous and the f i g ur e s , i n s t e ad of r e m a i n in g o u t s ide ,

pass f r e e l y b e tw e e n the i n t e r io r and e x te r i o r .

It is evident that the principle of open vaul t i l lu-

s io n i sm is quite inimical to that of the f r am e d p i c ture :

one denies , the other inv o k e s the r e a l i ty and s o l i d i ty of

t he vaul t . In the Cornaro chapel of l647ff . , Bernini had

taken an imp o r t a n t step toward merging th e s e two principles

(Fig. 9) . The space of the h eave n l y vis ion is c o n t i n uo u s

between the interior and exterior , but there is no opening in

the v a ul t . The result is a kind of '' i mp l o s iv e '' i l l u s i on in

w h i ch the appa r i t ion s e em s l iterally to f i l te r through the

masonry . It was only in t he Ges � vaul t , h ow e v e r - - an d here in

lies its great a ch ie ve m e n t in th i s c on t e x t - - th a t the s e emingly

i n c o mp a t i b l e f i c t i on s of the framed p i c tu r e and the open

vault were r e c on c i l e d . The frame and s up p o r t in g ange l s indi-

c a te that the v i s ionary scene is a pic ture and that the va u l t

is not a perforated s truc ture . Ye t , the f i gure s a pp e a r ins ide

as well as out , un a f f e c t e d by t h e p i c t ur e p l an e except that

now some p l un g e headlong into the n a ve - - a s if s udde n l y s e i zed

by the earth ' s gravitational field as they pass through the

s u r f ac e . What the spe c ta tor perceives is a heave n-sent image

wh o s e space doe s not s imp l y e x t e nd but is a c tu a l l y c o e x t e n s ive ·

w i th his own space- -not so much a divine i l l u s ion as a divine

.
m 1. r a c l e . V
6/
 137
-s-

\.
The influence of the Gesu vault was as vast and c o mp l e x

as t he d e s ign itsel f , but one of its most interes ting legacies

may be s een towar d the mi ddl e of the e i g h t e e nt h century in

Tiepolo ' s d e s troyed fresco in the n av e of S a n t a Mar i a di

Nazareth (Chiesa degli Scalzi ) in Venice (Fig. 10) . There

he omitted the f r ame w i th s u pp o r t i n g an g e l s and showed the

vault op e n , but he adopted the idea of the mi r a c u l o u s event

that seems to i n va d e the sp a c e of the b u i l d in g , wh e r e also the

11
tumbl i n g f igure s r e sp o n d to the l aw s of phys i c s :V T i ep o l o thus

s upp r e s s e d the device Bernini used to d istinguish be tween fie-

t i on and reality , whi l e r e ta i n i n g the effect of the d i s t i n c t i on .

As a r e s ul t , the miracle which in Bernini a pp e a r s e xp l i c i t l y as

a divine i n t ervent ion , b e c ome s in T i epo l o as easy and natural

as the passing of a c loud . P e rhaps it is the s i gn as well as

the fate of great artis ts to be half a c c epted and half re j e c t e d

by the i r great successor s .

 138

f These o b s e rv a t i o n s are in the n a ture of a s up p l e m e n t

to the comme n t s on Be r n in i ' s early i l l u s i on i s t i c vaul t de c o -

r a t i on s in my B e rn i n i and the Un i t y of the Vi s u a l Arts , New

York and London r 1 9 80 , 4 0- 8 , 54-7 , 127-9 1 and General I n de x ,

s � v . I l l usion i s m , va u l t .

GesU
1· The most impor t a n t anal y s i s of the vaul t is tha�

of R. E n gg a s s , The P a i n ting of Ba c i c c i o � G i o v a nn i Battista

Gaul l i 1 6 3 9- 1 7 0 9 , Un i v e r s i t y Par k , Pa. , 1 964 , 43ff. , H i th

whi ch the discussion here o v e r l ap s in part. See also the re-

view of Engga s s by F. H . Dawl e y , in The Art B ul l e t i n , XLVI I ,

1965, 294-300; B � Canestro Chi ovenda , 11 C r i s t i n a di S ve z i a , il

B e rn i n i , il Gaul l i . Il l i bra di a p p un t i di N i codemo Te s s i n

d. y . ( 1 6 87 - 1 6 88) , " Comme n t a r i , XVI I , 1966, 1 7 1-81 , esp . 175f.

R. \'l i t t k o w e r , Art an d Architecture in I ta l y 1 6 00 to 175 0 ,

H a rm o n d s w o r t h , 1973 , 1 74 , 547, n . 29; F. Haske l l , P a tron s and

Painter s , New York , e tc . , 1971 , 83 . The doubts e xp r e s s e d by

Daw l e y s e em to me n u g a to ry ; even if the actual des ign was

Ba c i c c i o ' s , he was c l e a r ly f o l l ow i n g Bernin i ' s lead.

H. B. Mena M a r q u 6s , '' U n dibuj o de G i o v a. n n i B a t ti s t a G au l l i

p a r.a los fres cos de la c up o l a de l G e s U , 11 in Per A. E. Popha m ,

P ar m a , 1 9 81 , 205- 1 1 , points to Genoe s e a n t e c e de n t s ; but the

Ge s U vault remains d i s t i nguishe d f r om t he m , n o t ab l y by the

use of o v e r l ap p i n g s tu c c o and the device of the angel-borne

quadro riportato that is our chief c on c e r n here .

 139
-7-

J For the imago c l i oe a t a 1 its Christian l egacy and a spe c t s

of Bernini ' s mul tifarious �se of the moti f , cf. R. Win k e s ,

Cl ipeata imago ¥ S t ud i e n zu einer r; m i s c h e n B i l d n i s form ,

Dis s . , Bonn , 1969, 88f f . ; H. s ' Ja cob , I de a l i sm and Re a l i s m .

!::_ S tudy of Sepulc�ral S yn b o l i s m , Leiden , 1954 , 1 9 0f f . , Lavi n ,

B e r r: i :: i , 69 f . , and the l i t e ra t u re cited there , n . 14 .

f The ba s i c idea of the i n d e p e n d e n t, a n g e l - b o r n e a l ta rp i e c e

a l so app e a r s in other works by Bern ini of this period : S an t '

An d r e a al Quirina l e , the Chigi c h ap e l in S i en a Cathedral ,

the Fonseca c h ap e l in S an Lorenzo in Luci n a ; the use of

colored marble to s i m u l a te c l o ud s had been a d umb r a t e d in the

rel iquary n i ches of the crossing of Saint P e te r ' s .

5 The hi story of the s e and other c o mp a r a b l e devices has

yet to be w r i t ten ; for the t e r m i n o l og y , see recently L. G ra s s i

and M. Pepe , D i z i on a r i o de l l a c r i t i ca d ' ar te , 2 vo l s . , Turi n /

1978, II , 454£.

For ba ckground on other distinc tive f e a ture s of the

G e s� vault--the absen ce of p e r sp e c t i v e o r t ho g o n a l s � '' c l o s e d

v a u l t '1 i l lusionism; the use of real s tu c c o ornament on the

vault itsel f ; the us e of molded and painted stucco to extend

the scene beyond its f r ame - - s e e Lavin , Bernini , as c ited in

1
n. � , above .
 140
-s-

1 Tiepo l o ' s portrayal of the figures as moving p a s t the

aper ture an d f a l l in g into the space of the building belies a

'
re cent d i s mi s s a l of the G e s u vaul t as a source for the

S an t a Mar i a di N a z a r e th de c o r a t i o n i in none of the V e n e t i an

antecedents cited is this the case (cf. the o t h e rw i s e excel-

lent a r t i c le by W. B a r e ham , '' G i amb a t t i s t a Tiepolo ' s C e i l i ng

for S. Mar i a di Nazareth in Veni c e : Legen d , T r a di t io n s , and

D e v o t i o n s , '' The Art Bull e t i n , LXI , 1979, 439, n. 51) .

 141

PART II

BERNINI AND HIS INFLUENCE

 142
Erich Hubala

The Apsidal Colannaded Baroque Altar : Bernini or Palladia?

This paper addresses a typological problem in the history of

altar architecture and its methodological implications . In my

s tudy on the influenc e o f Bernini and Palladia during the 1 7 th and

1 8 th centuries in France and central Europe (presented at the Centro

Internazionale di S tudi di Archi t e t tura ANDREA PALLADIO in Vicenza for

the first time in 1 9 7 1 ) , I minimized the influence of Bernini ' s bald­

achin so as to acknowl edge a Palladian type of Baroque altar : the

apsidal colonnaded Qltar , which until now has been confused with imita­

tions or replicas of Berniniesque baldachins . I have been able to

identify a b l ending of Palladian and Berniniesque motifs , especially

in Franconian altars of the 1 8 th c entury , and I can also d emons trate a

unique example of a Baroque re-integration o f the apsidal col onnade

into the entire articulation o f church architec ture by Balthasar Neu­

mann 1 7 3 2-44 . My answer to the ques tion in the t i tl e--Bernini or

Palladia--will thus be a threefold one . ( 1 ) No t Bernini , but Palladia

with respec t to the French solution of the 1 7 th century ; ( 2) Baro que ,

but nevertheless Palladian, with regard to altars in Belgium , England

and Central Europe in the late seventeenth and eight eenth centuries ; but

also (3) Bernini as well as Palladia , referring to a large group of

Franconian altars o f the eighteenth century .

On the who l e , this rather unexpec ted result s trengthens my conviction

that Baroque was principally a synthetic s tyle , and i t also confirms the

experience that genetic explanations in the history of art cannot be

based on observations of charac ter , but of structur e . I should like to

 143

recall for a moment the powerful work and personality o f the late

Rudolf Wit tkower . As the author o f "Architec tural Principles in the

Age o f Humanism , " Wittkower dared to speak about SCONOGRAPHIC EFFECTS

_in Palladia ' s religious architecture. As biographer of Gianloren zo

Bernini , the Sculptor o f the Roman Barooue , Wittkower emphasized the

classical heritage in Bernini ' s Baroque art and architecture . Because

/ o f his fundamental guidance of my own studies in the Baroque , and as

i
a t? ken o f my gratitud e , I should like to devote these remarks to the

memory o f the late Rudolf Wittkowe r .

I.

The prominent role which Bernini ' s baldacchino a t S t . Peter ' s in

1
Rome has played as a paradigm o f Baroque al tar architecture is obvious .

There i s much evidence for this outs ide Italy--no t only in Central Europe ,

but also in France . Marcel Raymond compiled an early l i s t o f French

2 3
examples in 1 9 1 1 and 1 9 2 3 which Louis Hautecoeur enlarged in 1 94 8 .

In 1 94 9 Fiske Kimball called attention to a proj ect for the high altar
4
of Notre Dame in Paris as a Bernini replica , and there have been a

number o f o ther s tudies which have sought to establish the influence o f

5
the Roman sculptor and architec t on French altar architecture .

Bernini ' s influence has been deemed even greater on Central European

Baroque al tars which lacked paintings or reliefs in the center ; art

historians have ranked his influence here higher even than in France

and surpassed only by the professed influence of Andrea Pe zza ' s "Thea trum
6
sacrum" . Werner Hegemann ' s view o f the role of Bernini ' s baldacchino

as a model for all columnar altar architecture of the seventeenth and

7
eighteenth centuries remains authoritative even today . Frees tanding
 144

8
columns as well as a crowning similar to the Roman prototype have

been regarded as the decisive criteria for assessing Bernini ' s influ-

ence , which o f t en involves the tacit assumption that by means o f varia-

tion , elaboration, or stylistic association, pracitically all forms of

the columnar Baroque altar originate in Bernini ' s concentrically composed

9
Roman monument .

In my view, the premises o f this widespread suppos ition are methodologically

untenabl e as well as historically objec tionabl e , since it can be demon-

s trated that altar archi tecture , which until now has been considered

"Berniniesque" ciborias , d erives from not one but s everal pro totypes ,

among them the type o f apsidal altar which is o f Palladian origin . The

type which I refer to as the apsidal alter exists in two basic forms in

the s eventeenth and eighteenth centuries , which I call the CONCH ALTAR

and the COLONNADED ALTAR; here we will only consider the latter . For

the conch altar , I mention only two examples , in the church of Saint
10 11
Germain-des-Pres in Paris , and in the Jacobkirche in Lubeck . The

apsidal disposition is obvious , as is its central mo tif , a vaulted conch .

Evident, too , is its ancient Roman model , the apsidal conchs in the Roman

Pantheon, and their imitations in classical High Renaissance architecture

in Rome after 1 50 0 . Conch al tars invariab l e accomodate a s tatue or

sculp tural group in the center . Iconographic connections to memorial

imagery rites are s triking , connotations appropriate to the architec tural

12
motif o f the conch . Where this altar i s recognized as an independent

typ e , i t is generally referred to as a "nich )fetable" or "niche altar . "

13

The second basic type o f apsidal altar , the colonnaded altar , is

either typically misinterpreted as a modification of Bernini ' s Roman

 145

ciborium o r i t is explained by the impressionistic metaphor "half

14
a tempietto" . Such associations are superfluous , since i t can be

demons trated that both ciboria and apsidal altars originated contempor-

aneously in the late Baroque , and even met i� Paris in the same place-

namely , Val-de-Grace . Indeed , their encounter , after Bernini ' s 1 6 6 5

v i s i t to Paris , was patently o s tentatious . Beneath the dome looms

Le Due ' s six-columned altar ciborium , while in the rear, in the form

o f the tabernacle completed in 1 66 9 , we f ind a perfect model o f the

15
apsidal Colonnade . Today there remains only the recons truction o f

1 8 6 9 / 7 0 b y Rupprich-Rober t , also illustrated i n his monograph o n Val-

16
d e-Grac e . For our purposes , his recons truc tion is correct in all

relevant points , as the descriptions o f Brice in 1 7 25 and Piganiol­

17
de-la-Force in 1 7 69 indica t e . Brice wro t e : " . . . ou milieu et derri�re

ces bel les figures, qui sont grandes come nature i l s 'el�ve un tabernac le

tout dore, en form de niche soutenu de douz colonnes " (of the Corinthian

order , fluted , with plinths s tanding directly on the ground) - " poses­

sur un p lan courbe, qui portant un demidtme; quattre de face, le reste

dans l 'enfoucement . C 'est dans ce tabernacle que l e Saint Sacrament est

"A
expose/ l es JOUI'S des grandes ;e t es . . .
•
II
As far as it goes , Germain Brice ' s

description c learly shows the typical structure of an apsidal colonnade ,

18
both in ground plan and elevation.

I t may b e surprising that such an ambitious architec tural program

appears in a tabernac l e , that is , in small scale architecture or ecclesia-

s tical furniture, as it is o f ten called . During the Italian Baroque ,

this was certainly not unusual . One need only recall two well-known

examples , the tabernac le , in prospettiva on the alter of the Spada chapel

 V<

146

19
in San Paolo in Bologna, in front o f Borromini ' s Tempietto , and
20
Bernini ' s Sacrament tabernacle :tn S t . Peter ' s in Rome . Both are

elaborate architecture en miniature, and they are also challenging

21
representations o f highly esteemed architectural leitmo tifs , as

is the one at Val-de-Grac e .

The monumental apsidal co lonnaded altars in Parisian churches

have been des troyed . The example mos t well-known from descriptions

and illustrat ions was in the former presbytery o f the Augus t inian
22
canons . Designed b y Charles LeBrun and demolished during the Revo-

lution, the high altar in the Abbey church of the Grand Augus tins
23
was erected in 1 6 7 5- 7 8 . In the Gothic presbytery , where the chapter

mee tings of the Order of the Holy Spiri t also took plac e , eight

colossal freestanding columns on an apse-shaped soccel form a colonnade

over a semicircular groundplan with two lateral wings in such a way ,

that the second and the seventh column formed a tra� e along with

the first and the eighth column : thus the colonnaded apse was flanked

by each with a colonnaded bay . The cross flanked by a pair o f angels ,

crowned the powerfully formed archivol t o f the halfdome . The fresco

in the apse vault represented God the Father in heaven , with blessings

flowing from him . At the summ i t o f the entablature the dove of the
24
Holy Spirit could be seen .

A similar altar b egun in 1 6 8 4 and designed by LeBrun , Severin in

Pari s , has also d isappeared . Such altars also appear in Jean LePautre ' s

"Nouveaux dessins d ' Autels a la Romaine" (edited by Jombert 1 7 52 ) ; one

perf ect example is on the title-page of this set of engravings . The

high altar in the former abbey ·:hurch of Bee , then in S t . Croix in Bernay ,
 147

originally also seemed to belong to our group o f apsidal colonnaded

25
altars .

In summary , then , after 1 665 there were numerous Berniniesque

ciboria in French churches , several apsidal conch-retables , as well

as s everal apsical colonnaded altar s , especially in Paris . The

pro totype for the latter is unques tionably Palladia ' s apse in the

Venetian vo tive church Il Redentore, begun in 1 57 6 and complete in

26
1593. The reaction against Bernini ' s art and personality during

his Parisian soj ourn in 1 665 probably brought about , through the
27
agency o f Palladia ' s colonnaded aps e , the altar type described here .

This is even more likely s inc e , for the f ew conno is seurs , Pallad ia ' s

classical colonnade may have recalled a particular French monument of

great political significance. I refer to the tomb architecture in

Montmorency, designed by Jean Bullant for the Connetable Anne, and

28
executed by Charles Bullant in 1 57 7 . After the Revolution the expen-

sive parts of the tomb were supposedly brought to Paris . The illustra-

tion is an early nineteenth century drawing with a view of the garden

o f the Petit Augus tins , where Lenoir had laid out the s tone monuments
29
collected from former churches and convents . An apsidal colonnade

is disc ernable in this drawing . Even today in the courtyard of the

Ecole des Beaux Arts fragments of the entableture o f Bullant ' s tomb

architec ture are pres erved , as professor Volker Hoffmann kindly informed

me.

The fourth book of Palladia ' s Quattro Libri d ' Ar chitettura ( 1 57 0 ) ,

reveals that for the apse o f Il Redentor e , Palladia not only drew

extensively from ancient Roman terme architecture , as has been o f ten

30
no tect , but he also perceived a direct correspondence in his recon-

s tructions o f Roman temple archi tectur e , the importance o f which he

 148

clearly wished to acknowledge . Palladio repeatedly refers to the

form o f the interior o f the Roman temple cellas as a frees tanding

colonnade b eneath a halfdom e , erected on a circular groundplan,

as in the illustration of the temple of Jupiter Tonans , groundplan

(page 7 4 ) Book IV , Chapter 1 9 , and above all the Illustration

of the temple of Mars Ultor, Book IV , Chapter A comparison

easily ascertains that the beautiful articulation of the Il Redentore

Apse is therefore derived from temple architectur e o f ancient Rome ,

within the icono graphic , that is , ideological framework o f Palladio ' s

view of sacred architecture ante legem and sub gratia , and is there­

by justified by more than formal means .

The use o f the antique for the apse o f Il Red en tore i s no "discovery " ,
32
no genuine invention of Palladio . As Erik Forssman noted in 1 9 65, it

derives from the Libro d ' Architettura d i Antonio Labacco , first published

in Rome in 1 5 5 2 . As we know , the site o f the Autustan temple ruins

provided no archeological basis for such a reconstruction of the inter-

ior o f the temple cella , as Palladio himself candidly admi ts . Our refer-

ence to Labacco is helpful only insofar as i t indicates the true source

for this beautiful architectural mo ti f , namely , the fabbrica di San Pietro

during the second decade of the sixteenth century , when the shaping of

the colonnaded ambulatories in the tribunes was done . Here I can only

refer to one o f the proj ects ( shown here on the left) and a copy after

Baldassare Peruzzi from the so-called S ienese Sketch-book (on the right)

indicate how the actual task of des igning the colonnaded and transparent

ambulatories o f S t . Peter ' s (which were ul timately unsuccessful) fired

the fantasy and imagination of the Roman architects during the "classical"
33
period of the Renaissanc e . Here , then, we locate the true origin of
 149

the mo t i f which Jean Bullant and Andrea Palladia monumentalized at

almos t the same t im e , and to which the French architects reverted

after 1 665 , perhaps to create an i d eo logical counterpart to Bernini ' s

columnar ciborium.

II .

Let us now turn t o examples o f apsidal colonnaded altars outside o f

Fran c e . The m o s t important , although no t the firs t , example o f this

altar type in Belgium is the high altar of the church of S t . Jacques

34
in Antwerp completed in 1698 . Artur Quellien the Younger designed

the plan of 1 6 8 5 , and the apostolic pro tono tary H . Hillewerve was the

donor o f the alter . The Baroque character o f the colossal columnar

architec ture has o f ten been emphasized , in particular its decorative

35
qual i ties . The precise structure o f the composition is neither

arbitrary nor d i f f erent from the "classical" Palladian prototypes in

Paris . A comparison o f the actual Antwerp altar with the engraving of

J. Claude de Cock and with Millin ' s representation of the high altar

in the Grand Augus tins in Paris t e s t i f i es to the direct derivation of

36
the former from the latter . No te , for instance , the way two piers

(which replaced the two c olumns at the beginning and end of the apsidal

co lonnad e) fulfill the intended illusion of oblique position , and also

explain the diagonal posi tion of the outer bays as well as the curvature

o f the transparent halfdomevault over the entablature. Although clearly

Baroque in character , this remarkable altar is constructed in the

decisively classical arrangement of an apsical colonnade , based on the

proposition that the beginning and the ending of the hemicircle has been

moved inside a b i t .
 150

As we have seen in the high altar o f S t . Jacques in Antwerp ,

class ical composition and profuse Baroque ornamentation often g o hand

in hand . We must therefore go b eyond impressionistic descriptions of

altar architecture to acknowledge the underlying composition, which

is o f ten a pure and rationalistic design . This d emands analysis of the

groundplan, an often neglected requirement for which there is insufficient

space her e , but one thinks of the seventeenth and eighteenth century en­

gravings o f altars which never omit the groundplan .

The classical composition i s not always concealed b ehind a richly

elaborated ornamental design as in Antwerp . One thinks o f an altar

design of 1 7 2 0 for a church in Sallapulka (Lower Austria) , preserved

in the archive o f Herzogenburg Abbey and attributed to Johann B ernhard

Fischer von Erlach, one o f the founders of Austrian Baroque architec ture ,
37
who died in 1 7 23 . As early as 1 925 , Hans Sedlmayr attempted to establish

the genesis of this pro j e c t . As a prototype, he cited the high altar o f

S S . Trinita d e i Moni t i n Rome , which was designed by Jean d e Champaign

and in s i tu in 1 6 7 5 . Until now, scholars have accepted with Sedlmayr ' s

38
explanation. However , as J . J . De Ross i ' s engraving of the Roman altar

c learly demons trates , this geneaology is not convincing . The Sallapulka

al tar pro j ec t flawlessly repeats all the features o f the apsidal colonnaded

al tar type in the classical Paris i an version, in particular the tabernacle

in Val-de-Grac e .

Such typological corrections can have far-ranging consequences regarding

the attribution of authorship , too . As long as Sedlmayr ' s genetic explana-

tion seemed to be corre c t , for example , the traditional attribution of

the proj ect to Fischer von Erlach the Father remained unchallenged ,
 151

although the design is unsigned and shows only the d es cription

"Vischers VE delin 1 7 2 0 " . After having corrected the reading o f the

projected s tructure and re-evaluated the arehitectural s ources , the

question emerges again : Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach , the

Father or Josef Emanuel , the Son. The latter r eturned a t that time

to Vienna from his Parisian s tudies and helped his father with designs

for engravings and with the building of Karlskirche in Vienna . It

was Josef Emanuel who brought in from Paris fresh experience and new

ideas (and a manifest inclincation to the French gout) . Although

I cannot present all of the arguments and supporting documentation her e ,

I believe that Josef Emannel rather than Johann B ernhard inserted the

rigid plan o f an apsidal colonnaded altar in the Sallapulka proj ec t .

There are two f ine examples of the apsidal co lonnaded altar from Bavaria .

The most important one is the high altar o f the parish che.r ch of S t .

Peter ' s in Munich construc t ed in 1 7 30-33 af ter protracted planning and

debate by the electoral authorities at the ins tigation of Dean Unertl .

It is represented in an engraving by N ikolaus Stuber j uxtaposed with the

excellent reconstruction as it is today . The apsidal colonnade ac com­

modates a s eated figure o f S t . Peter from the early s ix teenth century

and the Baroq ue sta tues o f four church fathers by Egid Quirin Asaro.

Because of its figural and iconographic program , the altar is always

related to Bernini , but only j us ti f iably s o with reference to his

Cathedra Petri is intended , and no t to his Roman ciborium . There is

amp le documentary evidence that the Munich altar architectur e , purely

columnar as it is , derives from the co lonnaded altar typ e as des cribed

above and not from a columnar baldacchino . The opponent to the intended

adaption of the Berniniesque ciborium-typ e was the Hofbaumeis t er Josef

Effner , who received his training and early exp erience in and around
 152

Paris . With respect to the long drawn-out p lanning for the altar ,

Effner wrote in 1 7 2 6 : "es soUe der Az.tar nicht einer Copia von St .

Ie ters M-rch in Rom gZeichsehen, sondern vieZmehr aZs ein Original

erkennt werden mussen. 1;59 h 1;, ft.d..

••

He c learly at another paradigm,

which, although unknown in Munich at the time, and s ubsequently un-

recognized , actually to dominate the structur e .

The second Bavarian exampl e , stood until World War I I in the

Franciscan church at Ingolstad t . The church ' s architect Johann

40
Michael Fischer also s eems to have des igned t he altar . This high

altar , erected in 1739 and still in s itu compares very well with the

high altar o f the Grand Augustins in Paris . Only the flanking paired

columns to the right and left placed s omewhat obliquely .

Let me digress for a moment to suggest how the apsidal colonnade

was a leitmotif in eighteenth century ceiling painting in Aus tria ,

Bohemia, Moravia , S le s ia and Southern Germany . I will limit my obser-

vations to apsidal co lonnades as an independent and outstanding piece

of arch i tecture , painted s o t to in su as an obvious focus in a ceiling

or vault paint ing . The only exampl e I shall show i s the magnificent

bozzetto by Franz Anton Maulbertsch in the S tadtische Kuns ts ammlungen

41
Augsburg , painted approximately before � 7 7 8 . On both short s ides o f

o f the rectangular boz zetto , Maulber ts ch renders the ap s idal co lonnade

as freestanding altars , each of which represents the altar ante legem

and sub gratia, s erving as s tag e and background for a s c ene from the

Old and New Tes tament . The detail s hown here represents S t . Paul

preaching the Gospel before the altar of the unknown God , an altar

which is constructed as a Palladian apsidal co lonnade . Maulbertsch

 153

had already used the leitmo t i f in his design for the Library o f

Klosterbruck/ Znaim, and already in h i s frescoes o f 1 7 5 2 i n the

42
Piaris tenkirche o f Vienna we detect the two apsidal co lonnades

with s imilar iconographical implications .

Although the current leitmot i f obviously derives f rom the apsidal

colonnaded altar typ e , and from the monumental colonnade in Palladia ' s

church in Venice, i t also incorporates another mo t i f , mostly interpreted

as a "typical Andrea Pozzo" mo t i f . This emerges clearly i n Maulbertsch ' s

paint ing in the beginnings and endings o f the half-circle in the form

o f four columns , organized as quadruples in crosslike pos ition . But the

form does not go back to Pozzo , although he o f ten employed i t , but rath e r

t o an older tradition which we find i n the well-known high altar in

S S . Giovanni e Paolo in Veni c e , certainly in s itu in 674 and maybe

even constructed in 652 according to des igns furnished by Baldassare

43
Longhena. I t goes without saying that Baroque ceiling painting took

advantage of earlier models of the apsidal colonnade s ince the Italian

Cinquecento wallpainting . One final reference is to J . Zucch i ' s well-

known wall decoration in the apse o f S t o . Soirito in S as s i a in Rome ,

and here we turn f rom apsidal co lonnaded altars in Franconia .

III .

We shall close our survey o f apsidal colonnaded altars in Central

Europe with examples from Franconia . Rep licas o f Bernini ' s Roman

baldacchino were built here quite early in important p laces , and were

repeated until the late eighteenth century : the cathedral o f Bamberg

 . . .

154

45
received two such ciboria in about 1 6 5 0 . In the choir o f the

Wurzburg cathedral , the firs t Berniniesque ciborium was constructed in

1 7 0 0 and res tored in a somewhat different form by Balthasar Neumann in

1749. In 1 7 0 0 a c·l barium " in der f o rm d e s Hochaltars i n Sankt Peter

(in Rome ) " was explicity reques ted . The Fulda high altar had also
47
been fashioned as a Berniniesque ciborium in 1710 . One might say

that the teriitories along the Main and the Rhein in Franconia represent

the locus class icus for Berniniesque replicas .

Yet the history o f altar architecturein Franconia cannot be ex­

plained exclus ively on the grounds o f a Bernini trad i tion , as Werner

Hag emann would have us believe in his book o f 1 9 3 7 . There are numerous

and even more, remarkable examp les o f apsidal c olonnaded altars in this

region, particularly beginning in the fourth decade o f the eighteenth

century , among which the latars of Balthasar Neuman in Worms ; Trier ,

48
Bruhl , Bruchsal and Maria Limbach mus t b e taken into account .

The apsidal colonnaded Baroque altar i n Franconia differs s ignificantly

from all the other previously dis cus s e d examples : instead of the half-

dome over the entablature we find a crown compos ed of volutes , follow­

ing Bernini ' s model of the Roman , baldacchino , thus representing a

blending o f Palladian and Berniniesque motifs . The examp le shown here ,

the former high altar by Maximilian von 1-i e lsch in S t . Quentin in Mainz

( 1 7 3 9-40) illustrates this mos t no teworthy fusion of motifs from Bernini

and Palladia quite clearly , especially by comparison with the Roman

Baldacchino as well as with Fischer von Erlach ' s Sallapulka des ign o f
49
1720.
 155

All o f the above mentioned altars by Balthasar Neumann belong to

this syncretistic typ e . This i s true o f the high altar i n the cathe­
50
dral o f Worms , as the numerous designs by the Neumannatelier reveal o

And i t also holds for the design of the high altar of the Wallfahrts-

kirche Maria L imbach b e i Hassfurt , which was not built until after
51
Neumann ' s death in 1 7 5 3 by Johann Peter Wagner . The high altar

of S t . Paulin in Trier , des igned by Neumann in 1 7 4 5 and executed

by Ferdinand Tietz after 1 7 5 5 , expands within the outer walls of the

presbytery like a transparent gridlike structur e , notwiths tanding the

fact that l ike all the o ther altars by Neumann it is an apsidal colon­
52
nad e , s creening the windows of the choir o This s olemn but uns enti-

mental appearance emphas izes a peculiarity of Neumann ' s transparent

altar colonnades . Neumann apparently attempted to expand the flanking

bays o f the colonnade unt il they came into contact with the interior

walls of the church itsel f , thus clos ing the gap b etween the altar as

an isolated p i ece o f columnar architecture and the architecture o f the

building itself . The tendency toward the int�ration o f the altar into
53
the entire Gliederung i s symp tomati c o f Neumann and cannot be explained

by the alleged res emblance of the outer bays to the wings of late Gothic

altarpieces , as Werner Hegemann propo s ed . Quite the reverse . This

apparent attempt must be unders tood as a logical reflex of one of the

mos t no teworthy achievements of Balthasar Neumann , that is his unique

design of the Hofkirche in the Residenz in Wurzburg 1 7 3 2 , which is a

success ful integration o f the apsidal colonnaded altar into the articu-

lation o f wall and space .

 156

The two basic forms o f apsidal Baroque altars are architectural

fragments , taken out o f their original context in order to form altar

s tructures as such which �nction as an optical and iconographic focus ,

as a Blickfeld . Conceiving o f apsidal colonnades as an architecture for

independent altars demanded a kind of thinking characteris t ic of neither

Palladia nor B ernini . It was hardly a c o incidence that Jean Bullant ,

the reputed author o f the open aps e colonnade o f the Montmorency tomb ,

and Charles LeBrun, to whom we may attribute the altar-proj ects in

Pari s , differentiated thems elves as much as from Palladia as from Bernini

in their comprehension of architectural articulation (Gliederung ) . They

were the ones to establish a new tradition in altar-design .

O f course there were open co lonnaded apses in churches before Neu­

mann in both I t aly and Aus tria, including Francesco Borromini ' s proj ect

for Sant Ivo della Sapienza in Rome in which the apse was to b e shaped
54
in the manner of Palladia ' s Il Redentor e . A s imilar idea can be

traced in the oeuvre o f J . Bernhard Fis cher von Erlach , as his g�ound-

p l an for the Viennes e Karlskirche proves in the second book o f the

55
Entwurf einer Historis chen Arthit ektur , 1 7 2 3 . But such proj ects , all

unexecute d , merely repeat the Palladian colonnade of Il Redentore as an

isolated citation instead of creating a new architectural comp o s ition .

In these cases the altar colonnade is ar tistically isolated , although

physically integrate d .

The case i s different for Balthasar Neumann . H e cannot b e credited

with intro ducing the mo t i f and the iconography of the colonnade into

his d es ign for the church in the Wurtzburg res idence . The laurels go

to Maximilian von Welsch and chiefly to Lukas von Hildebrandt for having
 L

157

56
done so. However, i t was Neumann who , after long and thorough

s tudies , was able to integrate the motif into the entire design o f

space and wall articulation, a s i n h i s proj ects f o r the Residence-

church (dated January 2 6 , 1 7 3 2 and preserved in the Kuns tbibliothek

57
Berlin) and the actual form o f the church interior in Wurzburg .

The formulation o f the three vaul ted ro tundas in the second story

is in unbroken harmony with the colonnaded first story . This harmony

.
. not s �p . . 58
�s . . was reta�ne
1y an �' 11 us�on, f or �t d throughout the cons truct�on .

Neumann established the pos i t ion o f the columns in s trict accordance with

the curvature o f the three ro tundas , which he embedded in the s imple

rectangular space des t ined to house the church . He succeeded in br inging

together strange contrasts--the centrally contracted shells of the vaulted

rotundc,s with the Defilee of the undulating co lonnades , which close

the interior in apsidal form but also open it in apsidal form.

It goes without s ay ing that the church in Neumann ' s Wurtzburg

Residence does not spontaneously call to mind Palladia ' s interior for

the I l Redentore . This late Baroque architect in Franconia was no

Palladianis t a ; h e did not imitate the Italian architect o f the Gin-

quecento . However , in one important respect , which I emphas i z e here ,

the two interiors are comp ar able , and are more alike than the often literal

citations of the open columnar screen.

In both the Pallad ian church and the Baroque church in Wurzburg ,

we find the scenographic mo tif o f the transparent colonnade incorporated

into the articulation of space and wall . I t develops from a cons is tent

scheme of Glied erung , making integral part o f a sequence of column �

and culminates in the apse in Venice and at the entrance and

altar in Wurzbur g . I described this s equential articulation in the

following way :
 ' "

158

Zunaahst befindet siah--im Langhaus--die SauZe fest n die Mauer

gebunden, mit den Eakpfei Zern in ein Defi Zee gebraaht, mit einem Minimum

an BewegungsmogZiahkeit . Dann finden wir die HaZbsauZe am Triumphboden

und in der JUppeZvierung mit den IfeiZern, die ubrigens eine Ehtasis

zeigen, Zoakere zusammengruppiert and damit in einer �sition, die

mehr an BewegungsmogZiahkeit iZZusioniert aZs im Langhaus . SahZiess­

Ziah und endZiah sehen wir hinter dem AZtartisah die SauZe voZ Zig

frei gesteZZt und aZs transparente lb Zonnade he�orgehoben und auah

durah die BeZeuahtung verkZart, ein SahZuss--und Zie Zbi Zd, das Ergebnis

einer konsequenten, sahrittweise formierten FoZge (Sequenz) der Wand­

gZiederung. Die 'szenographisahe Wirkung, " die Rudolf Wittkower

59
heraushob beinhaZtet also eine s tufen--und absahnittsweise Befrei­

ung der SauZe von der Wand, derjenigen Stammform aZ Zer GZiederungs

kunste der Renaissanaebaukuns t, der � Z Zadios ganze Liebe galt und

deren Gesahiahte und Wirkungsmog Ziahkeit er unauf/iorZich studierte

60
und ausprobierte .

Returning to Neumann ' s Baroque church interior in Wurzburg , we

are now in a p o s i t ion to acknowledge what Palladio and Neumann hold

in common , despite their fundamental s tylis tic differences , and to

recognize t�at the architect from Franconia b rought a motif of altar

design back to its original architectural meaning .

159
 161

Henry A . Millon

BERNINI IN PIEDMONT

Bernini visited P iedmont twice , and at leas t once he d iscussed

architec ture with Amedee Cas t·e llamont e , the ducal archi tec t . He

certainly sent designs for a remodelling of the ducal castle at

Mirafiori . He may also have sent drawings for the church of the

Corpus Domini in Bra . It will b e argued her e , however , that his mos t

profound and lasting effect in the 1 7 th century o n Piedmontese archi­

tecture was through the assimilation o f aspects o f his achievement

by Guarino Guarini . Guarini ' s architecture is usually associated

with that of Borromini , and rightly s o . But B ernini ' s ideas , partially

absorbed by Guarini while a s tudent in Rome in the 1 640s and more fullv

digested later , became integral to his thinking as he developed in the

late 1660s and 1 6 70 s .

A full discussion o f B ernini ' s influence in Piedmont would necessarily

also dwell on Juvarra ' s achievement there from 1 7 1 4 to 1 73 6 . Scholars

s ignal Jurarra ' s debt to the s tudy of Bernini during his training in
1
Rome as well as his subsequent amalgam of the work of Bernini and Borromini .

Eighteenth-century Turin, the greatest urban and architectural

achievement o f the period in Italy and initially shaped by Juvarra, can

b e seen as an explicit triumph o f Bernini ' s conception of the roman baroque,

i ts most easily transferrable features . In the latter half of the pre­

c eeding century Turin, with the work of Guarino Guarini , also contained

the mos t direct continua tion of Borromini ' s critical ideas , which were

more personal and much less easily transmitted to succeed ing generations .

No o ther city paid such tribute to Rome ; no o ther c i ty s o fully

grasped the urban implications of the work of Bernini , Borromin i ,

 162

Cortona; no o ther city realized more fully the potential that lay

in the achievements of 1 7 th century Rom e .

Bernini ' s indirect influence o n Piedmont in the 1 8 th c entury will

b e s e t aside to focus instead fir s t on his direct involvement in

piedmontese matters and secondly on his effect on Guarini , speci fically

on Guarini ' s development of the designs for the Palazzo Carignano in

Turin .

Bernini ' s firs t brief visit to Piedmont in May 1665 on his way

to Paris from Rome is mentioned by Baldinuc c i who says only "His Most

Serene Highness the Duke of Savoy unc easingly gave the Cavalier pro o f
2
o f his generosity also " --and well h e might , after having spurned

B ernini ' s o f f er to come to Turin in 1 6 6 1 (as we shall see later ) . We

know nothing o f what he may have been shown on tha t first trip . In

any cas e , Bernini is certain to have inquired about progress on the

remodelling o f the Mirafiori Castle for which he had sent d es igns in

1661 .

The abandonment o f that proj ect and concentration on the construction

o f the Venaria Reale prompted Bernini ' s first question (as reported by

Amedee Cas tellamone in his account of a conversation he had with Bernini )

during his visit to the Venaria Reale while en route to Rome from Paris
'
in November 1 6 6 5 . - The accounts by Chantelou and Cas tellamonte depict

vastly different men : Cas t ellamonte ' s B ernini mouths Castellamonte ' s

obs ervations and prepared questions ; Chantelou ' s B ernini is opinionated,

4
condescending , and haughty .
5
A s De Vesme noted , Cas tellamonte has B ernini ask why the duke was

building a new castle in such an unsalubrious s i te when there were so

many o ther unfinished castles around Turin that could be completed less

expensively and made more rapidly available for enjoyment by the Duke .

Castellamonte ' s reponse was that the working o f a monarch ' s mind is un-
 163

fathomab l e but that there were four possible reasons--two appear

sound and two were rationalizations . According to Castellamonte, the

duke was more a t tracted by a building of his own than to one begun by

a predecessor; the duke had castles in the o ther quarters surrounding

Turin but none to the north where the Venaria was situated ; and the

marshy, unsalubrious nature o f the s ite was exaggerated i f not incorr ec t ,

for troublesome areas were rendered innocuous by drainage , fill , and

utilization of the water in the gardens ; f inally , large and small game

abounded in the region. At no point in Castellamont e ' s account does

he reveal why Carlo Emanuele II welched on his invitation to bring

Bernini to Turin in 1661 .

The circumstances surrounding the abandoned commission by Carlo

Emanuele II from Bernini of designs for the Cas tle Mirafiori are

recorded by De Vesme . He notes that in a let ter o f 18 May 1 6 6 1 Carlo

Emanuel e stated his intention to send a large plan o f the Castle Mira­

fieri to the Marchese Solar del Borge , the Savoy Resident in Rom e , in

order to have the opinion o f archi tects in Rome . On 3 October the

plan and elevation o f the facade were sent to Solaro Del Borge in a

large metal tube with a le tter containing a specific request that the

drawings be shown to Bernini and Borromini for their opinion . Further ,

when possib l e , they were to b e asked to redesign the building or design

another in its plac e . On 1 7 October Solaro del Bargo reported that he

had spoken with B ernini but had no t shown the drawings to Borromini .

He wro te that Bernini was the more esteemed , and only af ter seeing wha t

he had done would Solaro del Bargo talk to Borromini about the castle

design. He added that the two were in direct oppo s i tion in everything .
 164

Solaro del Bargo wrote again a week later o n 24 October that

B ernini had promised to make a design for Mirafior i , and again a week

later on 3 1 October wro te that the design had been prepared . He added

that Bernini wished to work on i t further and that the pope wanted to

see i t . Cardinal Azzolini , del Bargo continued , had seen the design

and reported to Solaro del Bargo that there was neither site not

building in Rome that compared with the beauty of the new design . On

7 November Solaro del Bargo reported that the design was finished ,

and he added that Bernini asked the pope for a release to work on the

design. The pope granted his reques t , and commanded Bernini to stop

working on everything els e--including work underway for himself--in order

to serve Carlo Emanuel e . Del Bargo reports Bernini ' s s tatement that

the pope had wished to see and diligently consider the design , had

praised the s i t e , and entirely approved of the concept .

There was apparently a change o f mind shortly a f t er the plans

reached Turin . Were they too grand and cos tly? The Duke ' s desire

to have a Roman architect come to Turin (expressly stated in his letter

of 3 October) and Bernini ' s receipt of a release to go to Turin (as

reported in the l e t ter of 7 November) came to naught . On 23 November

the duke wro te Solaro d el Bargo acknowl edging receipt o f the drawings

for Mirafiori with the accompanying letter from Bernini together with

del Bargo ' s let ter o f 7 November . The duke enclosed a letter for

Bernini and asked that Solaro del Bargo say the l e t t er came with

specific expressions of gratitude to the Cavalier f o r the courteous

action that he took in devoting himself to the emb ellishment of Mira­

fieri . The corr espondance breaks o f f at this point . The le tters from

Bernini to the duke and the duke ' s to him have no t survived . Bernini
 165

was no t invited to come . The designs were not used and are presumed

l o st . The castle was only partially remodelled in succeeding years .

The unexecuted large scheme with great oval forecourt reproduced in

Plates 2 7 / 2 8 of the Thea trum Sabaudiae appears to reflect Cas tella-

mont e ' s ideas perhaps as influenced by contemporary roman models rather

• • 1 6
than B ern�n� s own.

Yet another design , for the Church of the Corpus Domini--now S .

Andrea Apostolo--in Bra (Figs . 1 and 2) , was p erhaps requested from

Bernini a t an unknown date after 1666 . Antonio Mathis , when preparing

7
a book which appeared in 1888 on the sacred architecture of Bra , con-

sulted a manus crip t , now los t , by an author o f unknown origin named

Ferreri . Mathis reports Ferreri ' s s tatement that a t the request o f a

Padre Cattaneo the Church of the Corpus Domini was des igned by Bernini ,

who sent the drawings to Guarini for execution since Guarini had been

retained to direct construction. Later authors have repeated the tale

as told by Mathis . Gaspare Burzio in his notes on Bra published in

8
1924 added that Padre Cattaneo knew Bernini in Rome .

Edoardo Mosca has rec ently called the attribution o f the design

to Bernini into question. Mosca located an account of the church ' s

construction in a manuscript dating from the mid-18th century by a

9
do t tor Vorgalle . I t confirms that Padre Gerolamo Maria Cattaneo spent

t ime in Rom e , but says nothing about B ernini and the design . Vorgalle

s tates s imply that Buarini was asked to design the church . Mosca

believes , therefor e , the church to be by Guarini--which is no help since

the facade and interior resemble the work of neither Bernini nor Guarini .
 166

Burzio, even though prior o f the church by 1907 , as well as Mosca

recently may have overlooked information published by Stefano Racca

10
in a guide to Bra which appeared in 1 90 7 . The guide, although

following Mathis in attributing the design of the building to Bernini ,

outlines the changes and additions made after 1817 when the parish

church o f S . Andrea was transferred to the incomplete Church of the

Corpus Domini . Racca notes that when occupied by the parish o f S .

Andrea the church lacked a facad e , cupola , organ and sacri sty .

Three succesive priors saw to the completion of the building .

Racca· tells the s tory . In 1 83 5 , Prior Amerano installed the organ .

His successor , Prior Biacomo Priotto , built the canon ' s quarters , the

sacristy (with a vault fresco by Paolo Emilio Morgari) , embellished

the altar o f the Madonna del Rosario , the altar , niche and sculpture

(by Roasio di Mondovi) of the Madonna del Carmine , installed new pave-

ment and marble wains coting , and began construction o f the facade

folowing a design by the otherwise unknown architect Martinengo .

During the t enure o f Prio Andrea Fior e , successor to Priotto in 1885 ,

the facade was completed , the choir enlarged , the vaul ting of the nave

and choir painted , the main altar aedicule with alabaster co lumns was

buil t , and the cupola a t the crossing (following des igns by architect

Guiseppe Gal l o ) . was vaulted . Prior Gaspare Burzio , who wro te about

Bra and the church, repaired the organ , constructed the main altar

(from designs by the architect Gallo) which includes the relief of S .

Andrew (executed by Davide Calandra) , began the work o f incrustation

o f the wall (choir completed by 1907 ) , installed the marble al tar rail

and pavement of the choir, and built the campanil e .

 ,
r·

167

What we see o f S . Andrea today i s , theref or e , mostly 1 9 th and

20th c entury cons truction and embel lishment . With the new facad e ,

crossing , dome, and extended choir , what remains o f the 1 7 th century

design is the longitudinal plan and s e c tion o f the nave and , perhap s .

the plan o f the crossing . The single nave is flanked by three rec-

tangular chapel s . Salient corinthian pilas ters of the nave are continued

upward s through ressauts in the entablature to an a t t ic which supports

a ribbed barrel vault with penetrations for the clerestory windows .

The simple s traightforward s cheme with i t modest cro s s ing , common in

Piedmont , does ·no t bear the distinctive s tamp o f a plan by Buarini .

Its simple rectilinearity might s tem from Bernini but there is no known

longi tudinal church by Bernini for comparison . In the absence of

documents and with a miniumuno f s tylis tic evidenc e the question of

authorship of the design must remain open . In any case the plan and

section are unlikely to have had anything to do with Guarini . If

Bernini supplied the plan it was one o f his most conservative and

sober .

Of inter es t , however , i s that Ferreri l inked Bernini and Guarini,

a connec tion that probably began as early as 1 6 6 5 when

both were in Paris as Guarini reached maturity .

David Coffin, Richard Pommer , Alan Boas e , and George Cattaui ,

. . ' s years and building actlvlty

have d iscussed Guarlnl . . . . 11
. Parls
ln

Although the date o f Guarini ' s arrival in Paris is unknown , he···was

there by the summer o f 1 6 6 2 when designs for the new Theatine church
12
o f S . Anne l a Royale must have been prepared . Land f o r the church

had been purchased the previous June with funds from a legacy of

Cardinal Mazarin . The corner s tone o f the church was laid on 28 Novemb er
 168

1 6 6 2 by the Prince d i Conti in the name o f Louis XIV (figs . 3 , and

) 13
4 .

The church was under construc tion when Bernini arrived in Paris

on 2 June 1 6 6 5 but had not yet been vaulted . Bernini visited the
14
s ite on 14 June. Chantelou reports Bernini discussed the building

with several Thea tines. Guarini was probably not among them . The

Theatines ' s tatements may indicate they were concerned that their new

church would appear too low and squat in section like the Gesu rather

than taller like S . Andrea della Val l e , the parent Theatine church in

Rome . Bernini recounted , in his condescending manner , several anecdo tes

to confirm his dictum , that when S . Anne was vaulted i t would appear

larger than i t would while under construction . The discus s ion , questions

and answers seem to indicate Guarini was not present . He is unlikely

to have thought the church sec tion too low . Had he been there he would

probably have said things about Bernini ' s comments that Chantelou would

have reported .

Chantelou records only one other time , three-and-a-half months

later , on 30 September that two unidentified Theatines came to Bernini ' s

15
studio to see the bust o f Louis XIV and the drawings of the Louvre .

Guarini saw the drawings at this time but in any case he would have

seen them in the succeeding year while Ma ttia d e Rossi worked in Paris

on the drawings and models for the Louvre . The sequence Guarini ' s

drawings for the Palazzo Carignano make shows clearly that he had

access to drawings of Louvre I and II as well as the f inal s tages o f

the des ign .

 169

Blunt has said Bernini ' s vis i t exercised no serious influence in

16
F ranee . The effect o f B ernini ' s design on Guarini and consequently

on palace design in Italy can be seen by referring .Guarini ' s earlier

17
design for a palace in Paris (Figs . 5 and 6 ) executed , I believe,

in 1664 (as a design for the Louvre in an exercise parallel to the

des igns commis s ioned for the Louvre from a group o f Italian archi tects

including Rainaldi and Cortona) with Guarini ' s designs for the Palazzo
18
Carignano over ten years later .

David Coffin was the firs t , as far as I know , to call attention

. 19
to the pa1ace d es�gn . H e noted the scale in palmi parigini and

suggested that i t must have been produced while Guarini was in

. . 20
Par1s Coffin, however , thought that the palace suggested know-
21
ledge of B ernini ' s Louvre III/Iv. I t seems more likely that the

walls without pilasters or any vertical articulation o ther than

s tacked windows , as well as the lack o f any reflection on the exterior

of interior curvilinear space with no emphasis on elements of mass ing

in the roo f l ine , indicate that Guarini had not even seen Rainaldi ' s

or Cortona ' s designs that bear giant orders o f columns and pilasters
22
as would B ernini ' s later design . Guarini ' s palace exhibits the

crisp austerity of the late 1 6 th and early 1 7 th centuries and nothing

of the advances made in Rome by Cortona in his des i gns for the

palace in Piazza Colonna o r Bernini ' s for the Palazzo Odescalchi in

23
Piazza S S Apo s tol i . The transformation o f Guarini ' s ideas about

palace design apparently took place after seeing the Louvre des igns

submit ted by the roman architect s .

 (1 ,..� . :.-"

170

Bernini was also asked to submit a design for the Louvre in

1664 . Hautecoeur, Josephson, and Brauer/Wittkower have s tudied the

24
development o f the design. Louvre I was sent from Rome on 24 June

1664 and arrived in Paris on 25 July . Changes were suggested and

a new design was sent from Rome on 1 7 February 1665 and arrived

on 16 March. Bernini was asked to come to Paris to make f inal

changes and while ther e , he produced Louvre III which was engraved
25
by Maro t in 1 66 5 . Louvre III was further modified after Bernini

l e f t Paris on 20 October leaving Mattia de Ros s i in charg e . The

changes resulted in Louvre IV which was completed by May of 1 6 6 7 .

This final version included two model s , one in s tucco and one in

woo d , together with associated drawings . The proj e c t was abandoned

by 30 September 1 66 9 .

Bernini ' s first d es ign o f June 1 6 64 consisted o f an oval concave

central portion that both intersected and was enclosed by a symmetrical

pair of sweeping concave arms , which in their turn were f irmly enclosed

between two flanking rec tangular pavilions (Figs . 7 and 8 ) . The re-

verse curves produced, wi thin a framed spac e , a swelling arcaded central

motif with two arcaded arms that curved outward until they b ecame tangent

to the flanking pavilions .

The plan o f Louvre I derived from the plan o f the Barberini palac e .

B o th palaces have a similar trans i t ion from the central oval to the

rectangular arcade, a rec tangular s tair to the left and a curved stair

to the righ t , a forecourt from a ' U ' shaped plan, and multiple s tories

of arcades set b etween e.nclosed flanking wings .

There are, how-ever, features in Bernini ' s Louvre I not found in

the Barberini plan. Bernini used curved arcades which produced two
 171

trapezoidal shaped service courtyards hidden behind the arcades .

In the oval atrium there were openings at either end o f the long

axis lead ing into two of the largest and mos t important rooms in the

east wing of the Louvre though doorways that enter the rooms at

corners . To reach the piano nobile one passed through the curved

arcade into the oval atrium , out into the rec tangular courtyard

arcad e , along the arcade to one o f the grand s tair s , up the s tair ,

and after s everal antechambers arrived a t the vaul ted , cleres tory­

lighted oval main salon.

The elevation of the east wing of Louvre I consisted of two

floors and an attic articulated by a giant order res ting on a rusti­

cated bas e . The walls o f the oval grand salon pro j e c t ed above the

general roof level and were pierced by circular openings giving

clerestory light . The central oval and the convex-concave arcade

formed a compo sition which had considerable vigor and breadth. The

giant order was applied b o th to a curved , open, vaul ted , arcaded

sys tem and to a fla t , planar , clo sed , trabeated system in the flanking

wings . At the corner where the two j o ined there was a folded pilaster

tha t , on one side enclosed the o p en arcuated loggia , and on the other ,

enclosed the trabeated closed f lanking wing .

With respe c t to Louvre I , Bernini ' s Louvre II (Fig . 9 ) added a

basement s tory , dis carded the clerestory-lit oval salon , re tained the

concave central portion, and reduced the open arcaded portion to nine

bays in the center . No plan o f the palace survives and i t i s , therefor e ,

impo s s ib l e to describe changes in the circulation pattern o r space

sequences within the building .

 172

When Bernini made the curve o f the central section and the wings

merge into one, he altered the balance b etween the open arcaded portion

and the enc losed wings of Louvre I and placed greater drama tic emphasis

on the nine open bays in the center which deemphasized the separation

of the wings . Louvre II is a more emphatically unified scheme .

Bernini ' s third and fourth designs (Figs . 1 0 and 1 1 ) mark a

radical departure from the previous curvilinear solutions . In Louvre

III he retained the basement and two s tory scheme , the giant order ,

the use o f pilasters and half-columns , and the uniform cornice l ine ,

but discarded the curved central portion, the circular s tair , and the

oval room . All curved elements were eliminated .

By lenghtening the atrium toward S t . Germain d e l ' Auxerro i s ,

Bernini increased the size o f the palace and gained room for two

small courtyards larger than those in Louvre I . I t was these small

courtyards that Francois Mansart praised for they made it p o s s ible

to remove the service entrances of the bouche and goblet from the

main courtyard (Chantelou, p p . 92-93 ) . The small courtyards also

enabled him to light the two main s tairs at the eas t .

Louvre III was also criticized for the of t-mentioned oversights

of placing the king ' s apartment in the noisy new wing , for using

arcades in a northern climate , and for putting s taircases in the four

26
corners o f the courtyard . I n addition, the increased size o f the

atrium meant a greater dis tance from the main entrance to the main

s tair .

The main facade o f Louvre III was composed of an el even-bay central

sec tion flanked on either side by a four-bay unit set back one bay from
 173

the center s e c tion. A four-bay unit at either end projected forward

from the s e t-back about one-half bay . Bernini made the s trong center

and two flanking pavilions into a simple triadic composi tion . The

heirarchic division of the compo si tion was reflected in the use o f

the order s . The least important and m o s t distant set-back had no

pilas ters ; the pavilions , of secondary importanc e , had pilasters ;

and the salient center section had half-round columns .

The rhythm also changed toward the center o f the composition.

Half-columns were placed b et;.•een every o ther window for the first

four bays of the central sec tion . Moving toward the center there

was a half-column between each window . Toward the center, the fre-

quency increased and the relief was greater . In Louvre III there

was correspondence between the location of the various units in

plan, their functioning '"ithin the building , and the extent of

their architectural emb ellishmen t . The third (and fourth with minor

changes ) solution lost some of the vigor and expansiveness of the

previous two proj ects , but gained much in dignity and grandeur .

The history o f Bernini ' s designs and the causes for eventual

rej ection have no bearing on the rela tion between the Louvre des igns
27
. . , s d eslgns
and Guarlnl . fo r th e c arlgnano
. . More pertinent is a

comparison of the formal solutions o f f ered by Bernini , and the bear­

28
ing they had on Guarini ' s designs .

Guarini ' s Carignano I (Fig . 1 2 ) , d es i gned in 1 6 7 9 , contained

parts taken from Bernini ' s Louvre I and I I but was basically inspired

Louvre I I I . In plan the Bernini facade was divided into three parts--

two four-bay elements on ei ther side o f the center eleven-bay uni t .

 174

Guarini ' s plan was divided into three parts with two four-bay elements

on either side of the center three-bay uni t . The center unit in Cari­

gnano I was , naturally , much smaller since the frontage was only 60%
29
that of the Louvre .

Bernini had a steppe &forward center section that contained half­

round columns . The adj acent s tepped-back portion had no columns or

pilasters , while the flanking wings ( s t epped forward slightly) had

only pilasters . In Carignano Guarini ' s center section was made salient

by the use of full-round paired columns . As in Louvre III the stepped

back portion had no architec tural memb ering while the flanking wings

( s tepped forward slightly) had only pilas ter s . The bas i c ordering

of the facade was c l early derived from Louvre I .

The direction of the long axis o f the atrium in Bernini ' s Louvre III

found a parallel in Carignano I . Both atria were three bays wide and

both utilized paired columns . Bernini ' s entrance consisted o f three

30
arched openings with the center opening a b i t wider than the others .

In Carignano I Guarini had only one entranc e but the four pairs of

frees tanding columns were grouped to make the center bay the widest of

the three .

For symmetry Bernini repeated , in Louvre III , in the old west win g ,

the three-bay atrium of the new eas t wing . Guarini also repeated , in

a similar manner , his three-bay atrium at the rear o f the palace which ,

in the Carignano , was to be an entrance pavilion to a garden.

Guarini also went to Louvre I and II for the articulation of the

flanking pavilions . Bernini ' s s cheme consisted of a unit o f four bays

enclosed at either corner by a single pilas t er . Guarini ' s Carignano I

 175

shows an identical arrangement . The stairs also show a conscious

derivation from Louvre I and, through Louvre I , the Palazzo Barberini .

In all three palaces (Carignano I , Louvre I and the Barberini) there

were two main s tairs o f different shapes on e ither side o f the main

entrance atrium. In the Barberini and Louvre I the rec tangular

(or square) s tair was to the left upon entering the circular (or oval)

stair was to the right . Guarini keeps the configuration but reverses

the position. Even though his oval s tair i s to the left its parentage

. unm�sta
. 31
�s kabl e .

The location o f the main stairs in Carignano I relied heavily

on French precedent . The old Louvre , as well as many other French

examples ( Charleval , 1 5 7 3 , Vaux-le-Vicomte 1 65 7 -1 6 6 1 , etc) , had stairs

leading off small vestibules at either side of the atrium or entrance

32
salon. The French plan made f o r a convenient circulation pattern

that could , w i th proper car e , be turned into a more gracious and

impr essive entrance sys tem than could I talian models prior to Guarini .

When Guarini made the main s tairs immediate access ible on ei ther side

of the atrium he paid homage to a French development .

From the outset Guarini unequivo cally rej ected the arcaded solution

for the cour tyard . He may have been aware o f the sound arguments made

by French critics against the use of arcades in cold c l imates .

The main princely apar tments were placed in the wings to the north

and south on s i d e streets instead of on the main piazza . Guarini may

have recognized the criticism Bernini ' s Louvre received for having the

king ' s apartments facing the noisy public square .

In Carignano I I (Fig . 1 3) Guar ini seemed to turn decisively towards

a solution including curved forms and leaned more heavily on Louvre I

and I I than on Louvre I I I . The first and m o s t obvious borrowing was the
 176

central oval a trium and grand salon. Both Bernini and Guarini had

oval salons oriented in the same manner . The atrium in Carignano I I

. shows paired columns s tanding j u s t clear of the atrium wall . The

paired columns , and the relation o f the columns to wall , were s imi­

liar to the paired columns Bernini used in the atrium o f Louvre I .

Bernini ' s j uxtaposition o f ves tibule and oval with resul tant corner

entrance was repeated, in Guarini ' s solution, in the piano nob ile .

Wha t had been for Guarini , in Carignano I , a rigidly rec tangular

facade configuration was modified , in Carignano I I , by the suggested

presence of the atrium oval seen in the convex curved section at

the center of the facad e . Both the concept and the convex curve were

in Bernini ' s Louvre I .

The articulation o f the facade o f the flanking wings was the

same in Carignano II as in Carignano I . Guarini retained the pilasters

a t the corners of the flanking wings and fol lowed Bernini ' s scheme o f

Louvre I and II .

There are s i gnificant differences between Louvre I and Carignano

II. For Guarini the oval shape dominates in plan a s well a s in eleva tion .

The entire center section was moulded to fit the oval atr ium and the

external shape o f the building reflected the internal configuration

( though not so completely as it was to do later ) . The oval was accepted

and integrated into the plan and the overall formal solution . Guarini

exploited the consequences o f the use o f an oval form to a greater degree

than did Bernini .

Bernini utilized the oval splendidly in the east (main) elevation .

The oval was in fact the raison d ' etre for the entire elevation . In
 177

plan, however , Bernini did not express the wes tern halls o f the oval

in his grand overall scheme . In Louvre I , on the west , the oval led

through a series o f parallel passageways (unrelated to the geometry

o f the oval ) , to the rec tangular cour t . The court did not reflect

the grand main �e�ure of the whole wing .

Secondly , on the long axis o f the atrium , Guarini placed his

two main stairs s o that a logical sequence of spaces could b e followed .

One entered on the short axi s , left on the long axi s , went direc tly

up the fir s t flight o f the main stairs . In contra s t , Bernini ' s ground

floor plan directed one into the oval on the short axi s , out again

on the short axis (or one o f the parallel passageway s ) , down the

arcaded corridor to the main stair . The long axis of the oval led

only into the ground floor apartments . The visual climax suggested

by the oval form as seen in Bernini ' s elevation was not realized at

the ground floor and is only fully appreciated upon reaching the

main salon on the piano nobile .

As Guarini approached a specific solution to the requirements of

the Caprignano , he moved more and more away from the precedents of

the Louvre . In Carignano I I I (Fi g . 1 4 ) by moving the oval atrium

to the courtyard side and by bringing the stair to the front , he

repeated B ernini ' s use of an exterior form surrounding one-half of

the oval . But Guarini ' s insertion o f the two ves tibules leading to

the main s tairs was original .

As a consequence o f the new s tair-oval relation, virtually the

entire central portion of the facade b e tween the two flanking wings

became active and non-rectilinear . The fluid central portion was

 178

related to both Louvre I and II o f Bernini , but Guarini ' s Carignano

III seems primarily to record his struggle to integrate the s tairs ,

oval and subsidiary spaces into harmonious unit .

In the flanking pavilions o f Carignano III Guarini borrowed

a treatment used By Bernini in the flanking wings o f Louvre III .

The four windows (in b o th Carignano III and IV) are grouped in a

1-2-1 pat t ern separated by single pilasters in a manner identical

to Bernini ' s .

Guarini ' s Carignano III solution was quite d i fferent from

Bernini ' s Louvre I and II in the predominant role g iven to the

s tairs ( through their form) and in the role played by the s tairs in

determining the overall form of the building . Here Guarini b egan

to explo i t an architec tural feature which , when integrated into

the whole design, became one of the major sources for the composi­

tion of the facad e . The smaller size o f Carignano meant that the

stairs would of necessity play a larger ro l e , but it was Guarini ' s

choice that made them become a dominant , rather than s econdary

visual elemen t G

In Carignano I v Guarini ' s solution (Figs . 1 5 , 1 6 , 1 7 and 1 8 )

presents , in plan , even greater affinities to Louvre I than d id

Darignano III . Bernini ' s system of a central concave portion that

both intersected and was enclosed by two sweeping concave arms which

wer e , in their turn , held firm by two flanking rec tangular pavilions

was repeated , with some variations , in Guarini ' s facade where two

continuous reverse curves , which almos t j o ined at the entranc e , produced

a continuously curved central portion composed of a convex center baying

out from a tremendous concavity between the two flanking wings .

 179

Bernini ' s plan showed the curved portions to be separate and inter-

s e c ting . Guarini ' s plan showed a continuous curve without interrup-

tion tha t , as i t flowed , changed from convex to concave .

In elevation the effect of the continuous curve would have been

markedly different from Bernini ' s elevation . In Louvre I Bernini

had an elevation tha t , in i t s effor t to separate each element dis tinc tly ,

had clearly defined j unctures ( oval to arcade--arcade to wings) and

marked differentiations b e tween arcuated and trabeated sys tems .

Guarini ' s facade treated the entire center section a s a unit and ,

by unifying i t , produced a fluidity o f mass and continuity of overall

form rather than Bernini ' s discrete but related elements .

The pilasters Guarini employed in the curved central portion

were doubled and the rhythm quickened as the fracture approached .

Bernini had also employed a similar quickening rhythm in the central

portion of Louvre III in which the center three entrance bays each

had half-round columns on either s ide o f the windows . The remainder

o f the central sec tion had half-round columns between every o ther

. d ow . 33
w1n

In Louvre III Bernini used solemn , grand , half-co lumns in a

measured sequence that doubled towards the entrance , while in Carignano

IV Guarini used pilasters to s tabilize a fluid mass and doubled them

( almos t covering the wall) toward the entranc e . Bernini produced the

grand , dignified , and solemn--Guarini the massive , vigorous , and force-

ful solution .

In Carignano as finally constructed , the oval salon proj ected

upward through the main roof system and had oval windows l i ghting the
 180

34
salon from above . Since the salon i s above the oval atrium , the

raised portion with oval windows proj ecting above the roof is also

s e t back from the palace facade--j u s t as Bernini ' s clerestory oval

salon was s e t back from the facade . The derivation o f Carignano

IV from the Louvre I i s obvious . The func tion i s the same , but

Guarini ' s handling of the form in the courtyard is original and

shows an awareness of the architectural implications of the oval form

for which there s e ems to b e no precedent in Bernini . Buarini , while

designing the Palazzo Carignano , both knew and leaned very h eavily
35
upon Bernini ' s designs for the Louvre . The end resul t , al though

directed toward d ifferent goals and achieved by different means ,

.
owes a pr1mary . . . 36
d eb t to B ern1n1

In discussing Bernini ' s des igns for the Louvre , the l iterature
37
c i tes antecedents in the plan o f the Palazzo Barberini , the facade
38 39
of S . M . della Pace , Cortona ' s design for the Piazza Colonna ,
40
Michelangelo ' s and Palladia ' s giant order , and Bernini ' s own work
41
on the Palazzo Odescalchi . These antecedents may well have played

a role in det ermining aspects o f the design in i t s various s tages .

While the sources ci ted may not yet have been definitively examined ,

I would like to draw at tention briefly to the Palazzo Maiore , the

Palace o f the Caesars , as an additional potential antecedent that

might help to explain the fascination the Louvre designs had for

Guarni .

The Palatine Palace and Hippodrome and the palace and Hippodrome

a t Constantinople may have been sources o f inspiration for the design

of the Palazzo Pamphili on Piazza Navona as suggested by R . Preimes-

42
berger . Bramante ' s intention t o replicate the Palatine in the
 181

43
cortile and palace a t the Vatican has also been noted . Maurizio

and Marcello Fagiolo have suggested that the precedents Bernini had

in mind when designing the Louvre may have been the Tabularium and

the Colos seum.

Beginning in the 1 5 th century , recons tructions of the imperial

palace as pres erved in drawings and prints chronicle changing opinion

and developing knowledg e . Reconstructed plans were less frequent

than bird ' s-eye views of the Palatine . Reconstructions o f portions

or of the entire Palatine complex contain elements that suggest

parallels with aspects of Bernini ' s four des igns for the Louvre .

An early , and as far as I know, unique representation o f the

Palatine (Palazzo Maiore) from the southwes t by Cronaca may b e

reflected in Bernini ' s Louvre I . It shows a s tructure with , at

the upper level , a convex , two-story central section crowned by a

buttres s ed dome , drum and lantern, all pro j ec ting from a larger

oval concave central portion (presumably the south exedra) which

terminated in two rectilinear pavilions topped by s egmented pedi-

44
ments . Each level is articulated b y paired o r single pilasters .

The two-s tory curved sections o f this fanciful reconstruction rest

o n a rectilinear lower story and plain base of unc ertain plan with

a maj or axial entrance portico at the lower level . No other recon-

s truction shows a convex element on the south , but it does reappear

on b o th the east and wes t elevations o f the palace in B ianchini ' s

restoration as the framed reverse o f a pair o f lateral hemicycles

45
(Fi g . 1 9 ) .

All reconstructions of the Palatine show the exedra on the

south , and some suggest the concave plan o f Bernini ' s Louvre II .
 I . .-
' .

182

46
Duperac , in one o f his reconstructions in 1 57 3 , shows the exedra

facing a three s tory s tructure which is higher than the exedra ,

making the who l e look rather like a theat r e . Many recons truc tions ,
47
most o f which were dependent on that by 0 . Panvinio (Fig. 2 0 ) , whom
48
H. Zerner reports used plates prepared by Dupera c , show a building

the length o f the Circus Maximum divided in a number o f sections

with the exedra facing out on the circus above one or two level s .

The exedra is o ften flanked by pavilions the height o f the exedra

. 49
o r h� gh er .

A third version appears to originate with the view published

50
in 1 5 79 by Mario Cartaro , where the entire length o f the palace

along the side of the Circus Maximus is shown three s tories high

with higher , salient pavilions at the ends and in the center . S tairs

to either side rise to the central landing at the first level . The

exedra is depicted as a theatre closed at i t s end as in the early

Panvinio and Duperac representations . Louvre III and IV may possibly

relate to these recons truc tions . The various editions of Lauro

(Fig . 2 1 ) and Filippo d e Ros s i follow Carto to ' s rendering while

51
adding ano ther matching hippodrome in the wes t half o f the palac e .
52
The plan o f the palatine i n L . Bufalini ' s map o f Rome of 1 55 1
53
shows only grids of interse c ting walls and omits the exedra . Pan-

vinio ' s plan (Fig . 22) shows a hemicycle to the eas t o f the hippodrome

and a large oval court to the wes t . Canina in 1 8 5 0 includes a large

54
h emlcyc
. 1 e on th e east s �" d e o f t h e h �ppo
" d rome b ut none on the wes t .

Earlier representations , bird ' s eye views , show a hemicycle t o the west

of the palac e .
 183

In these many representations up to the time Bernini began

to work on the designs of the Louvre , the Palatine Palace complex

seems to have been multi-level , with salient pavilions , a large

exedra roughly in the center of the complex , hemi cycles (which

when seen from the outside or rear were convex structures) , in

plan extended in depth to the north forming one or more courtyards ,

containing one or more hippodrome-shaped s t ru c tures , a central plan

temple with surrounding colonnade (or pilaster s ) , and of ten with

a balustrade above the main cornice crowned with sculpted figures

and trophies . Some o f these elements appear in the designs for

the Louvre and may have contributed to Bernini ' s conception as i t

evolved in 1 66 4- 1 66 5 .

Bernini ' s ideas for the Louvre may have influenced Francesco

B ianchini ' s reconstructions of the Palatine . As published in

1 7 3 8 , the elevations o f the south and east flanks o f the Palatine

palace (Figs . 23 and 1 9 ) appear to be related to Bernini ' s designs

55
f o r the Louvr e . The tripartite compo s ti on , rusticated base

crowning balustrade and figures pay homage to Bernini ' s Louvre III/IV.

The eas t elevation--with i t s central section a t the top of the stairs

enclosing a convex central pavilion of two s tories resting on a two

s tory base--recalls somewhat Bernini ' s Louvre I , while the elevation

toward the Circus Maximus with its two s tory concave central s ec tion

may be related to Louvre I I . The plan o f the Palatine by B ianchini

(Fig . 2 4 ) seems to owe something to the plans for Louvre I I I / IV (Fig .

56
11) . Bianchini apparently knew of these designs as well as earlier

less accomplished reconstructions of the Palatine . A more detailed

 /

184

study o f reconstructions o f the Palatine and o ther buildings of

ancient Rome in the 1 7 th century and comparison with Bernini ' s

palace designs would mos t likely be fruitful .

Guarini perhaps understood that B ernini , when des igning the

main urban palace for the greatest monarch in Europe , drew his

assoc iations at least partially from contemporary conceptions of

the original s tate o f the palace of the greatest rulers of antiquity .

 _, \,

185

NOTES

1
R. Wittkower, Art and Architecture in It aly , 1600-1 7 50 , 3rd ed . ,

New York, 1980 , 564 , n . 4 7 ; P . Portoghes i , Roma Barocca , Rome , 1966 ,

4 1 8 ; C . Brandi , S truttura e Architettura, Torino , 1 9 6 7 , 168-184 ;

S . Boscarino , Juvarra archit etto , Rome , 1 9 7 3 , 45-5 1 . H . Millon, "The

Antamoro chapel in S . Girolamo della Carit� in Rome : Drawings by

Juvarra and an Unknown Draftsman , " in H . Millon , ed . , S tudies in

Italian Art and Architecture 15th through 18th centuries , Rome/Cam­

bridg e , Mass . , 1 9 8 0 , 274-2 7 5 .

2
F . Baldinucci , The Life o f Bernini , translated from the It alian

by Catherine Enggass , with a Foreward by Robert Enggass , University

Park, P a . /Londo n , 1 9 6 6 , 5 2 . The text in Italian is as fo llows :

"L 'Altezza Serenis sima del Duca di Savoia , non las c id di fare anch

' essa godere al Cavaliere effetti di sua liberalita , e tali appunto ,

quali si convenivano alla grandezza dell ' animo suo , " Vita del Cavaliere

Gio . Lorenzo Bernino • . • , Florence , 1 6 8 2 , 4 6 .

3
A d i Cast ellamonte, Venaria Reale Palazzo d i P iacere e d i Caccia

ideate dall ' Altezza Reale di Carlo Emanuel II Duca di Savoia Re di Cipro ,

disegnato et descritto dal Conte Amedee di Cast ellamonte l ' anno 1 6 7 2 ,

Turin , 1674 , 1-4.

4
P . de Fr�r t , S ieur de Chantelou, Journal du voyage du Cavalier

Bernini en France , ed . L . Lalanne , Paris , 1885 , passim.

5
A . Baudi de Vesime , S chede Vessime , 3 vo1s . , Turin , 19 63-1 9 68 ,

val. I , 125- 6 .

6
Theatrum S tatum Regiae Celsi tudinis Sabaudiae Ducis , Ams ter dam ,

( J . B1aeu) , 1682 and C . M. Audibert i , Regiae vi11ae poetice des criptae ,

 ,,

186

Turin , 1 7 1 1 , opposite 1 0 6 .

7
A . Mathis , S toria dei monumenti sacri e delle famiglie di Bra ,

Alba , 1888 , 5 3 .

8
G . Burzio , Appu nti di s toria braidese , Alba , 1 924 , 64 .

9
E . Mo s c a , "No ta sui preteso dis egno del Bernini della chiesa

di S . Andrea Apostolo in Bra , " Boll. s o c . per s tudi S t o r . archeol . ar t .

Prov. Cuneo, 7 3 : 1 9 7 5 ] , 81-8 2 . The Vorgalle manus crip t in the Museo

di storia e d ' arte di Bra, discussed by Mosca in his Cronache braidesi

del ' 70 0 , Turin, 1 9 7 3 , is entitled Teatro historico di tragiche scene,

antiche , e moderne , strane, e curios e , successe in particolar e , nel

dominic , del real sovrano di S avoia , part terza , libro XII .

10
S . Racca, Guida di Bra, 1907 , 91-95 .

11
D . Coffin, "Padre Guarino Guarini in Paris , " JSAH XV [May 1 9 5 6 ]

3-11 ; R. Pommer , Eighteenth-Century Architecture in P iedmont--The Open

Structures o f Juvarra , Alfieri, and Vittone, New York, 1 9 6 7 , 8 and

n . 26 ; A . Boas e , "Sant 'Anna Reale , " in V . Viale (ed . ) , Guarino Guarini

e l ' internazionalitA del Barocco , 2 vols . , Turin, 1 9 7 0 , I , 345-358 ;

G . Cattaui , "Guarini e la France , " vo l . II , 511-521 .

12
Guarini may ha•;e been in Paris in 1 6 6 1 . Raymond Darricau, "Les

Clercs R�guliers Th�atins � Paris , Sainte Anne la Royale ( 1 6 64-1793 ) ,

. / \
II : La mort du Cardinal Mazarin d ' apres son confess eur theatin le Pere

Angelo Bissare ( 1661) , " Regnum Dei , X [ 19 5 5 ] , 120-121 , transcribes

an account of a meeting with Cardinal Mazarin which includes a reference

 187

to D . Camillo , a Theatine who j o ined padre Bissaro in opposing Col-

bert ' s view that the Theatine Convent should be attached to the

college that Mazarin wanted buil t . Guarini ' s given name was Camillo .

There is no available list of the Theatines in Paris in 1661 . Guarini

may have been in Paris as early as 1 661 . I f s o , his presence in Modena

in the summer o f 1 6 6 2 presupposes a return trip . Hilary Ballon �ndly

pointed out the article by Darricau .

13
coffin cites A . M. Le Fevre (Calendrier historigue et chronologiqu�

de l ' eglise de Paris , Paris , 1 94 7 , 295-296) for the date of the corner-

stone ceremony but also mentions � . 1 7 ) that the foundation s tone had

been laid three we eks earlier by the Bishop o f Lucon (J . B . M . Jaillo t ,

�
Recherches critiques, historigues et topographigues sur la ville de

Paris , depuis ses commencemens connus j usgJ � present , Paris , 1 7 7 5 , V , 74 .

14
Chantelou , 3 3 .

15
Chantelou, 1 9 3 .

16
A . Blun t , Art and Architecture in Fran c e , 1500-1700 , 2nd ed . ,

Baltimore , 1 9 7 0 , 2 7 6 , n . 4 .

17
Plates 2 3 and 2 4 from G . Guarini , Architettura Civile , Turin ,

1737 .

18
Plate 31 i n Guarini ' s Archi tettura Civile shows the arcade o f the

Palazzo Carignano in partial plan/elevation. Plate 32 shows the court-

yard in partial plan/section/ elevation . The plates were prepared from

 188

drawings done in 1 6 7 9 . (See H . Millon, The Palazzo Carignano in

Turin , ) dissertation Harvard University , 1964 , I , 103) .

19
D . Coffin, "Padre Guarino . "

20
Inscribed on the plan at the top of the shee t . As far as I know

there is no Paris ian Palma . The other sheet with the elevation con-

tains two s c ales on the right , top and bottom, one inscribed "Pd

Parigi 60 , " the other "Pi Parigi 60 , " intended to indicate , I believe ,

Piedi di Parigi. They also measure about one-half of the indicated

scale of the plan inscribed "P almi Parigini 120 . " It is likely the

word "Palmi" on the plan is an erro r . It i s worth noting , however ,

that the subdivisions in all three scales do not seem to agree with

the units indicated.

21
n . Coffin , "Padre Guarino , fl 1 0 .

22
For designs by I t alian architects o ther than Bernini see P .

Portoghes i , "Gli architetti italiani p er il Louvre , " Saggi di S toria

del l ' architet tura , Rome, 1961 , 243-68 and K. Noehles , "Die Louvre--

Projekte von Pietro da Cortona und Carlo Rainaldi , " Zeitschrift fur

Kuns tgeschichte, �XX [ 1 9 61 ] , 40-74 .

23
For Cortona ' s designs for the Chigi Palace in Piazza Colonna see

Noehles , "Die Louvre , " The Palazzo Chigi-Odescalchi by Bernini is dis-

cussed and reproduced in R. Wit tkower , Art and Architecture in Italy

1 600-17 5 0 , 3rd ed . , New York, 1980 , 1 86-7 .

?4
- Hautecoeur , Le Louvre et les Tuileries de Louis XIV , Paris , 19 2 7 ;

R . Josephson, "Les maquettes du Bernini pour le Louvre , " GBA , XVII 1::
( 1 928) , 77-9 2 ; H . Brauer and R . Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen des Gianlorenzo
189
Bernini , Berlin, 1 93 1 , 1 2 9 - 1 33 (the most detailed analysis o f the four

versions . ) For documentation see L . Miro t , ''Le Bernini en Franc e , " Memo ires

de la Societe de L ' histoire de Paris et de L ' Isle de France , XXXI ( 1 904) ,

1 6 1-275 ; E . Esmonin, "-Le Bernini et la Construc tion du Louvre , " Bulletin de

la Societe de l ' Ar t Francais , 1 9 1 1 , 3 1 .

25
Reproduced in J . F . Blondel, L ' Architecture Franco is e , Paris ,

1756 , IV, Book VI , no . 1 , plan (p l . 3) , east elevation (pl . 8) ,

south elevation ( p l . 1 2 ) , west elevation (Pl . 15) , section (p l . 19) .

26
The criticisms are summarized in R. Wittkower , Art and Archi-

tecture in I taly 1600-17 50, New York, 1 9 3 8 , 188-189 . For the opposite

view, i . e . that the French did not understand the inherent quality

of Bernini ' s d es ign , see R . Pane, Bernini architetto, Venic e , 1 95 3 ,

91-1 1 0 .

27
For an analysis o f the evo lution o f Bernini ' s four designs for

the Louvre s ee Brauer/Wittkower, Die Zeichnungen, 129-1 3 3 .

28
For a more extended analysis of the plans for the Carignano ,

and the relationship between the designs for the Louvre and Carignano ,

see H . Millon, Palazzo Carignano , I , 1 2 5-14 7 .

29
rhe pres ent facade o f the Palazzo Carignano measure approximately

2 6 2 feet ( c . 80 m . ) in width. The plans for Louvre III show a facade

about 430 feet ( c . 131 m . ) in width.

30
The plan , however , as engraved in J . F . Blondel , Architecture

Francoi s e , P aris , 1 7 5 6 , val IV, Book V , No . 1 , p l . 8 , does not dis-

tinguish any difference in width . The elevation drawing from the

Tessin collection (Fig . 10) shows the wider and taller central arch.
 . . �

190

3
�. Passanti, Architet tura in P iemonte , Turin , 194 5 , 1 8 2 ,

felt that Guarini was merely trying out both s tairs t o s e e what

they looked l ike and, if built , would have chosen one or the o ther .

While Guarini may have intended to s elect only one o f the s tairs ,

a sequence o f palace designs containing s tairs with both shapes

suggests o therwis e .

32
S ee A . Blunt , Art and Architecture in France, 1500-1 700 , London ,

195 3 . When only one grand s tair was used it was usually placed 1)

to one side immediately off the central vestibule (Ho tel de Beauvais

1 6 5 2-5 5 , Hotel du Jars , 1648 , et c . ) ; 2 ) on the main axis entered

from the main court (Ho tel Lamber t , 1 64 2 , Palais du Luxewbourg , et c . ) ;

or 3 ) to one side, but entered directly from the main courtyard

(Hotel de la Vrilli�re , 1635 , Hotel de Liancour t , 1623 , Hotel de

Bretonvillier s , 1637-4 3 , etc . ) . All examp les cited are in Paris .

33
The s imilarity between the two palaces with respect to increased

relief and quickened rhythm towards the center is cited because Bernini

did not utilize alterations of this kind in Louvre I , Louvre I I , Palazzo

Montecitorio , Palazzo Chigi-Qdescalchi , or in the comp lex at Ariccia .

Guarini used thes e two changes only in Carignano IV and not in the

Castello at Racconig i , the Castello at Govone , nor in the Paris Palace .

34
rhe oval clerestory projec ting above the roof line does not appear

in any of Guarini ' s drawings . For a discuss ion o f the cleres tory and

the date o f its construction see Millon , Palazzo Carignano , I , 153-1 5 6 .

35_
Ln elevation, however , Guarini ' s palace does not bear much relation

to 3ernini ' s proj ects for the Louvre . Bernini , in Louvre I , had two

stories and attic on a custicated bas e . I n Louvre I I and Louvre III

Bernini had two main stories and attic on top of a basement st ory which
 191

rested on a rusticated bas e . Maro t ' s engravings showed , on the

flanks , a rusticated base , a basement s tory , a piano nobile with

mezzanine , and an upper floor. In all the s chemes the p iano nobile

and upper floor act as a unit and were of s uch dimensions that they

completely dominated a basement floor that was intended to b e sub­

sidiary.

Guarini divided the Palazzo Carignano into a lower and an upper

floo r , each articulated by pilasters . The bwer sec tion contained

a basement story plus a mezzanine while the upper section contained

a piano nobil e , mezzaninaand top floo r . The two floors are nearly

the same height . The ratio is roughly two to three while Bernini ' s

Louvre III has a ratio o f floor heights o f roughly one to two . The

height o f the Louvre from the top o f the rusticated base to the top

o f the main cornice was c . 9 6 . feet . The Carignano from the ground

to the top o f the main cornice is approximately 7 6 feet .

36
A full account of influences absorbed by Guarini and reflected

in his designs for the Carignano would necessarily include discuss ion

of the work o f Borromini and P ietro da Cortona . See Millon, Palazzo

Carignano , 3 0 6- 3 7 3 .

37
R. Pane, Bernini architetto , Venic e , 1 9 5 3 , 95 ; Millon, Palazzo

Carignano , 1 2 6 ; Brauer/Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen , 133 ; R. Wittkower ,

Art and Architecture, 123 also cites Bernini ' s following in the facade

11
o f Louvre I 11 the theme of the Palazzo Barberini .

38
R. Wittkower , Art and Architectur e , 123 ; Brauer/Wit tkower , Die

Zeichnungen , 133 .
 192

39
R. Wittkower , Art and Architecture, 1 2 3 ; BraueriWittkowe r ,

Die Zeichnungen, 1 3 3 ; R. Pane, Bernin i , 9 5 ; M. and M. Fagiolo dell '

Arco , Bernin i , Rome, 1967 , 1 6 2 (both with a g eneral reference to

Cortona) .

40
Brauer/Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen , 1 3 3 .

41
H . Hibbard , Bernini , Baltimore , 1965 , 180 ; Wit tkower , Art and

Architecture, 1 2 3 .

42
"Obeliscus Pamphilius : Beitrage zu Vorgeschichte und Ikono-

graphie des Viers tromebrunnens auf Piazza Navona , " Miinchner Jahr­

buch der Bildenden Kuns t , XXV [ 1 9 74 ] , 88 . Preimesberger also cites

the Pamphili claim to imp erial ancestry on 84-5 , and in "Pontifex

Romanus per Aeneam Praesignatus : Die Galleria Pamphily und ihre

Fres ken , " R'6mishes Jahrbuch fur Kuns tgeschichte, XVI [ 1 9 7 6 ] , 23 1 .

43
J . S . Ackerman , "The Belvedere as a Classical Villa , " Journal

of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes , XIV , [1951 ] , 88 and The

Cortile del Belvedere , Vatican, 1954 , 135-8 . Ackerman cites among

previous authors making the connection C . Elling , Villa Pia in

Vaticano et Renaissance-anlaeg og dets Forhold til Antiken , Copen­

hagen, 194 7 , 39-4 1 , and D . Frey , Michelangelo-S tudien , Vienna ,

1 9 2 0 , 36-39 , who considers the ancient hippodrome the principal

model for the Belvedere cour t . S e e also M . L . Go therm , Geschichte

der Gart enkuns t , I , Jena , 1914 , 2 4 2 .

44
Reproduced in A . Barto l i , Monumenti antichi di Roma nei des egni

degli Uffiz i , Rome , 1914 , p l . XI , fig . 24 .

 . '. r·· - .
' \, \ / /""-
193

45
F . B ianchini , Del palazzo dei ces ari , Verona, 1 7 3 8 , plan , p l .

VIII , elevation, p l . XII . For B ianchini s e e W . Oechslin , "Storie e

archeologia prima del P iranes i : Nota s u Francesco Bianchini , : Piran-

esi nei luoghi d i Pirane s i , Rome , 197 9 , 107-111 and the entry by

S . Rotta in the Dizionario biografico degli italiani , Rome , 1 9 6 8 ,

X , 187-194 .

46
De Vestigits Urbis Antiquae, Rome 1 5 7 3 , reproduced in A . F .

Frutaz , Le piante di Roma , Rome , 1 96 2 , I I , plan XXI , p l . 3 6 . The

representation closely follows that of 0 . Panvinio done eight years

e.
earlier in his Antiquae Urbis Imago , Rom e , 1565 , reproduced in
"
Frutaz , II , plan XX , p l . 3 5 .

47
o. Panvinio , D e Ludis Circensibus Libri II . Venic e , 1600 . H.

Zerner notes there may have been an earlier illustrated edition of

De Ludis published in Venice in 1580 ( Z erner , "Observation on Dup �rac

and the Disegni de le ruine di Roma e come anticamente erono , 11 �

Bulletin, XLVII [ 19 65 ] , 509) . The 1580 e d i t ion may be that referred

to in a letter from Gianvincenzo Pinelli to Fulvia Orsini on 27 July

1 58 2 , "mi scriss e g ia del libro De Ludis del P . Onofrio , che s i s tampava

in Vinetia, et io non basta a rinvenire il s tampatore" (P . de Nolhac ,

La biblio th�que de Fulvia Orsini , Paris , 1 88 7 , 425) .

48 / /
H . Zerner , "Etienne Duperac en Italie , " Ecole pratique des

Hautes Etudes , IVe s ec t io n , sciences his toriques et phi1ogiques ,

Annusaire, 1 9 6 3-4 , 3 2 6 , and "Observations , " 5 0 9 .

The view reproduced b y Panvinio appears to dep end 07\ the earlier

reconstruction by Duperac in his Urbis Romae S c iografia o f 1 5 74 .

 ' . , ,'

j \ I,_.{ ,

;j'v \_
�
194

49
E . Dup �rac , S ciographia , Rome , 1 5 7 4 , reproduced in Frutaz , I I ,

plan XXII , pls . 3 7 and 4 3 / 4 4 (detail ) ; Anon . , Disegni d e l e ruine d i

Roma , Rome , 1 5 7 5 , original pagination 99v/100r , reproduced i n the fac-

simile e d i t ion by R. Hit tkower, Disegn i , Milart, 1 9 64 ; A dona t i , Roma

vetus a c Recens utrusque Aedificiis Illustrata, Rome , 1 6 6 2 , 2 2 5 , which

reproduces the top portion of the paate from Panvinio De Ludis ; and

G . Blaeu, Theatrum civitatum e t admirandorum I tali a e , ad aevi veteris

et praesentis t emporis , Ams terdam, 1 6 6 3 , part I I , pl . b e tween pages

1 and 2 .
e
P irro Ligcrio in his Antiguae Urbis Imago o f 1 5 6 1 , reproduced in
A
Frutaz , I I , plan XVI I , pls . 26 and 31 ( details ) , shows a two s tory

colonnaded exedra above a one-story lower level with raking cornices

over arched windows .

so
M. Cartaro , Celeberrimae Urbis Antiquae Fidelissima , Rome , 1579 ,

reproduced in Fruta z , I I , plan XXI I I , pl s . 51 and 5 3 / 55 (details ) .

51
J . Lauro , Antiquae Urb is Splendor , Rome , 1 612 , Book II , unp agi-

nated (later editions in 1 6 30 and 1641 with page no . 9 8 ) ; F . d e

Ros s i , Ritratto di Roma Ant ica , Rome , 1 6 54 , 8 6 , p l . 27 (later edition

in 1 6 54 ) .

52
Reproduced il). Frutaz , I I , plan CIX, p l . 2 0 3 .

53
At tached t o the north s id e o f the palac e , Bufalini shmvs a central

plan s tructure resembling a greek cross with four apses , each s eparated

from the central space by a pair of columns . Something s imilar in

approximately the s a�e location at the rectangular end o f the hippodrome

 r '

195

south o f the monas tery o f S . Bonaventura appears in the p l an o f

the palatine publ ished b y Panvinio (Fi g . 2 3 ) and i n L . Canina ,

Pianta Topographi a • • • , Rome , 1850 , where , however , in both cases ,

the east and west apses are rectangular . The area in more recent

plans is less well delineated. See, for examp l e , F. Lugli , Roma

Antica--il Centro Monumentale , Rome , 194 6 , 514 where the building

is described as o f a "bizzare form, " p erhaps a nympheum . On p l . VIII

the area is indicated as a "nypheum of the canopus type . "

54
L . Canina, Pianta topographica , Rome 1850 .

55 /
Duperac S c iografia and Cartaro , Celeberrima e . F . Bianchini ,

Del palazzodei cesar i , Verona, 1 7 38 shows both hemicycles in pl .

VIII .

56
Elizabeth Kieven has suggested in conversation that the grand hall

with free-standing (or slightly engaged co lumns) in the center of the

south wing of Louvre I I I / IV on the ground floor may be a reference

to the Aula Regia Domit ian , thought to have been roofed in the recon-

s truction o f Bianchin i .

**Acknowledgement for help received in assembling material on the

Palatine for this paper is due Professor Alison Luchs , Center for

Advanced Study in the Visual Arts , National Gallery o f Ar t .

196
197
 198
Hellmut Hager

SOME OBSERVATIONS ON BERNINI ' S ARCHITEC TURAL LEGACY

The subj ect o f the present paper , "Obs ervations on Bernini ' s
1
Architectural Legacy , " is connected with my current research on the

architects who were Bernini ' s assistants , and who are considered the

heirs and administrators o f his architectural heritage : Carlo Fontana ,

Giovanni Battista Contini , and Mattia de Ros s i . It is , o f cours e , in

their works that Bernini ' s authority first becomes manifest . But the

influence of Bernini ' s buildings was quick to spread in many different

directions , and of course not always by means of the architects who

were h� principal disciples and followers . Therefore we will approach

our sub j ect by reviewing Bernini ' s architecture in chronological sequence

and as far as possible in typological order , examining its influence in

a limited number of speci fically chosen examples . Strong inspirational

qualities can be observed already in Paul V ' s model for the High Altar

o f S t . Peter ' s , as we know it from the medal o f 1 6 1 7- 1 8 , which anticipated

and influenced Bernini ' s baldacchino . Irving Lavin has shown that it was

almos t as high as the present baldac chino , and was in place as early as
2
1610. More directly than Bernini , however , Carlo Fontana put the unexe­

cuted proj ec t to use in his own design for the main altar o f the church

to be erected in the Colosseum . Although the concept of a superstructure

with four angels carrying a canopy (Fig . 1 ) has been adopted almost pre­

cisely , the form o f the altar itself is d i f f erent . I t was intended for

the center of the prospective ch�rch and des igned with a dual orientation ,

leaving two possible approaches : ei ther from the entrance on the side o f
 199

the arena , the "atrium , " or from the rear entrance , the Porta Libi tinaria

o f the Colosseum . Fontana visualized his church crowded with pilgrims

assembled around the altar to receive the Sacrament o f the Eucharist and
3
expecting special indulgences . The canopy would have stood on the

pedestal block located b e tween the two altar tabl es . In this way the

interior of the church was to be provided with a very s trong centralizing

accen t . Fontana ' s choice o f models was therefore a very deliberate one ,

made with full awareness that Paul V ' s pro j e c t--unsuitable for the vast

crossing of S t . Peter ' s because o f the optical frailty of its s tructure-­

would have fulfilled its function in a more satisfying way in the more

intimate interior o f the church planned for the Colo s s eum . This latter

measured only about 1 7 m . in diameter , almost exactly the size of Bernini ' s

church in Ariccia, to which the planimetric scheme o f Carlo Fontana ' s pro­

j ec ted church is connected very closely . With a scenographic effec t ,

Fontana ' s altar would have S)�bolized the connec tion b e tween Heaven and

earth through the presence o f the almos t life-sized angels . As Heavenly

mess engers , raised only by a relatively low pedestal , they would have
4
been , so to speak, in direct touch with the pilgrims assembled in a church

which Innocent XI planned to build , but which was never real i zed .

There is nei ther time nor space for even an approximate account of
5
the effec t of Bernini ' s baldacchino as i t was finally executed . With

its spiraled columns and the crowning part with ribs ending in scro lls ,

the baldacchino inspired numerous architects like Fontana and Sebas tiana
6
Cipriani , who had to design altars and catafalques . Indicative of the

overwhelming impression Bernini ' s altar made is the replica reportedly

commis sioned of Andrea Pozzo for the main altar of the Cathedral in Foligno
 �·.

200

(Fi g . 2) , dedicated to S . Feliciano ( 1 698-1 702) , which repeats the original

in reduced scale but o t herwise true to its prototype, including the confessio
7
in the front . The almost perplexing exactness o f the reproduction gives

the altar in Foligno a rather special though not necessarily very distinc-

tive position among the sequels of one of Bernini ' s mos t frequently copied

works .

When Bernini des igned the facade for the medieval church of S . Bibiana

he was twenty-six years old . Although i t was his first church facad e , i t

presents a number o f features wh ich have been recognized b y Wit tkower

and o thers as novel , such as the loggia in the center o f the upper s torey ,

or the balustrades which appear above the side bays and are unusal for a
8
church facad e . About forty years later when Carlo Fontana was about the

same age, he had to des ign the facade of S . Biagio in Campitelli (Fig . 4) ;

what he came up with is almo st as as tounding within the tradition of Roman

church facades as was Bernini ' s S . Bibiana . As I have demonstrated else-

wher e , the originality of Fontana ' s design resides to a considerable extent

in the ingenious combina tion of influences which derive from two works by

B ernini fused in an unusual way to fit the requirements of a specific build­

9
ing s i tuation . From S . Bib iana Fontana borrowed the scheme in general ,

but introduced the novel element o f concavely recming side bays on the upper

s tory , as a response to the fact that the facade , because of the narrow�es s

o f the s t r e e t , mainly had to b e viewed sideways . This much discussed but

10
pertinent observation was made by Coudenhove-Erthal long ago . Instead

of the traditional expedient--a front straight-l ined also in the upper

s tory , Fontana employed the already-mentioned eye-catching mo tif of the

curved-in lateral compartments which have a precedent in Bernini ' s

 201

unexecuted proj ect for Doge Giovanni Cornaro ' s tomb of about 1 655
11
at S . Nicola da Tolentino ( Fi g . 3 ) .

Even though Borromini replaced Bernini ' s original chapel o f the

Palazzo d i Propaganda Fide of 163 4 by a building o f his own, the earlier

version ' s role as a source of inspiration was by no means totally exting­

uished . The plan of Bernini ' s transverse oval chapel opening at the termi­

nal point of the long axis into two remarkably spacious chapel s , recorded
12
in two drawings by Borromini ( F i g . 5) , was adopted by Gasparo Zuccalli

(causing and pupil of Enrico) for his church of S t . Kajetan in Salzbur g ,

13
construc ted between 1 6 85 and 1 7 00 (Fig . 6) .
14
Preserved in a copy (Fig . 7 ) , the facade o f Bernini ' s lost chapel

exerted a clearly detectable influence on an early proj ect by Luigi

Vanvitelli (Fi g . 8 ) . Jorg Gamrs once tentatively connected i t with the

church and convent of the Bambin Gesu which was later carried out differ-
15
ently by Ferdinanda Fuga . Vanvitelli ' s drawing features the same

characteris tic combination of a high pedimented central portion with

unusually low lateral compartments , with flanking side entrances sur­

mounted by rather flat rec tangular windows . It must b e noted , however ,

that Vanvitelli also resorted to Bernini ' s facade for S . Andrea al Quiranale

(Fig . 9 ) , as is apparent in the employment of the great order of single

16
pilasters framing the semicircular window above the entrance .

I t is not surprising that S . Andrea , as Bernini ' s mos t accomplished

work in the category of church building , had an impact which extended

well beyond the s eventeenth century and Rome . For instan c e , at the

beginning of the eighteenth century , a particularly direct connection is

evident in the conformation of Carlo Cesare Scalat ti ' s wooden model of

17
S . Antonio Abate at Forli (Fig . 1 0 ) . The exterior of Bernini ' s building ,

an oval cyl inder aticulated in the upper half by very powerful and decora-
 202

scrolled buttresses for the dome , s eems to b e re-stated exactly in

Scalatt i ' s model . Scalat t i ' s solution for the front recalls , though

in a considerably refashioned form , the lateral wall s o f Bernini ' s

facad e , but Scalatti at tempts to reconcile Berninian and Borrominian

18
influences by designing i t in a serpentine form.

A good example of the long-term effect of S . Andrea al Quirinale ' s

interior configuration i s Luigi Vanvitel l i ' s Chiesa della Missione in

19
Naples , constructed about 1 76 0 . Though in plan a longitudinal oval ,

the opening leading into the room o f the High Altar i s in a very charac-

teristic manner flanked by trabeated chapel or vestibule openings , above

which coretti with particularly low rectangular apertures are located .

The best known successors o f S . Andrea in Rome o f the 1 73 0 ' s are

. a1 F oro TraJano
. 20
o f course Anton1o Der1zet ' s S S .
. . Norne d 1" Mar1a , and
21
C ar 1 o D e Dom1n1c1 , s S S . Ce 1 so e G 1u
. . . " 1 1ano
" , both o f wh 1" ch re-emp 1 oy

the transverse oval ground plan. However , neither o f the two architects

ventured to adopt the mos t innova tive device which Bernini introduced

into the tradition o f oval church building , the famous piers instead of

chapels at the end o f the long axis of the oval . They are known as one

of Bernini ' s mo s t successful architec tural inventions , meant to avoid

dis tracting the spectator ' s attention from the maj or focal point , the
22
altare maggior e .

The very conserva tive, almo s t retardataire compos ition of the

facade of S . Tommaso di Villanova at Castelgandol f o turned up again

soon after 1 6 7 5 in Mattia de Rossi ' s now ruined church of San Bonaven-

tura in Monterano , where i t was enriched by twin towers with one-story

belfries . A reconstruction and references to source material on which

it was based can be found in my recent article in the 1 9 7 8 volume o f

 1:

203

23
the j ourna l , Architectural His tory . O f particular interest is a

drawing by Bernini in a Roman private collection which can b e identified

. 1 pro J. e c t f or s an Bonaventura . 24
as the or�g�na
. Instead o f Mattia d e

Ros s i ' s vault covered b y a roo f , Bernini designed a dome on a high drum ,

congruous with the s c enographic po s ition of the church in a mountainous

landscap e . The mos t important detail o f this pro j ec t , the twin bell

towers which measure the same height as the drum , seems to have been

influential--along with o ther sources--in Carlo Fontana ' s pro j ec t for

a church in the Co losseum . Infrequently employed a t that time , the

motif soon af terwards became widespread , and i t s effect is most notable

on Juvarra ' s Superga , as Nino Carboneri has recently re-emphasized

25
in his monograph on this chur ch .

The device o f s e t t ing an ecclesiastical building within a pano-

ramie landscape had already occupied Bernini at Ariccia, where his

Assunta had to be erected on a sloping s i t e in front of the Palazzo

Chigi (Fig . 1 2 ) . In resolving his extremely d ifficult task , however ,

Bernini appears to have been inspired by a painted source , Annibale

Carracci ' s Flight Into Egvpt of more than half a century earlier
26
(Fig . 1 1 ) . In the background , on top o f a mountain, one recognizes

what looks like an anc ient Roman palace and facing it is a circular

s tructure which clearly emulates the Pantheon , a building also explicity

27
alluded to be Bernini in his Rotonda at Ariccia . The aff inity is such

that one can hardly avoid the conclusion that the background scenery in

Carracci ' s painting provided Bernini his point o f departur e .

To meet the requirements o f the unprop i tious s i tuation a t Arricci a ,

and t o create a continuous front not interrupted b y undesirable vis tas ,

 204

as i t were , "behind the scenes , " Bernini used the device o f a screening

wall which surrounds the church on both s ides and connects with the
28
flanking porticoes ( Fi g . 1 3 and 1 5) . The Jesuit College in Loyola
29
(Fi g . 1 4 ) , commi s s i oned from Fontana about 1 680 and revealing i t s

Roman origin in many ways , points to a keen interest i n this kind of

scenographic expedient , even though the cond i tions for its employment

were divers e . Because the view o f the house where S t . Ignatius was

born--a cubi c s tructure of medieval origin which had to b e incorporated

to the left of the church-- would have totally disrupted the unity of

the college front , Fontana made it disappear b ehind the facade . The

la tter , where i t covers the Santa Cas a , consists o f only a sham front

(Fig . 1 6 ) , a screening wall which continues the scheme of fenestration

in coformity with the overall design . The audaci ty o f this procedure

is unmis takably in the manner of Bernini , who could hardly have invented

a more fit ting device himsel f , when one considers the unusual nature

of Fontana ' s building task .

The s c enic quality o f Bernini ' s Piazza dell ' Assunta was ful l y

exploited much later by a prolific designer o f s tage sets i n Turin,

Fabri z io Galliar i , follower of Filippo Juvarr a . In 1 7 7 5 Galliari used

the mo tif of a centralized building surrounded by an annular passageway

in his stage design for the "Piazza di Messene" for the tragic opera
30
llMerope . "

Bernini ' s most spectacular work, the scenographically conceived

colonnades of S t . Peter ' s was adopted as a mo tif--with the same proportional

scheme--by Filippo Juvarra , who planned a sub s i d iary Piazza di S . Pietro

around the southern apse of the basilica in his famous model of 1 7 1 5 for
 205

31
the New Sacristy of S t . Peter ' s . Bernini ' s colonnades entered into

the sphere of scenic design again in one of Fabrizio Galliar ' s stage

set drawings o f a "Great Piazza in Seleucia" for the opera "Demetrio"

32
of 1 76 2 . In 1 7 7 2 it was followed by a scenic design for "Andromeda"

by his son Giovanni , which affords a view into a circular colonnaded

piazza with a church front not unlike Bernini ' s Assunta at Ariccia as
33
a backdrop .

It i s not surprising that Bernini ' s colonnades , as a key monument

of baroque classicism, soon afterwards experienced a true revival in

"durable material" in the Neo-classical period in Pietro Bianch i ' s S .

Francesco di Paola o f 1 8 1 6- 3 6 (Fig . 1 8 ) . Here the two wings which form

a half circle are effectively appended to the colonnaded temple portico ,

reproducing almost to the letter that o f the Roman Pantheon , which was
34
. ' d 1. t .
. Ro tond a b eh 1n
a1 so th e mod e 1 f or the maJeStlc But as the church

also relates typologically to Bernini ' s Assunta in Ariccia, Pietro

Bianchi ' s achievement might be considered an amalagmation of two Berninian

prototypes . The difference in spirit , of course , is all too evident .

Removing everything reminiscent of the High Baroque and aiming towards

the establishment o f a building complex in an "authentic" ancient Roman

s ty l e , Bianchi loses contact with the vitality o f the baroque tradition ,

and creates a monument which , like Thorvaldsen ' s contemporary sculpture ,

lacks any s t imulating force wha tsoever and confronts the spectator with

a kind of frigidity characteristic o f 1 9 th century mausol eum architectur e .

The influence o f Bernini o n the Accademia d i San Luca in Rome ,

35 36
o f which he was Principe in 1 6 3 0 , des erves special s tudy . I will

limit myself to a brief consideration of only one proj ec t , Pierre d e

Villeneuv e ' s design f o r a grand staircase f o r an academv building , the

 206

37
topic a s signed to the First Class o f Architecture in 1 708 ( Fi g . 20) .

The s cheme o f the elevation, with side walls partitioned by paired

co lumns and the intervals of the landings engaged as indirect sources

38
of l i gh t , is evidently derived from Ber �ini ' s Scala Regia (Fig . 1 9 ) .

I t appears i n De Villeneuve ' s design i n duplicated form and supplemented

by a symmetrically disposed second ramp on the oppos ite side, which also

ascends from the entrance vestibule in the center . Pierre de Villeneuve ' s

pro j ect is perhaps one o f the mos t informative examples among the numerous

competition drawings , since it epitomizes the s t imulating effect of Bernini ' s

oeuvre on s tudents o f architec ture who singled him out as a source o f in-

spiration.

Even a short account of Bernini ' s influence would be fragmentary

without at least passing consideration o f the effect of his techniques

for indirect and conducted lighting . He adopted them from Nicola Sabatini ' s

d eve 1 op1ng them to per f ect1on

. . 39
treat1se on stage d es1gn, .
. . permanent
1n

architectur e , mos t notably in his chapel s . Carlo Fontana , for example ,

in his no longer extant Cappella dell ' Assunta o f the Collegia Clementine

( 1 6 8 5-87 ) , repeated Bernini ' s experiment with indirect lighting of the

40
Capella Raimond i . When Andrea Pozzo refurbished the interior o f the
41
Jesuit Church in Vienna ( 1 703-05) , he relied on the s ame princ iple , and

added a luminous spatial unit behind the chapel o f the High Altar for the

painting of the Assunta . In his endeavor to create an effect as close as

p o s s ible to that of Bernini , Pozzo went a step further by separating

the room of the main altar from the nave by placing free s tanding columns

at the entrance , sufficiently detached from the walls to allow for the same

kind of optical permeability he had admired in Bernini ' s S . Andrea al Quiri-

nal e , which evidently served as his model .

 207

One o f Bernini ' s mos t influential s e cular buildings was the Palazzo
42
Chigi in the Piazza S S . Apos toli of 1 66 1- 6 7 . The innovative scheme

of the facade , which quintessentially consists in the employment o f

the great order of pilasters for a central projection seven bays long ,

was carried to Vienna by Fonta na ' s disciples , Comenico Martinelli and

Fischer von Erlach . While both archi tec ts in certain instances adhered
43
to their model rather s trictly, the approach of Carlo Fontana ' s s on ,

Francesco , was more independent in the des ign o f his customs hou s e , the

Dogana d i Terra . The employment o f the almos t s till intact colonnade

o f one o f the long s ides o f the Hadrianic temple for the articulation

of the central pro j e ction, led him--as compared to Bernini ' s Palazzo

Chigi--to a considerable extension of the protruding portion of the facade

44
which alm o s t overwhelms the shrunken lateral parts ( 1 694- 1 705 ) .

The topic of the successors of Bernini ' s mos t important works in

the category o f palace archi tecture--the proj ects for the East Wing of

the Louvre--is too complex to be traced within the context o f this paper .

I t may therefore suf fice to mention that its qualities were perhaps most

congenially received by Bernini ' s Aus trian follower , Fischer von Erlac h ,
45
as has long s ince been obs erved by Sedlmayr and o th ers . But a certain

reflection o f Bernini ' s des igns for the Royal Palace in Paris is also to

be obs erved in Rome , specifically in Juvarra ' s model o f 1 7 1 5 for the New

Sacristy o f S t . Peter ' s . For instance , while the great hall o f the Sac-

risty , integrated into the front wing and ris ing much higher than the

res t of the building complex , is a more or less direc t regression to

Bernini ' s first pro j e c t , the inward-curving shape o f the facade at least
46
. p 1 an suggests B ernlnl
�n .
. . , s second Louvre d eslgn . Finally , the colonnade

completes the synthesis of Berninian patt erns and establishes the above-

ment ioned relationship with the portici o f S t . Peter ' s .

 208

It is generally accepted that the eclipse o f Bernini ' s career

began with the decision in 1 666 not to execute his final proj ect for

the Louvre , which almos t coincided with the death o f Alexander VII

the following year. In the early 1 6 7 0 ' s Bernini again had to mourn the

failure of one o f his major proj ects when Rainald i ' s more economical

design for the rear front of S . Maria Maggiore was executed in 1 6 7 3 , in

lieu of Bernini ' s model of 1 6 6 9 which envisaged a peristyle to surround

47
.
the m ed �eva 1 apse . The proj ect was discarded , but the idea as such

was not los t . I t was picked up not only by Vittone for his Concorse
48
Clementine drawings of 1 7 3 2 , but has survived in countless variations

and many countries , even as far as the United S tates . One o f these

is on the campus o f The Pennsylvania State University , where the motif

has been adopted to serve as the portico of the Minderal Industries

49
Bu�" ld �ng
" .

Although this review of Bernini ' s impact had to b e incomplete ,

we can safely assume none theless that virtually no architectural work

5
o f the great master remained without a following . ° Certainly it is

symp tomatic that this s tatement applies with equal validity to a build-

ing that "pas s ed away" even sooner than its architect : the original

chapel o f the Palazzo di Propaganda Fide . The levels on which Bernini ' s

influence was accepted inevitably varied considerably, and his inspira-

tions were transformed into new accomplishments . For a merely imita-

tive kind of adaptation, we need only remember the baldacchino in the

Cathedroal at Foligno . But fortunately o ften sophisticated modes of

elaboration are more frequent . And it is in this category that the

pro j ects and buildings o f Carlo Fontana , Filippo Juvarra , and in the

north , Fischer von Erlach , firs t come to mind . The prototypes �Vhich
 209

Bernini established continued to play their formative role as long

as the norms of classically-oriented architecture remained unchallenged-­

that i s , to the beginning of our century .

 I',. _,

210

NOTES

1
I would like t o take this opportunity to express my gratitude

to the American Council of Learned Societies for a travel grant to

Rome, and to the Institute for the Arts and Humani s t ic S tudies , The

Pennsylvania S tate University , for the continuous support of my

research on Bernini and his followers .

2
I . Lavin , Bernini and the Cro s s ing o f S t . Peter ' s , New York,

1 9 6 8 , 6f .

3
c . Fontan a , L ' Anfiteatro Flavio , The Hague , 1 7 2 5 , 1 60f , 1 6 7 ,

1 7 1 ; for details concerning the func tion of what Fontana called the

"Al tare , overo Ara doppia , " see H . Hager , Carlo Fontana ' s Proj ect

for a Church in Honour of The ' Ecclesia Triumphans ' in the Colosseum

in Rome, Journal o f the Warburg and Courtauld Ins t i tutes , XXXVI , 1 9 7 3 ,

3 2 8 , n . 54 .

4
Evidently Fontana had such conno tations in mind when he compared

his baldac chino to the canopies used during processions to protect the

Euchari s t (Fontana, L ' Anfiteatro Flavia , 1 7 1 , n . 5 ) .

5
For the various planning phases and the realization o f the defini­

tive pro j ec t , see bibliographical reference in no te 2 and H. Thelen , Zur

Ent s t ehungsgeschichte der Hochaltararchitektur von S t . Peter in Rom , Berlin ,

1 9 6 7 ; Franc esco Borromini . Die Handzeichnungen, I , Graz , 1 9 6 7 , 79-90 ;

H . Kaufmann , Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini . Die figUrlichen Kompo s i tionen ,

Berl in, 1 9 7 0 , 85-96 .

 211

6
0 . Berendsen, "The Italian Sixteenth and S eventeenth Century

Catafalques , " Ph . D . Dissertation, Department o f Fine Art s , New York

Universi ty , 1 96 1 , Ann Arbor , 1 9 6 1 ; M . Fagiolo dell ' Arco and S . Carandini ,

L ' Ef f imero Barocco , S trutture della festa nella Roma del ' 60 0 , 2 vols . ,

Rom e , 1 97 7 - 7 8 ; A . Braham and H . Hager , Carlo Fontana, The Drawings a t

Windsor Cas tle, London, 1 9 77 ; H . Hager , Sebas tiane Cipriani , in Dizionario

Biografico degli Italiani ( in course of pub l ica t ion) ,

7
M . Michele Faloci Pulignani , Il Duomo d i Fol igno e l ' Archi tettura d i

Piermarini , Memorie S toriche , Foligno , 1 9 80 , 6 6 ; " I l Baldacchino d i S .

Pietro e le sue imitazioni , " L ' Illustrazione Vaticana , I I , no . 1 2 , 1 93 1 ,

2 3- 2 6 . Cfr . R . Wittkower , Art and Archi t ecture in I taly, 1 60 0- 1 7 5 0 , 3rd

ed . , Baltimore-Harmondsworth, 1 9 7 3 , 1 1 6 , 354 , n . 5 8 ; H . Kaufmann , Giovanni

Lorenzo Bernini , 8 6 , n . 6 ; W . Oechslin, ed . , Die Vorarlberger Barockbaumeis-

ter , Exhib ition Catalogue , Einsidedeln , 1 97 3 , 238 . It would seem that

Bernini hims elf had recourse to his first monumental work when he made

designs for the main altar of the church of Val-de-Grace during his soj ourn
a
in Paris of 1 66 5 for Louis XIV , which , however , resulted in considerably
;\
modified s tructure with eight twisted columns s e t on a circular plan,
,
while Bernini had suggested the transverse oval plan . The mod i f i ca t ions

were due to the French architect in charge of the commis s ion , Gabriel Le

Due ( 1 6 6 3 - 6 7 ) . See M . and M . Fagiolo d el l ' Arco , Bernini , Una introduzione

al gran teatro del barocc o , Rome , 1 9 6 7 , scheda 2 0 5 . For the fortune o f the

twis ted columns , see H . W . Schmid t , "Die gewunde Saule in der Architektur-

theorie von 1 500- 1 800 . " D is s . Ing . Karlsruhe , 1 9 7 7 ( S tuttgart , 1 9 7 8 ) .

 I I I :.

212

8
R . Wittkower, Art and Architec ture , 1 1 5 ; G . C . Bauer , "Gian

Lorenzo Bernini , The Development o f An Archi tectural Iconography , "

Princeton University Dissertation , 1 9 7 4 , Ann Arbor , Michigan, 1 9 7 5 ,

11f.

9
H . Hager, "Le Facciate dei S S . Faustino e Giovit � e d i S . Biagio

in Cam�telli ( S . Rita) a Roma . A Propo s ito d i due opere giovannili di

Carlo Fontana , Commentar i , XXI I I , 1 9 7 2 , 266f .

10
E . Coudenhove-Erthal , Carlo Fontana und die Architektur des

romischen SpMtsbaro cks , Vienna , 1 9 3 0 , 2 1 f ; c f . H . Hager , Commentari ,

XXXI I I , 2 6 6 f .

11
For a d i s cuss ion of this drawing , see R. Wit tkower , Bernini :

The Sculptor of the Roman Baroqu e , 2nd Ed . , London, 1 96 5 , 2 1 6 , no . 6 3 ;

and M . and M . Fagiolo dell 'Arco , Bernini , scheda 1 4 8 .

12
E Hempel , Francesco Borromini , Vienna , 1 9 2 4 , 1 58f , pls , 5 5 f ;

P . Portogh es i , The Rome o f Borromini , New York, London, 1 9 6 8 , pl . CXII ;

cf . diagram in M . and M . Fagiolo dell ' Arco , Bernini , scheda 7 6 .

13
The Kaj etanerkirche and the encl o s ing monastery were b egun in

1 68 5 , but construction was interrup ted in 1 68 8 by order of the new

Archbishop Johann Ernst Count Thun , although the building complex s eemed

almos t finished . Work was resumed in 1 6 96 and the church dedicated in

1 70 0 ; see A . Eckardt , Die Baukuns t in Salzburg wMhrend des XVI I . Jahr­

hunderts , S tras sburg , 1 9 1 0 , 8 7 f , 90- 9 3 , 1 09 , 1 3 5 ; R . A . E . Paulus , Der

Baumeister Henrico Zuccal l i , Strassburg , 1 9 1 2 , 94 , 205 f , n . 7 ; cfr . H .

Keller, Salzburg , Munich, 1 9 5 6 , 30f 4 1pls . 5 5 f . Eckhardt (Die Baukunst 9 3 f )

 213

pondered the reasons for Gasparo ' s usage o f the transverse instead o f the

longitudinal groundplan and surmised that the architect intended to relate

the structure of the church to that o f the transverse rec tangular monastery

building. Eckhardt visualized i t drowned by the dome , which , in fac t ,

dominates the edifice i n an impos ing manner ( see Paulus , Enrico Zuccalli ,

pl . 5 1 , facade pro j ec t , and Keller, Salzbur g , pl . 5 9 ) . Bernini ' s chapel

was rather small , and the long axis o f the oval measure only about 1 1 m . ;

1 = 5 0 palmi romani , as compared to c a . 1 7m . o f the Kaj etan-church . None­

theless the striking affinity o f the ground plans presents us with the

intribuing question o f whether the Kaj etanerkirche in Salzburg offers an

idea of the interior o f Bernini ' s lost chapel , at least in a very generic

way . However , in Gasparo Zuccal l i ' s church the dome rests on a drum , and

drums are absent in Bernini ' s churches o f a comparable type ( S . Andrea al

Quirina l e , Assunta at Ariccia) , and the interior eleva t ion of the des troyed

chapel of the Palazzo di Propaganda Fide ( s ee below) almost certainly

excludes the possibility of a drum in the present cas e . For an elevation

of the interior of the church of S t . Kaj etan, see H . Tietze and F . Martin,

Die kirchlichen Denkmal e der Stadt Salzburg, Vienna, 1 9 1 1- 1 2 , 1 1 3 , pl . 1 4 4

(Oes terreichische Kunsttopographie , 9) . The knowl edge o f the lost Bernini

chapel might have been transmitted to Gasparo by Enrico Zuccal l i , who was ,

for instance, very familiar with Bernini ' s first proj ect for the Louvre

and o ther drawings by the great master . See E . Hempel , Baroque Art and

Architecture in Central Europe , Bal timore-Harmondswor th , 1 9 6 5 , 1 7 8 ; cfr.

H. Lorenz, "Des ' Lustgartengebaud e ' Fischers von Erlach , Variationen eines

architektonischen Themas , " Wiener Jahrbuch fUr Kuns tgeschichte , XXXII , 1 9 7 9 ,

72.
 n < ,

214

14
The drawing representing the facade o f B ernini ' s former chapel

in the Palazzo di Propaganda Fide was published by R. Pacini , "Alt er­

azioni dei monumenti borrominiani e prospet tive di res tauro , " Studi

sul Borromini , Atti del Convegno promosso dall ' Accademia Nazionale di

S an Luc a , I . Rome , 1 9 6 7 , ( 1 9 7 0 ) , p l . 3 2 .

15
Disegni d i Luigi Vanvitelli nelle Collezioni pubbliche di Napoli

e di Caserta . Catalogo a cura di J8rg Garms , Naples , 1 97 3-4 , 1 0 7 f , cat .

118. The presence of the coat of arms of Pope Clement XI ( 1 700- 1 7 2 1 )

to which Garms has drawn our attention, makes the connection o f this

drawing with the Chiesa della Misericordia at Macerata problematical , as

M . Rotili has suggested (Luigi Vanvitelli , Jr . , Vita di Luigi Vanvitelli

a cura d i M . Rotili , Naples , 1 9 7 5 , 92f) since the latter church , under

the age o f the nobleman Gualtiero Marefoschi , was erected only between

1 73 2 and 1 74 2 , considerably later than the pontificate of Clement XI .

But also the da ting of the drawing and its assignment to the church and

convent of the Bambin Gesu leaves certain problems o p en . Dr . Garms (per­

sonal communication) therefore no longer insists on this identification

and will explain the change of his opinion in his forthcoming monograph

on this church .

16
These features constitute a considerable improvement over the still

very rigid scheme of Bernini ' s early work, which had even persisted into

the early planning phases o f his church on the Quirinal ( i . e . the plan o f

the chirografo of Alexander VII of October 26th, 1 65 8 ; see fig . in T . K .

Kitao , "Bernini ' s church Facades : Method of Design and Contrappo s ti , "

Journal o f the Societv o f Architec tural His torians , XXIV, 1 9 6 5 , pl . 6 on

p . 267) . Incidentally, Kitac ' s reconstruction o f the facade of S . Andrea

 215

( p l . 22 on p . 2 7 6 ) i s corroborated in the elevation drawing o f the

chapel ' s exterior in the Palazzo d i Propaganda Fide only insofar as

the inferior story, framed by a double order of pilasters , is conc erned .

Instead o f an attic , which �itao ( p . 2 7 6 ) derived from S . Tommaso d i

Villanova a t Castelgandol f o , i t i s more likely t o imagine B ernini ' s

early facade scheme for S . Andrea as a single story front in the

fashion of his chapel dei Re Mag i , which in typological and formal

respects preceded the planning for S . Andrea al Quirinale .

17
A . M . Matteucci and D . Lenzi , Cosimo Morelli e L ' Architettura

delle Legazioni Pontificie, Bolog�a , 1 9 7 7 , 96 pl . 9 1 , 98 n. 9 with

further b ib l iographical refer enc es . The church of S . Antonio Abbate

'
at Forli was constructed with laterations o f Scalatt i ' s pro j ect by

Giuseppe Merend a , Dizionario Enciclopedico di Archi tettura e Urbanistica,

diretto da P. Portoghes i , IV , Rome , 1 9 6 4 , 1 7 f ; Bildungsgut und Antiken-

rezeption des fruhen Settecento in Rom . S tudien zum iomischen Aufent-

halt Bernardo Antonio Vittones , Z� rich , 1 9 7 2 , 1 9 2 n. 34 . It should

be noted that Giuseppe Merenda ' s pro j ec t for the front of the Chiesa del

Suffragio in Forli ( 1 723-48) has also been connec ted with B ernini ' s S .

Andrea al Quirinale ( A . M . Matteucci and D . Lenzi , Cosimo Morel l i , 98,

pl . 9 2 ) , a compar ison which is obviously valid for th e d es i gn of the

central par t . However , the tempietto is absent , and the main portion

of the facade is conj o ined with rather narrow and low side bays which

in the upper part lean towards the center with the habitual curvilinear

buttressing walls . As such el ements are also found in Bernini ' s front

of S . Maria di Galloro near Aric cia of 1 6 6 1 -62 ( s e e f i g . in Fagiolo

dell ' Arco , Bernini , scheda l89) , Merenda ' s proj ec t must also be seen , and

perhaps primar ily , in its relationship to Bernini ' s facade of the Sanc tu-
 fl .. 7 -

216

ary a t Galloro . Long befor e , about 1 6 7 5 , Carlo Fontana had already had

recourse to this probably least original work by Bernini in his facade

for the Collegiate Church of Lanuvio near Genzano (A . Braham and H . Hager ,

Carlo Fontana , 1 0 ) .

18
Furthermore, the portions which reach towards the sides are in a

much stricter sense part o f the facade i t s elf : they are the front walls

of the rec tangular struc ture which encases the inferior part of the church ,

quite unlike Bernini ' s screening walls o f S . Andrea al Ouirinale which

are only a ttached to the facade proper. Filipuo Juvarra , in a drawing

dated 1 70 6 (Fig . in L . Rover e , V . Viale, A . E . Brinckmann , Filippo Juvarra ,

1 9 3 7 , pl . 6 4 ) employed Bernini ' s device again , lvhich in the case o f S .

Andrea al Quirinale had been inspired by a s tage des ign by G . F . Grimaldi

o f 1 65 6 for the "Trionfo della Pietl:t , " performed in the theatre of the

Palazzo Barberini (see H . Hager , "Puntualizazioni su dis egni scenici

teatrali e 1 ' architet tura sc enografica del period barocco a Roma , "

Bollettino del Centro Internaionale di Studi d i Architettura Andrea

Palladia , XVII , 1 9 7 5 , 1 2 1 , pls . 4 0 , 43 ) . The most inspiring feature of

the facade is without doubt the proj ec ting temp i e t to . I t had not only

been taken over by Filippo Juvarra in one of his pro j e c t s for S . Giovanni

in Laterano , but had a successor as late as the 1 7 60 ' s in Clemente Orland i ' s

front o f S . Paolo Erem i ta in Via d e ' Pretis . Because o f the forward move­

ment conceived as a contrast to the inward curve o f the front wall , the

convexity o f the portico is a determining factor for the effect o f this

facad e . In fac t i t has t o b e s een as a conscious attempt by Orlandi

(who was also incited by the concave front of Giovanni Battista Noll i ' s
 217

S . Dorotea in Trastevere which was then new : 1 7 5 1 -5 6 ) to enliven the

s cheme o f Bernini ' s prospect of S . Andrea al Quirinale , by means of

contrasting motifs , even though the result o f his endeavours is some­

what moderate ( Fagiolo dell ' Arco , B ernini , 262 n . 1 2 ; H . Hager, "Il

Madella di Ludovico Rusconi Sassi del Concorso per la Facciata di S .

Giovanni in Lat erano ( 1 73 2 ) ed i Prospetti a Convessit� centrale durante

la prima met� del Settecento in Roma , " Commentari , XXII , 1 9 7 1 , 5 7 ) .

19
The precise date when the church , dedica ted to S . Vincenzo de

Pao l i , was begun is unknown . Its completion was made possible through

a legacy made in 1 7 6 1 by the Contessa di S . Elia (see Garms , Luigi

Vanvitell i , 1 4 1 , cat . 1 6 2 ; M . Ro til i , Vita di Luigi Vanvitel l i , 23 1 ) .

The affinity with S . Andrea al Quirnale is also evident in the decora­

tion of the interior dome (pl . 228 in Ro tili , Vita d i Luigi Vanvitelli) .

Among the earl iest and most informative examples which attest to the

stimulating quality of the interior of Bernini ' s church on the Quirinal ,

are Enrico Zuccall i ' s projects of c a . 1 6 74 for Altotting , which can

almost b e considered as precise copies ( for the planning and building

history , see Paulus , Enrico Zuccal l i , 1 3-37 ; Hempel , Baroque Art and

Architecture, 7 7 ) .

At the beginning of the eighteenth century Giovanni Battista Contini

had already followed Bernini in the choice of the transverse elliptical

ground plan for his church at Macerata ( 1 705-32) , even though the con­

cept of the main spac e , surrounded by arched chapels of equal heigh t ,

is rather reminiscent o f Bernini ' s Assunta at Ariccia , from where the

twin bell towers of the unfinished facade had been carried over . For the

very eventful building his tory � see L . Pac i , S toria d i Macerata a cura di
 218

Aldo Arasi , Dante Cecchi, Liberio Pac i , III , Macera ta , 1 9 7 3 , 78-80 ;

F . P . Fiore, "Francesco e Giovanni Battista Contini , " Il Seicento ,

1
Documenti e Ricerche d i S toria dell Art e , 1 - 2 , 1 9 7 6 , 1 9 9 .

20 r
n 1 7 3 3 Cardinal Ludovico Pico had ruled that the outsider,

Antonio Derizet , should b e the architect o f the new church, who , as

has been es tablished by A. Martini and M. L. Casanova (Le Chiese d i

Roma Illustrate, 7 0 , Rom e , 1 9 6 2 , 22-34 , 6 l f) was imposed o n the Arci-

confraternita del S S . Nome di Maria , which had initiated a compe ti tion

between Filippo Barrigioni , Francesco and Mauro Fontana ( the foundation

stone was laid in 1 7 3 6 and the church was ready for the ceremony o f

dedication in 1 74 1 ) .

21
For this church , which was constructed between 1 7 33- 1 7 3 5 , see G .

Segui , C . Thoenes and L . Mor tari , S S . Celso e Giuliano , Collegiata e

Cappella Papal e , Le Chiese d i Roma Illustrate , 88 , 1 9 6 6 ( for i ts plan-

imetric relationship with S . Andrea al Ouirinal e , see n 3 f ) . �

Concerning the more complex config uratio n of Fuga
' s church of
S . Maria dell ' Orazio ne e Marte , for which the longit
udinal oval form

is essent ial , though not sol ely cons tituen t, see the
detail ed analys is
in my monograph on this church (Le Ch�� es e d·�� Roma Illustr
ate , 7 8 , Rome ,
1 96 4 ) .
 219

22
c f r . R . Wittkower , Art and Architecture in Italv , 1 1 9 f .

23
H . Hager , "Bernini , Mattia d e Ros s i and the Church o f San Bonaven­

tura at Monterano , " Architec tural History, Journal o f the Societv of

Architectural Historians of Great Britain, 2 1 , 1 9 7 8 , 68f .

24
H . Hager, Architectural Historv, 70f .

25
N . Carboneri , La Reale Chiesa di Superga di Filippo Juvarra , Turin ,

1979, 25, n. 7 .

26
For the dating (ca . 1 6 04) and a full discussion of Annibale Caracci ' s

Flight into Egyp t , which belongs to a cycle o f six lune tte paintings exe-
 ' ,.

220

cuted for the Palazzo Aldobrandini , see D . Posner, Annibale Caracci,

A S tudy in the Reform o f Italian Painting, 2 vols . , London, 1 9 7 1 ,

I , 1 2 1 , I I , 6 7 ; R . Wittkower , Art and Architecture in Italy, 4 0 , 339f ,

n. 29. About Annibale Carracc i ' s importance for Bernini ' s early

development , see H . Brauer and R . Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen des

GianLorenzo Bernini , Berlin, 1 93 1 , 2nd Ed . , New York, 1 9 6 9 , 1 1 , 1 4 , 1 8 ;

H . Hibbard , B ernini , 2nd Ed . , Baltimore, 1 9 6 6 , 6 2 f .

27
H . Brauer and R . l<ittkower, Die Zeichnungen, l 22 f ; R . Wit tkower

Art and Architecture, 1 1 8 ; H . Hibbard , Bernini 1 4 9 .

28
The effect o f the overall arrangement of the church front and its

ancillary s tructures , exerted a strong influence on a pro j ec t for a palace

by Fischer von Erlach . And even the sketchy s tyle o f the drawing resembles

that o f Bernini rather closely . But Fischer was onlv interested in the

s cheme in general , and as his ground plan sketch indicates , did not intend

to use the mo tif of the screening wall ( H . Sedlmayr , Johann Bernard Fischer

von Erlach , 2nd Ed . , Vienna , 1 9 7 3 , 5 6 , pl . 1 8 . ) Fontana , on the contrary

( se e below) , was particularly attracted by this d evice , which Bernini had

already used to greatest advantage for S . Andrea al Quirinale , though in a

d i f ferent s i tuation.

29
For the planning and building history see R. M. d e Horned o , "La

Basilica d e Loyo la , " Misc elanea Comillas , XXV, 1 9 5 6 , 383-43 0 ; H . Hager ,

"Carlo Fontana and the Jesuit Sanc tuary a t Loyola , " Journal o f the Har­

burg and Courtauld Ins titutes , XXXVII , 1 9 7 4 , 280-289 .

30
cf . M . V . Ferrero , La Scenografia del 1 7 0 0 e i Fratelli Galliari ,

Turi n , 1 9 6 3 , 49 , p l . 8 1 ; cfr . H . Hager , Bollettino , 1 9 7 5 , 1 2 3 .

 221

31
cfr . H . Hager , Filippo Juvarra ed il Concorso d i Mod elli del

1 7 1 5 bandito da Clemente XI per la Nuova Sacres tia di S . Pietro ,

Quaderni d i Commentari , 2 , Rome , 1 9 7 0 . 2 1-24 .

32
cf . M . V . Ferrero , La Scenografia del 1 7 0 0 , 4 1 , pl . 5 6 ; H . Hager,

Bollettino , 1 9 7 5 , 1 2 3 . Fabrizio Galliari replaced the mo tif of the

lateral fountains with an obelisk because he obviously d eemed it more

suitable for the illusion of a city in Asia Minor .

33
cf . M . V . Ferrero , La Scenografia del ' 7 0 0 , 5 9 , pl . on p . 25 6 .

34
G . Nob il e , Descrizione della ci t t � d i Napol i e delle sue vicinanze ,

Naples , 1 8 6 3 , I . 1 2 8 f ; C . G . Gattini , La Chiesa d i S . Francesco d i Paola

in Napoli ed alcune lettere d i artisti che v i lavorarono , Naples , 1 9 0 7 ;

P . Klopfer , Von Palladia b i s Schinke l , Esslingen, 1 9 1 1 , 6 3 f . For a sum­

mary o f the events o f the pl anning history and analytic description see

C . Thoenes and T . Lorenz , Neapel und Umgebung , S tuttgar t , 1 9 7 1 , 1 1 0f .

But the porticos o f S t . Peter ' s were also adopted as a model for

secular purposes , and even shortly before Pietro Bianchi : the Roman

architect Giuseppe Barberi also tried about 1 7 90 to avail himself o f

Bernini ' s colonnades , when almos t in the s ame vein a s Bianchi--he attached

a s emicircular colonnade to a centralized building in the style o f a h i gh

ris ing tower which was suppos ed to serve as a library ( R . Berl iner , "Zeichnungen

des romischen Arthitekten Giuseppe Barber i , " Mlinchner Jahrbuch der Bild enden

Kun s t , x�I I , 1 9 66 , 2 1 2 ) . Though in the case o f Berber i ' s proj ect the result­

ing effect is still very dynamic , certain shortcomings in the concept are

nevertheless evident : there is , for instance , no balance between the verti­

cal and horizontal d imens ions , and because of the overpowering building in

the center , the colonnades shrink in proportion to almost aesthetically

 222

meaningless covered passageways .

The point o f total secularization is reached in the s o called

"Sferisterio" which Ireneo Aleandri erected between 1 822-29 at Macerata

as a place for games and open-air theatrical performances (see L .

Pac i , S toria d i Macerata ) . Nevertheless i t deserves mentioning as an

example which testifies to the longstanding influence of Bernini ' s

colonnades , even though i t is , on the other hand , a reminder o f the

sad fact that even impulses which emanate from monument of the highest

order are b ound to fade away eventually and at times in a rather trivial

fashion.

35
"Principi e Presidenti della Accademia di S . Luca , " Annuario

della Accademia Nazionale di San Luca , Roma , 1 9 7 5 , 1 08 .

36
The complete title o f the exhib i t , open to the public a t Penn

S tate until November 2 2 , 1 9 8 1 , is "Architectural Fantasy and Reali ty-­

Drawings o f the Architec tural Comp e t i t ions of the Accademia di San Luca

in Rome , ca . 1 7 00- 1 7 5 0 . " Many references to his work, which can be found

in the compe t i tion drawings of the Concors i Clementini , will be recorded

in the catalogue of the exhib i t ion "Archit ectural Fantasy and Reality , "

which i s scneduled to open on September 2 7 , 1 9 8 1 , in the Museum o f Art

o f The Pennsylvania S tate Univers ity .

37
For Pierre de Villeneuve ' s proj ect s ee P . Marconi , A . Ciprian i ,

E . Valerian i , I Dis egni di Architettura dell ' Archivio S torico del l '

Accademia Nazionale d i San Luc a , Rome , 1 9 74 , I . nos . 1 8 9- 1 94 .

38
carlo Fontana, Il Tempio Vaticano e sua Origine , Rome , 1 694 , 23 3f ,

describes the difficulties of the contruction o f the Scala Regia in

 223

detail, and mentions with great respect for Bernini ' s work the "abbon-

danza di lume o t t enuto artificiosamen te dal l Vol ta del s econdo Torno ,

'a s egno che rendesi la medesima luminos issjma 11 Cf . H . Brauer and

R. Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen , 93f ; M . and M . Fagiolo deil ' Arco ,

Bernini , 234 , pl . 4 1 , scheda , 1 9 7 . X

Another prize-winning s tudent o f the Accademia d i San Luca ,

Bernardo Antonio Vittone , was also drawn t o Bernini ' s Scala Regia

during his Roman soj ourn ( 1 7 3 1 - 3 3 ) and published its scheme in an

engraving in his I s truzioni diverse concernente l ' officio dell '

Architetto Civile , Lugano , 1 7 6 6 , pl . XX . See w. Oechslin, Bildungs-

gut und Antikenrezeption , 1 44 .

 224

39
Nicola Sabatin i , Pratica d i Fabbricar Scene e Macchine ne Teatri ,

2nd Ed . , Ravenna , 1 638 , 20f .

40
H . Hager , "Un Riesame di Tre Cappelle d i Carlo Fontana a Roma , "

Commentari , XXVII , 1 9 7 6 , 2 6 2 . Giovanni B a t t i s ta Contini ' s perfectly

analogous employment of the same device can be obs erved in the Cappella

Elci at S . Sabina ( 1 6 7 1- 1 68 8 ) and in the chapel dedicated to S . Pietro

di Alcantara at S . Maria in Aracoeli ( 1 682-84 ) . To these can be added

as a further example the chapel of the High Altar of the church of

S . Maria del Miracolo at Bolsena by Fontana ' s disciple Tommaso Mat tei ,

for which Francesco Trevisani furnished the altar painting representing

the "Ma s s of B o l s ena . " The si tuation of the chapel is reminiscent of

Bernini ' s Cappella della Beata Ludovice Albertoni at San Francesco a

Ripa in Rome ( 1 6 7 1-74 ; see R . Hittkower , Bernin i , 2 5 7 f . no . 6 ) . The

construction of the church of S . Maria del Miraco lo , which was supported

by Inno cent XII with a donation of S c . 2 , 00 0 , was b egun in 1 6 93 and

termina ted in raw s tage by 1 66 9 . See A . Adam i , Della S toria d i Volseno

Metropo l i della Toscana , Rome, 1 7 34 , II , 4 8 7 f ; C . Ricc i , S . Cris tina

e il Lago di Bolsena , Milan, 1 9 28 , 1 8 8 . The altarpiece was placed in

position in 1 7 04 (F . R . DiFederico , Franc esco Trevisani , Eighteenth Centurv

Painter in Rome , A Catalogue Raisonn /, \Vashington D . C . , 1 9 7 7 , 1 6 , 4 6 f ,

no . 3 1 , p l . 2 5 ) .
 225

41
N . Carboner i , Andrea Pozzo Arch i t e t to ( 1 642-1 709) , Trento ,

1 96 1 , 62f ; B . Kerber , Andrea Pozzo , Berl in--New York, 1 9 7 1 , 8 4 f .

42
For the building history o f the Palazzo Chigi , where Carlo

Fontana assis ted Bernini in the elaboration of the formal designs ,

etc . , see E . Coudenhove-Erthal , Carlo Fontana , 24f ; H . Brauer and

R . Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen, 1 2 7 f ; H . Hibbard , Carlo Maderno and

Roman Architecture 1 58 0- 1 6 3 0 , University Park, Pennsylvania , and

London, 1 9 7 1 , 2 1 3 f .

43 .
. 11 �· �n
Domen�co Mart�ne . t he c �ty
· .
P a1 ace o f Pr�nce L �ec
" h tenste�n
.

( 1 6 9 2- 1 70 5 ) and Fischer von Erlach in the Palais Battyany Schonborn

( 1 69 9- 1 7 1 7 ) . Cf . B . Grimsch i t z , Wiener Barockpala s t e , Vienna , 1 94 7 ,

9 f , 1 8 f (pls . 1 3 , 2 8 ) ; H . Sedlmayr , Fischer von Erlach , 64 , 1 0 1 f .

44
A. Braham and H . Hager , Carlo Fontana , 1 6 , 1 1 4 . The Do gana d i

Terra would have been even more easily recognizable as a derivative

of the Palazzo Chigi , if the originally envisaged balustrade with

statues , visible on the medal of 1 69 6 , had been executed , but it was

replaced by an attic during construction . See E . Coudenhove-Erthal ,

Carlo Fontana , 6 9 f .

45
H . Sedlmayr , Fischer von Erlach , 2 2 , 4 3 , 5 5 £ , 7 6 , 86 , 9 1 , 1 1 5

1 1 7 , 1 2 8 ; G . Kuna th , Die H i s torische Architektur Fischers von Erlach ,

Dusseldor f , 1 9 5 6 , 1 5 3 ; H . Aurenhammer , Johann Bernhard Fischer von

Erlach , 1 656- 1 7 2 3 . Exhibition Catalogue, Vienna--Munich , 1 9 5 6 , 1 02£

ca t . 28 ; J . B . Fischer von Erlach, London, 1 9 7 3 , 98 . H . Lorenz , Wiener

Jahrbuch fur Kunstgeschichte , 6 3 £ . As for the model of Bernini ' s first

 226

Louvre pro j ec t , Antoine Le Pautre ' s engraved ideal plan for a castle

(published in 1 6 5 2 ) , s e e R . W. Berger , "Antoine Le Pautre and the Motif

of the Drum-without-dome , " Journal of the Society o f Architectural His-

torians , XXV , 1 9 66 , 1 7 0f .

46
H . Hager, Filippo Juvarra , 24 .

47
c f . H . Brauer and R . Wittkower , Die Zeichnungen , 1 6 3 f ; M . and M .

Fagiolo dell Arco , Bernini , scheda 2 1 7 .

48
w . Oechslin, B ildungsgut und Antikenrezeption , 1 44 .

49 .
The construction of the building , which was erected in the so-

called "Georgian style , " took place between 1 9 29 and 1 9 3 1 . Bernini

might have been touched by this proof of the vitality o f this archi-

tectural invention, which reached into reas so remote from Rome and

hav e l ived for so long beyond his own time . But whether or no t he would

have approved o f this kind of adaptation is best left open to speculation.

50
This is vven true for Bernini ' s las t work o f architecture , which

is very small in scale : the tabernacle o f the Holy Sacrament in S .

Peter ' s ( 1 673-74 ) , where again the mo tif o f the peristyle is used , now

surrounding a completely cylindrical s tructure in the mos t traditional

way . Howeve r , i t is d i fferent from all i t s proto types , such as Bramante ' s

tempie t to in S . Pietro in Montorio , and the form o f the drum i s more in

the fashion of Montano ' s tempiet t i , entirely compo sed o f concave compart-

ments . Carlo Fontana must have recognized immediately the po tential o f

this unusual compos i t io n , even before the tabernacle was completed , be-

cause it became one of the major sources for his dome of the Cathedral

in Montefiascone ( 1 670-74) where Fontana cut out concave niches in the

already-existing drum--as he later reported--to reduce the exaggerated

 t;
t..

227
•

weight and improve the conditions for l ighting the interior . Cf .

P . Portoghes i , Roma Barocca , The Historv o f an Architectonic Culture ,

Cambridge, Mass . , 1 9 7 0 , 4 5 9 ; H . Hager , "Die Kuppel d es Domes in Monte­

fiascone . Zu einem borrominesken Experiment von Carlo Fontana ,

Romisches Jahrbuch rur Kunstgeschichte, 1 5 , 1 97 5 , 1 4 7 .

228
 229

Allan Braham

BERNINI AND FRENCH ARCHITECTURE

I t was less in architec ture than in sculpture and painting

that Bernini ' s supremacy manifes ted itself throughout Europe in

1
the late 1 7 th century . His approach to architec ture , as is well

known, was not that of a professiona l , and though in I taly archi-

tec ture had long been a legitimate field for the free expr ession

of personal genius , elsewhere in Europe, and especially in France ,

much closer adherence to a narrow interpretation o f antique prece-

dent , itself related to a s trict observance of social priorities

(covered by the term convenance) , was expected of the architec t .

Bernini ' s building and architectural proj ects evolved in much the

same manner that his sculpture did , and though far simpler in articu-

lation, they embody the same revolutionary principles of styl e .

Nonetheles s , they are relatively few in numb er , covering only a

limited range of building types and usually designed to provide

a forum for scul pture and sculptural decoration as an enhancement

o f the arCh1t�ctu�e r s relative plainness .

Bernini himself was apprehensive about French reaction to his

architecture, and remarked of his design for the �ouvre that ' the

architects of France would always criticize all that he did , and

would be concerned to ensure that the pro j ec t of an I talian was no t

carried out . • 2 His first scheme for the Louvre , with i ts central

oval proj ection d erived from the plan of the east wing initiated

by Le Vau , was no t acceptable in Paris , but the idiom of Bernini ' s

architecture , reflecting the artist ' s awareness of the honor due

 230

to the Crown of France , clearly gratified the young Louis XIV

and Cobert . They arranged his visit to France in 1 66 5 and encouraged

the drafting of his third project for the Louvre ( Figure 1 ) .

Construction based upon this design (also engraved and

represented in a model) was initiated , but little more than a

course of masonry was laid--a wall recently uncovered in excavations

3
at the east o f the Louvre and subsequently dernolished . The cost

o f the proj ect and Bernini ' s reluctance to consider in exhaustive

detail the functional d emands of the palace , itself symptomatic

of a far broader approach to design, puzzled and antagonized the

French , and the King ' s interest in the Louvre at the s ame t ime

dwindled as the prospect of Versailles grew in attractiveness .

The principle of centralization which Bernini so ingeniously

manipulated in the east-front elevation by enc los ing wall planes

of varied widths with columns and pilasters , was one which the French

had recently l earned to contrive through accumulations of pavilions

of differing value . Only in the recessed bays of Bernini ' s facade,

reflecting the presence of courtyards behinc , is there a brief ack-

nowledgement of this important French principle of des ign . The

rocky bas ement of the Louvre palace , while as in B ernini ' s s cheme

for the Palazzo di Montecitorio , recalls the primitive origins of the

French moated castle, and , like the giant statues guarding the door­

way , contributes to the notionally defensive character of the palace .

Bernini expressed his pleasure when the King chose this variant of

the Plinth des ign, though daunted by the Hork Hhich sculpting the rocks

entailed ; he proceeded , though arguably Hith much less subtlety , to

 231

use the pedestal o f his bust o f Louis XIV to embody the concetto
4
of the sculpture , by suggesting the King ' s dominance of the worl d .

During his vis i t to Paris B ernini ' s advice was sought on s everal

o ther French buildings , and his s implified approach to the intricacies

of p l anning emerged clearly in his proposals for the Hotel de Lionne,

a recent building by Le Vau. A sketch at S tockholm drawn in chalk

5
on an engraved p lan of the hotel my Marot (Fig . 2) appears to show

Bernini rapidly surveying the problem of creating a vestibule on the

central axis of the cour t , adjacent to the staircas e , as recorded

in Chantelou ' s j ournal, and tackl ing the consequent difficulty o f

6
aligning the sequence o f rooms o n the garden s ide o f the building .

It was to be many years before regularity in p lanning and s impli-

f icat ion in massing was admitted as a priority in French architecture,

and if the King was not yet ready to dominate the world , his supremacy

within his own kingdom was sufficient to ensure that no subj ect of

his built on the s ca l e and pat tern suggested by B ernini for the Louvre .

Though p o s s ible echoes o f Bernini ' s proj ect o c cur in French buildings

o f the late 1 7 th c entury, in the s implif ied charact er of the pavilions

at Marly, for exampl e , or l N the use of balustrades and statues to create

a unified sky l in e , even very dis cordantly-at Versailles , court architects

were able to approach the s c ale of B ernini ' s des igns only in their work

for foreign client s , as in de Cotte ' s schemes fo r S trasbourg and Madrid .

The principle of using columns and pilas ters for emphasis irrespective

of the projection which they were to define appears to emerge only in

the mid-18th century, in Gabriel ' s early des igns for Versailles (Fig . 3) .

In the grand proj ec t of 1 7 59 a giant order of Co rinthian columns and

 232

pilasters articulates the Court Royale and , as is evident from Gabriel ' s

plans , the punctuation o f the facade resides largely in the order rather
7
than the wall surf a c e.

In addition to the artistic control exerted in France through the

Academies and through the respect ins tinctively shown for the rules o f

convenanc e , which affected above a l l any costly building proj ect , many

French architects appear to have remained in relative ignorance of

Bernini ' s architectur e . Though painters and s culptors had been s ent

to Rome to comp l et e their education s ince shortly after the foundation

of the Academie Roy a l e , they were not j o ined in Rome by promising

French architects until after 1 7 2 0 . S imilarly , among the many foreign,

especially German , c lients and pupils of Bernini ' s main architec tural

heir , Carlo Fontana, only one Frenchman is recorded , Cardinal de Forbin

Janson, who commiss ioned from Fontana a modest building for France that

8
was probably never executed .

Compared with the enthusiasm shown for Bernini by French architects

of the later 18th century , and the influence he was ��while to exert

9
on the course o f painting and sculptur e , the lack o f direct response

to his architecture before about 1 7 5 0 is all the more s triking . His

chief apologist in late 1 7 th c entury France was apparently the little-

10
known Abbe d e L a Chamb r e , and the only building o f the 'Rococo ' p eriod

that clearly recalls a des ign of Bernini ' s is the portico of the chapel

of the Irlandais (Fig . 4) , ( 1 7 34 ) and a transcription by the equally

11
little-known Pierre B o s cry of the port ico of S . Andrea al Quirinale .

Though architecture in the early 18th c entury France , mat ching exuberance

of decoration with feats of ingenious interior p lanning was not discordant

 233

with its s ister arts , the special influence o f B ernini ' s architecture ,

as dis t inct from his general imp act o n the arts , is rarely apparent .

I t might be exp ected that an architect like Boffrand, for exampl e ,

who se elaborate architectural compos i tions frequently incorporate

curved wall surfaces , would reveal some knowl edge of B e rnini ' s designs ,

although B ernini certainly held no monopoly on curves as such, nor

were they indispensible in his buildings . Bof frand ' s chateau des igns ,

however , were clearly modelled on the court architecture of Louis XIV,

and only in some o f his more mode sr buildings may an· unexp ected Roman

inflection appear (Fig . 5) . The Hotel Amelot de Gournay , the most

ingenious of Boffrand ' s to�vn hous es , is centered upon a s ingle ' pavi­

ion ' with a convex facade ris ing above the roofs of the flanking ser­

vice buildings at the end of its oval courtyard. Although the order

rises directly from the cour t , the compos ition distantly echoes the

broken curves of Bernini ' s se cond Louvre proj e ct and the mass ing of the

Palazzo Chigi-0descalchi . Yet exteriors as inventive as Boffrand ' s

Hotel Amelot were a rare phenomenon in early 1 8th-c entury Pari s , where

lower and more regular buildings had become fashionable , dis t inguished

by liveliness in internal p lanning and in decoration.

It was paradoxically, with the decline of the ' Ro c o co ' s ty l e ,

t o which Bernini had so greatly contributed , that his architec ture

appears to have been fully appreciated in France . At a t ime when the

French classical tradition was in decl ine and the principles of contrast

and centralization on which B ernini ' s own work had been based were los ing

importance, s ome o f the more personal characteristics o f B ernini ' s archi-

 234

tecture found an appreciative audience in France, and contributed

significantly to the expressive character of architecture in the

later 1 8 t h century.

One of the dis t inguishing features of Bernini ' s exp erimental

approach to architecture·w"'"� p a r ticularly r ecommended his work in

mid-18th c entury France was his affection for free-standing columns

and s traight lintels , emp loyed mos t conspicuously in the Piazza of

S t . Peter ' s , and also shown as part of a church interior in the

perspectives behind the devo t ional portraits in the Cornaro chapel .

The idea o f S t . Peter ' s itself being built in the style o f Bernini ' s

Piazza, and thus approximating a classical temp l e , was the dream o f

the Abbe d e Cordemoy a t the beginning o f the 18th century. Later

taken up by the Abbe Laugier with reference to the origins of archi-

tec ture , deriving from Laugier ' s notion of the primitive hut , Soufflot
12
embodied this propo s i t ion in his designs of 1 7 5 7 for St e-Genevieve.

S t . Peter ' s itself had been intensively studied by Sougglot as a young

architect in Rome , and many French architects . who followed him to Rome

felt the church ' s fas c ination . Souffl o t ' s friend , Dumont even borrowed

the plan of the church for a bizarre garden design (Fig . 6) with a ·

stepped pedestal replacing the baldacchino , and fountains at the end

o f the choir and transep ts .

I f Soufflo t ' s church was indirectly indebted to Bernini for the

presence of its free-standing columns , much o f the decoration of the

church in the early proj ects was s t il l within the tradition Bernini

imposed on ecclesiastical decoration (Fig . 7 ) . A dr a,<'ing o f the later

 �; 1
235

1 7 50s for a transept shows a tableau, presumably representing a vision

of S t . Genevieve , which is a more patent derivation from Bernini than

many such tableaux o f the earlier 18th century , even though i t is

13
placed between two s everely rectilinear wall monuments . With the

later proposal to incorporate a reliquary o f S t . Genevieve in the center

of the cross ing (Fig . 8) , framed by a burst of heavenly rays on the

east wall of the church, Bernini ' s transformation of the interior o f

S t . Peter ' s would f inally have found a worthy r ival i n France.

Crit ics of Soufflo t ' s generation were unrelenting in their hostili-

ty to Borromini and Guarini , but Bernini ' s buildings were exemp ted from

the g eneral condemnation o f 1 7 th-century I talian architec ture ; they

even approached the works o f Palladia in popularity . In Cochin ' s

account o f the works o f art that he had s een in I tlay when travelling

with Soufflot and the Marquis de Marigny in 1 7 5 0 , the church at Ar icci a ,

14
for examp l e , was s ingled out for prais e . The impact o f this church

was most apparent in French architecture in the �ej ects of Jean-Laurent

Legeay, who influenced the two great architectural draf tsmen o f the late

18th century in Franc e, de Wailly and Boullee. Legeay ' s designs for the

cathedral o f S t . Hedwig in Berlin obviously recall Ari c c i a , and in his

late des ign of 1 7 6 6 for a church fur Paris dedicated to the Trinity

(Fig . 9 ) , though based in plan on Borromini ' s S . Iva , the same derivation

is indirectly apparen t , especially in the design of the portico and its

15
relation to the circular body of the church .

D e Wailly , Legeay ' s proteg e , was the French architect m o st open to

the full impact of Bernini ' s wo rk, and as a pensionnaire at the French

Academy in Rome he recorded in his virtuoso drawings many of Bernini ' s

 236

achievements , including the Cathedra of S t . Peter (Fig . 10) . The

memory of B ernini ' s mas terpiece remained with him in the 1780s when
16
he created the beautiful pulpit in S t . Sulpice . In a s eries of

drawings (Fig . 11) Bernini ' s Cathedra was gradually transformed and

s implified, and in the final design (Fig . 12) little more than the

idea of the suspension o f the pulpit over a void is retained , with

statues on the flanking piers . Without the survival of de Wally ' s

drawings it would be unclear how far a work of B ernini had contributed

to the express ive charac ter of the design, a modest contribution to

the architecture parlante o f the perio d .

In addition to its significance for ecclesiastical architec ture ,

the massive Piazza o f S t . Peter ' s , became equally relevant for s ecular

architecture in France. Academic proj ects of the mid-century , including

de Wailly ' s Prix de Rome drawing of 1752 and the projects that his col-

league Marie-Jo seph Peyre des igned in Rome, follow the Piazza in plan

and in the use of free-s tanding columns , though neither de Wailly nor

Peyre was immediately to receive a commiss ion that p ermi tted the full

development of these early fantas ies . The same was not true of Victor

Louis , who sketched B ernini ' s Piazza when he too was a pens ionnaire

in Rome (Fig . 13) . Shortly thereaf ter , Louis was involved in the re-

designing of the palace of Warsaw for King S tanislas Poniatowski , and

he proposed a forecourt for the castle that in plan derives unmistake-

17
ably from Bernini ' s Piazza (Fig . 14) .

In France no comparab l e pro j ects for a royal palace were produced

until the series of ' grand proj ects ' of the 1780s for Versailles . The
 237

chateau itself in these very late s chemes , most of which are known

only in plan, has inevitably the simplified and cubic appearance of

Bernini ' s f inal Louvre proj ect , a ' Roman ' character that refers beyond

the Renaissance to the architecture of classical Rome , but it is to

Bernini that several of the proj ects for the forecourt refer, esp ecially

those of Antoine-Francais Peyre and Pierre-Adrien Paris , the archi­

18
tect of the Menus-Plaisirs du Ro i (Fig . 15) . In the plan of Paris

a huge kidney-shaped d evelopment is proposed , largely disp ers ing the

concentration of Bernini ' s Piazza , with fountains on the axes o f the

Avenues de Sceau and de S t . Cloud flanked by s emi-circular stables

with facades of free-s tanding columns .

Like s o many French architectural designs of the late 18th ,

century Paris proj ect for Versailles is largely 'vis ionary ' in

character , drafted with little hope o f eventual execut ion and all

the more s tartlinj in des ign . There was , however , one imaginative

element that Bernini , as a sculp tor , had introduc e4 into architecture

which had a practical relevance to some of the most famous monuments

of late 18th century in France . This was the use of naturalis t ic rocks

in conj unction with architectur e , an idea taken up most notably by

Ledoux and others of his generation ; for them a much closer relation-

ship between a building and its setting was of s upreme importance .

The use o f sculpted rocks became widespread in the many so-called

' English' p arks of late 18th-century France , and this taste was also

expressed in s culpture, notably in Falconet ' s equestrian statue of

Peter the Great which s t ands upon a block of granit e embedded in the

ground . Even a grandiose variant of B ernini ' s Four Rivers fountain,

 �.·
238

of which d e Wailly had made drawings , was projected for a s ite near the

Louvre in 1 7 7 7 as a monument to the beneficence of the young Louis XVI

(Fig . 16) . This is a l ittle-known design by the Aub e de Lubersa c , re­

corded in an engraving which shows in the ba ckground Le Vau ' s College­

des-Quatre-Nations and the newly comp leted Hotel des Monnaies by Antoine .

The expressive possibilities of j uxtaposing rocks and architecture

as developed in B ernini ' s final Louvre design were explored most

evo catively in the later 18th century by Ledoux (Fig . 1 7 ) . Where

the context was appropriate , as in the entrance to his sal t-works

at Arc and Senans , the rustication s eems hewn from the l iving rock

rather than merely founded upon a base of s tone . In later buildings

by Ledoux the use of rock became more extensive and was introduced

with a logic and cons istency akin to that of Bernini. The principal

salon of the house of Mme de Thelusson was perched upon a cliff over­

looking a sunken garden at the front o f the hous e , and yet more radical
19
are the unexecuted designs for the Chateau of Eguiere (Fi g . 18) .

This was to be a villa of obvious Palladian derivation, lying over a

small river with arches of rock supporting two of the sides of the

building . Like the pulpit of S t . Sulp ice, though in a quite different

context, the express ive character of the design resides in the principle

of unseen suspension , a building over a void supported on a cavern of

natural rock.
 239

NOTES

1
on the general theme of Bernini ' s influence on French architecture

see Daniel Rabreau and Michel Gallet , "La Chaire de Sa int-Sulp i c e . Sa

cr �ation p a r Charles de Wailly e t l ' exemple d u B ernin en France � la

fin de l ' Ancien R�gime , " Bulletin de la So ci �t { de l ' histoire de Paris

e t de l ' lle-de-Franc e, 1 9 7 1 , 1 15 f f , especially part III , with f urther

bibliography .

2
Quoted by Ludovic Lalanne , "Journal du voyage du Cavalier Bernin

en France , " Gazette des Beaux-Art s , 18 7 7 , XV , 1 83 .

3
For Bernini ' s foundations see Alain Erlande-Brandenburg , Les

fouilles du Louvre et les projets de le Vau, La Vie Urbaine, 1 9 6 4 ,

4 , 2 4 1 f f , with reference to earlier literature on Bernini ' s Louvre

proj ect s .

4
Rudolph Wittkower , Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1 9 6 6 ; 1 6 , 246-24 7 .

5
National Museum, S to ckholm , THC . 6 . 288 .

6
see Chantelou ' s Journal, entry for 20 August 1 6 6 5 .

7
This aspect o f Gabriel ' s proj ects is fully analyzed , in relation

to Blondel ' s criticism of Bernini ' s architectur e , by Christopher Tad­

gel l , Ange-Jacques Gabriel , 1 9 7 8 , 56-5 8 ,

8
Allan Braham and Hellmut Hager , Carlo Fontan�The Drawings at

Windsor C a s t l e , 1 9 7 7 , 1 0 5 -6 .

9
on the problems o f dis t inguishing the influence of Bernini on

painting and)culpture of this period , see the related paper in this

 240

series by Cecil Gould.

10 /
J . Vanusem , "Quelques temoinages francais sur le Bernin et son
)
' /
art--l ' abbe de La Chambre" in Actes des journ e es nationales de l ' etude

du Barogue � Montauban (1963) , Toulous e , 19 6 5 , noted by Rabreau and

Gal le t , 1 2 7 .

11
See E . Ybl , "Une chapelle berninesque a Paris , " in Acta Historiae

Artium , IV, 195 6 , 1-2 ; 143-44 ; and on Bos cry see Michel Gallet , Paris

Domes tic Architecture of the 18th century , 197 2 ; 14 5 .

12
on this aspect of Soufflot ' s church and the related ideas of
/
Cordemoy and Laugier, s ee especially Robin Middleton , "The Abbe de

Cordemoy and the Graeco-Gothic Ideal : a Prelude to Romantic Clas sicism , "

The Journal o f the Warburg and Courtauld Ins t i tutes , 1962 , 3-4 ; 278 ff .

13 '
Allan Braham , "Drawings for Soufflot ' s Sainte-Genevieve , "

The Burlington Magazine, 1971, pp 582 ff .

14
charles-Nicolas Cochin, Voyage d ' Italie, 1 7 5 8 .

15 /
For the proj ects o f Legeay , see Jean-Marie Perouse de Montclos ,
'
Etienne-Louis Boulee , 1 9 6 9 , 39-4 6 .

1 6Rabreau
and Gallet , parts I and I I .

17
F . G . Pariset and S . Lorentz in Victor Louis e t Varsovie, Mus �
/
Jacquemart-Andre, Paris , 195 8 .

18 /
Perouse de Mont clo s , op . ci t , 143-4 6 ; Peyre ' s project is illus-

trated by Louis Hautecour, His toire de l ' architecture clas s ique en

France, V, 1 95 3 ; 17 7 .
 241

19
The project for the Ch� teau of Egui�re , which Ledoux may

have altered for publication in his Architecture (1804) , is possibly

o f the 1 7 80s , when Ledoux was at Aix-en-Provence . The relation

between his work and B ernini ' s appears not to have been fully

explored in the Ledoux literatur e .

242
 243
Cecil Gould

BERNINI ' S INFLUENCE ON FRENCH SCULPTURE AND PAINTING

Bernini 1'Svisit to Paris in the summer of 1 665 was due in part to

what would now be called "political" factors; and it was also the cul-

ruination of years of sporadic communication between Bernini and France.

To the French, it was unlikely that the results of the j ourney j us tified

the colossal expense and effort which had gone in to getting him to Paris

and maintaining him there in princely fashion .

Though French sculptors who subs equently executed busts of Louis

XIV and other male notables could not overlook Bernini ' s own bust of the

Kin g , or remain entirely unaffected by i t , and though, as Rudolph Wittkower

pointed out , his much maligned equest rian statue even exerted some influence
1
on Le Brun, Bernini ' s impact on the figurative arts in France remained

very limited for nearly forty years ·after the visit , Bernini executed

no paintings in Franc e , but he did leave b ehind a number of f inished

drawings which he had g iven away as presents . I have yet to find evidence

that French artis ts did painting from them .

When Bernini finally exercised a dec isive influence on the figurative

arts in France , it came from a direct ion independent of his French visit .

At intervals during the firs t half of the 18th century certain French

sculp tors who had done a stint at the French academy in Rome showed them-

s elves more dra•� to the works o f Bernini than to the Antique, while

during the s ame period certain painters drew inspiration for their pic tures

from sculpture by him.

In principle this is not surpris ing . Part of the quid E!£ quo for

the substantial p ension which Bernini drew from the French crown after he

returned from Paris was that he k e ep an eye on the ne'" French academy in
 244

Rome and exercise some guidance. We know that he did this during the last

fif teen years of his life, and it would therefore be natural if the

French students responded. What seems less natural is that they should

have waited for .,an� years before doing so , and should then have produced

their most Berni�sque works long after their return to France.

One probable reason for this state of affairs was the virtual

dictatorship over the figurative arts exercised by Charles Le Brun .

Though Bernini ' s recorded remarks on the value o f Antique art in the

training of young artists were in line with orthodox academic dogma in the

17th century , most o f his own work was not . And though most critics have

detected a swing towards a kind of Baroque in the development of Le Brun ' s

work at Versailles , his sympathies with I talian art do not seem to have

extended much later than Annibale Carrac c i , and certainly not as far as

Bernini. Nothing , it s e ems to me , supports this view so much as a con-

s ideration o f the garden sculpture at Versailles executed during Le Brun ' s

lifetime. Here, i f anywhere, one would expect to find traces o f Bernini ' s

influence . But I see none . Though Le Brun lived until 169 � much o f his

influence had evaporated with Colbert ' s death in 1 6 8 3 . But i t was not
/
until the Rubenistes routed the Poussinistes in 1 7 00 that French artists

were able to look at B ernini with unprej udiced eyes , o r , alternatively ,

to " come out" with the latent B erninism contracted during their student

days in Rome.

The point of break-through can be identified precisely . It o ccurred

in the most extensive decorative undertaking of the new century--the

Versailles chapel--completed in 1 710 . After his death in 1708, Jules-

Hardouin Mans art ' s p lace as architect came into the hands of his brother- in-la'"
 245

and assis tant , Robert de C o t te . He had done a spell in Rome and is likely

to have had a good deal of s ay over the decoration.

Even the external decoration is unmistakably Berni�sque : a

series o f grandiloquent statues o f sacred personages gesticulate on the

parap e t , The bas ic idea o f the interior o f the Versailles chapel where-

by the King could enter the royal gallery on the level of his private

apartments , while the res t of the Court were below, at ground floor level ,

itself derives from Bernin i ' s plan fo r the Louvre chapel . This arrange­
2
ment had been recommended in a memo randum from Colbert . The p rominence

of the royal gallery encouraged the use of free-standing co lumns in the

interior of the Versailles chapel , and th i s , too , had been a feature of

Bernini ' s Louvre chap e l , and for the s ame reas on. Antoine Coypel ' s huge

fresco on the ceiling of the nave is flanked by frescoes by de La Fo sse

and Jouvenet . Like d e Co t t e , Coypel had , many years earlier, 1 1 done a

Rome'' , where, indeed, Bernini hims elf had commended him. His fres co ,
\
as is well known , derives from Baciccio ' s ceiling of the Gesu in Rome ,

which was i t s el f a development from Bernin i ' s Cathedra P.etri . And the

Cathedra evi dently also directly inspired the s culpture relief altarpiece

in the Versailles chap e l , with its golden rays , and , at the s ides , the

kneeling angels derived from Bernini ' s in the Cappella del S acramento

'
at S t. Peter s . This altar is the work of Corneille van Cleve ' (�· 1) H e too

had s tudied Bernini during his student days in Rome more than thirty

years earlier, but in the intervening years he had remained in Le Brun ' s

iron grip . The Versailles altar in its turn produced s ome surprising
'
progeny . A contributory factor was probably the success o f Juste-Aurele

Meissonnier ' s engraved designs , some of which date from the 1 7 20 ' s . I
 246

(' know o f no evidence that Meissonnie� visited Rome (though he was born in

Turin) , but some o f his designs for s culpted altarpieces are intensely

Berni �sque in the Cathedra tradition .

3

·
� is kind o f sculp tural altarpiece with Berninesque gold rays

and clouds quickly b e came the s t andard for revamping the choirs o f French
,..
Gothic cathedrals throughout the 18th century-- to the s p eechless fury o f
v
the 19th , which removed some, but not all o f them . An exampl e is the high

altar o f Amiens cathedral ( Fig .z) by Dupuis and Chris toph l e . Whereas

the Versailles altarpiece tv-as res trained by the arch behind i t , at Amien s ,

as i n Bernini ' s Cathedra P e t r i , the rays appear t o exp lode , concealing

the pillars o f the choir behind them . Her e , far more than a t Versailles ,

or even Chartres, we may recognise the apotheosis o f the Berni�sque

s culpted altarpiece in Fran c e . Ul timately Berninesque g o l d rays and

'
Bernin�sque clouds in low relief invaded the decorative arts- -clo cks ,

coats o f arms e tc . - -produced under Louis Quin z e . They had already

appeared behind Le Lorrain 1 s celebrated Horses o f the Sun at the Ho tel de

Rohan.

There was originally yet another instance in the Versailles chapel o f

Bernini ' s influen c e , and o f a b i zarre kind . According t o d ' Argenville,

an altarpiece by the painter , J-B . S anterre, representing S t Theresa in

4
Ecstasy , had been set up in 1 7 0 9 . The picture was s.o erotic that the

pries t s , being apprehensive l e s t it over-excite the congregat ion , had

prudently declined to say Mas s at that al tar. The painting itself has

disappeared ,but B fn fzit assumes it was inspired by Bernini 1 s group in S .

5
Maria della Vittoria. This was certainly the case with another altarpiece ,

Res tout 1 s Death o f S . &holas tica o f 1 7 3 0 , painted for a convent near Tours ,

and now in the museum there (Fig . 3 ) . As Res tout 1 s biographe r , Jean �less e le t ,
 247

observe� " it is difficul t , when looking at this picture, not to think of

6
a celebrated work--the S t . Theresa o f Bernini . " It is indeed. Though

Bernini ' s tormented draperies have been greatiy simplified, and his smiling

angel trans formed into two more nuns , there is no mistaking the origin

of the inert left arm of the principal figure in bo th works , nor the

angle of the crucifix in Restout ' s pic ture, which is the s ame as that of

the arrow which is j us t about to penetrate S t . Theresa . An ecstatic vision

in life has been transformed into an ecstatic death. Like ( app arently)

Santerre, Restout did not do a Rome , but Bernin i ' s group was already well

known f rom engravings .

7
As I have tried to show elsewhere, Bernini ' s S t . Theresa owes a great

deal to Correggio , and this is relevant to the further study of Bernini ' s

influence in France . For around 1720, when the climate in France was

at las t fully favourable to Bernini ' s art , a number o f superb Correggio

works on mythological subj ects arrived in Paris with the Odes calchi

collection, and thereby affected the whole course of French 18th century

painting . It is indeed dif ficult sometimes to isolate the Correggesque

•
and the Berninesque s trands in French art in the succeeding generations ,

so harmoniously and s o inextricably are they intertwined on occasion. One

exampl e i Meissonnier, one of whos e Berni� sque s culpted altarpieces we

have already seen . But in his engraved des ign for a ceiling fresco his
8
Maria Assunta is a virtual copy of Correggio ' s at "the Parma Duomo . A

more complicated instance o f the interplay of the Correggesque and the

Bernide sque is J . F . Detroy ' s all egory of T ime revealing Truth , recently

purchas ed by the National Gallery (pl . 4 ) . The derivation of the central

\
figure from Bernini ' s marble �� is clear- even to the globe under
 248

the woman ' s foot- �d the parallel is even closer i f we consider B ernini.' s

preliminary drawings for the group , which include the f igure of Chronos ,
9
which Bernini never got round to carving . I t looks as though De troy

mus t have known these drawing s , and this would not be imp robabl e . As it

was Bernini ' s heirs who retained the marb l e , they probably s t il l had his

drawings also . J-F. De Troy was in I taly from 1 6 9 9 to 1 70 6 . The National

Gallery p icture is dated 1 7 3 3 , long after his return. De troy was evidently

deeply impressed with B ernini ' s Verit�, as he used the pose again for his
10
Cleopatra ( S trasboutg, Mus ee) , (pl . 5) .

Yet the basic idea of Bernini ' s female was not his own invention . It

comes straight out o f Correggio, as Dr . I talo Fal d i , following Rieg l ,

,, /
pointed out in 1 954 . Correggio had used it as the centre of his

allegory of Virtue , of which the unfinished version , now in Palazzo

Doria, was in B ernini ' s time in the Villa Al dobrandini in Rome .

There was one more term in this remarkable equation . Bernin i ,

we have seen, drew on Correggio, and Jean-Francais Detroy drew o n B ernini .

But Detroy, in addition, drew from the fountain head . His central f igure

has the globe under her foo t , as Bernin i ' s does , and as Correggio ' s

does no t . But the supporting f igures of Virtues on the left o f De troy ' s

picture were not included by Bernini, but do figure in Correggio ' s

picture . The precise meaning of the allegory in both paintings could

be argued at length, Jut in this context we may merely note that Correggio ' s

left hand figure has a lion ' s skin over her knees , a sword in one hand,

a bridle in the other and a serpent in her hair . Three of these a ttributes

are distributed among three of De troy ' s four femal es . The one �D the left

leans against the lion. Her neighbor has a sword in one hand and s cales
 249

in the other and the one above has a serp ent twined round her p erson. Now

if Detroy knew both Bernini ' s Verit� and also the drawings for it in Rome

there would be no reason why he should not also knm; Correggio ' s unfinished

p i cture in the Villa Aldobrandini . But the other version of the Correggio ,

the finished canvas now in the Louvre, had been in the Fr ench royal collection

s ince the 1 6 50 ' s , and in 1 7 22 the younger Richardson noted it among "the
12
French King ' s Pictures in Coypel ' s House" in Paris . I think at this

point we may say "Q . E . D11 •

The influence of B ernini ' s sculpture on paint ings by French artists

such as Santerre, Restout and J-F. Detroy is one of the most s ignificant

instances of his impact on figurative art in France. But sculpture was

his own f irst art and it is naturally there that his influence is most to

be expected . In gilded relief we sa1v it exemplified by Corneille van

C l �ve and his follmvers ; in marble by Nicolas Coustous ' Apollo for Marly ,
13
. th e TUl" 1 er1es
now 1n . . Like Corneille van C l�ve , Coustou had made a

special study of Bernini in Rome in his s tudent days , which were l ikewise

long since past by this time ( 1 713) . His debt to Bernini ' s Borghese group

needs no emphasis . But it was not in free-standing sculpture of this kind

so much as in fountain sculpture that Bernini ' s influence was most fruit-

ful . In this field even Bouchardon , who s eems by temperament to have been

Bernini-resistant, made some essays . It is regrettable that Michel-Ange

Slodt z , who is known to have paid particular attention to Bernini t s works in

Rome, does not s eem to have been 3•ven an opportunity in fk;s fiel d . The

s ame could not be said of Slodtz ' contemporary , Lambert-Sigisbert Adam.

The entry under his name in B6nezit says "AdaT'f! does not always succeed in
 250 '
� �
'

\ .

breaking away from the s tyle o f Bernini whos e influence he had undergone
14
during his residence in Italy . " This would seem to put it mildly . In

particular, Lambert-S igisbert ' s success with his proj ect for the Trevi

f ountain in Rome , as well as his work at Versailles--the central group

o f Neptune and Amphitrit e in the Bassin de Neptune, which, unlike his Trevi

design, was put into execut ion--gives the impression that a little of Bernini-

the Bernini o f the fountains--had been reborn in him . The same is true o f

Adam ' s cascade group o f Seine et Marne at S t-Cloud . His design for this-

greatly superior to the executed group as it exists today-- f igures in the

background o f his self-portrait , which in its entirety constitutes

virtually a hymn of praise to Bernini . Behind both Adam ' s S t-Cloud and

his Versailles groups there seems t o me to be s ome recollection o f a mysterious

15
fountain project by Bernini for which there are drawings at Windso r .

Two of them show Neptune and Amphitrite, another, Neptune alone. I also
A
sense some descent from this proj ect , probably indirec t , in the Nimes

sculptor, Barth,l emy Guibal ' s separate fountains o f Neptune and Amphitrite

in the Place S t anislas at Nancy .

Adam ' s marceau de r�eption at the Paris academy- the Neptune calming

the Waves o f 17 37- is also included in the background o f his self-

po�trait . It is a vivacious recreation o f Bernini ' s early group , now in

the Victoria and Albert Museum and then in the Villa Montalto in Rome .

This time Bernini himself was looking back not to Correggio but ult imately

to Leonardo , through intermediary stages which are no t entirely clear, but

. 16
may have included Stoldo Lorenzi ' s fountain i n the Boboli Gardens . The

lower portion o f Adam ' s group differs from Bernini ' s . The triton does not

blow a conch bu 9l ies vanquished between Nep tune ' s legs . A third work o f
 251

art included in Adam ' s self-portrait is a drawing held in his left hand ,

representing a variation on Bernini ' s Apollo and Daphne .

The examp les which I have shown are necessarily selective, but I hope

they may indicate that Bernini ' s impact on young Fr ench s culptors in late

1 7th Century Rome , such as Corneille van Cl�ve or Nicolas Coustou, was

initially s trong enough to remain intact in cold s torage during the dictator­

ship of Le Brun and its aftermath . Rubens then opened the door to Bernini

in France , and in the process some o f the French p ainters climbed on to the

s culptors bandwagon . In the 18th C entury French s t udents in Rome , s uch as

Slodtz or L-S . Adam, could react to Bernini without feeling s o guilty.

Berninism in the figurative arts in France was thus not so much an independent

force as rather a s trand in the complex process which went to form what is

loosely labelled as the Rococo . The fact that it has been hitherto minimized

not only by French scholars but also by influential outs iders such as Fiske

Kimball is hardly surpris ing . It is most apparent in fountain sculpture and

in altarp ieces , and both o f these fields have thems elves been minimi zed in

this context.
 252

REFERE!>CES

. ,.
:L . R. Wi ttkower : Studi e s in the I t ali an Baroque ( 1 97 5 ) , pp . 83 £f
'
2. Oeuvre d e J u s t e-Aure l e I•l ei s s onni er ., re:printed 19691 folios

59 ff. ,,
/" /' /' J �
3. D e z al l i e r d 1 Argenvi ll e : Abr e g e d e l a Vie ' de s I'lus Fameux

P eintr e s , vo l . 4 ( 1762) , u. 260 .

�
r I
4. Ben e zi t : 'lrti c l e .T - B . S an t err e .

5. J. t1 e s s el e t i n Archives d e l 1 Ar t Franc ai s , XIX ( 19 �8 ) ,

pp. 99 ff. i'

'
�
Restout 1 s altarpi e c e repr o d u c e d i n \V , T( 8.lnein & •• , T,P.vey : >
. r
'"'""
r.... �
.A r t and Archi t e c ture o f the 18th C e ntury in Franc e , l 9 7 2 , plf 2 7
([;'· ..

6. C . Gouihd : The Paintings o f C o rreggi o , l.g 7 6 . "'"' · 1 51. f'f'. r:-­

e-­
t

.'
�.
9. R en -r "l il 1 1 n nil L . niTTJ i �-r : Leco F eint-,..,., Fr->nY!-"' ; s du XVII I S i �"l "' , �
vol • 2 . nl . 6 ��

10 . I . Faldi : Gal l eri a Bore;h e s e : . . L e S c ulture dal S e c o l o XVI al .

e; .
1--'
r--
XIX , 1954, p. 41 .
c
�·
15 .
>.
11 . An A c c ount of . . . P i c tures in I t aly , 1722. u.
� .
12. Repro d u c e d Lalnein and Levey, op ,
,,
ci t . , nl. . 32.
'

13. B ln b zi t ; arti c l e Adam, L-S . '

'
r.
�. '
14. Brau e r & Wittkow e r , op. cit. , pp . 5 3/ 4 .

15. C , G ou l d : Le'on:1rd o 1 s N eptune DrR.wine; . Burlington I·l 8 8:8 Z i n e ,

195 2 , rrp . 289 ff . .

L
�-
.0.:·'·
�-
:.;z
r··
,...
'
.

I
253
 254
Jllrg Garms

INTEREST IN BERNINI IN THE MID-EIGHTEENTH

CENTURY : - SALVI AND VA1'VITELL I , ETC.

'
The task before us is to ascertain the degree to which Bernini S

was still--or was once again--present in Roman architecture � the

1" /... AN<.: c.. h<JsU<.
mid-eighteenth century . Alia SHGO·�Nicolo Salvi and Luigi Vanvitelli

as �.-hi 1 -ged:=l:>tlt-.. e-t�resentative� f this period atrlc"fj h.- t /.. w�

tr:u.M &;_ ' �
f!v.e)J... ( t-� &!...., " f1.v. "" rv ,
The answer is neither easy nor univocal ; it would be far simpler

if we were considering Borromini . In the first half of the eighteenth

0

not onty·
century , Borromini ' s influence was omnipresen where decorative inven- J\
tion was concerned , but also with respect to the essence of being an
I 't-o,.. .f.v.. teA:-'( , :.f\­
artist its elf : the rational method of design and the Be3:rtt3 of s truc-
�-,._.1.
�
I

l ture decor� tion. A process of elimination followed after the mid-

!vt w t.,... (..l..{,... '1-· J 1
century , a rel'udia.tien ef J:l><!"(legacy Borromini wV<A rc.f' �ccl_;" k,.LQ
"�
And yet Borromini , left no established school ; at the time the

artistic "genealogical tr€.e" of our artists always wound back to

b-1 ·
Bernini , however one conceives the process �hich they developed;

one need only mention Carlo Fontan) and Valeri , Filippo Juvarra and
1
Antonio Canevari .
A
figure in this discussio'}l one never has the

innne diate and full sensation: "Here is Bernini . " His legacy is nearly
�
always mediated and traaofg'Fm:eei .

O<�v..<' "4 }-:--

But before � to the examples which illustrate this situation , _
;o. Kt >l'
I would like to offer ,.. further preliminary remarks . Th� concern indi­
/1

cations--hi � y external--of the continuity of the high Baroque into

t-!J.o<-<.c(.
our perio d ,T__
quite simply , � ·the influence of Bernini, Borromini ,

and Pietro a Cortona . f

'
There are only two relevant points here : the

evidence of designs in which works by the three architects are copied

 255

2
and evidence from Vanvitelli ' s letters .

For the Clementine- compe titions , students in the third class

c.
of architecture a t the A,.\'ademia di San Luca were asked to present 1 t
0 1\L ,.. �t. . u. .

reliefs of a Roman architectural work chosen by the professors-- �thus would

be
certainly a work deemed worthy o f imitation. A partial list of the
l\
..... ,....
works chosen includes : 1 7 0 4 , the altar of the Cauella A la leona ;
n
1 706 , the central part of the facade of San Andrea al Ouiriual e ;

1 707 , the facade o f the Palazzo Barberini ; from then until 1 725 ,
.

works by Borromini and Cortona; 1 7 3 2 , the altar and tabernacle o f

the Cappella del Sacramento in S t . Peter ' s ; subsequently, works by

1\
Cortona and Borromini ; in 1 779 , the Cappella Raimondi and in 1 795 ,
),
the altar of the Sacramento a t S t . Peter ' s again. 3
t-h.t �c,J.,�
' 0 1t
..j-yt:...;...
In one o f my articles I aeaght to establish that1 copying classic

examples wa � central to Van� ite �l i ' s pedagogical idea jl.�••d=eerteiR� W<. L( ;;. �
V '"" �'- cu--: V\� tO�e'.�IS .J )-
�to those of Salvi (which eQTTO�pORGS to the well-known ,C<lt!!l3ei ali,v-;>(.L.
,

ef iontan� the young Juvarra) . 4

Among the relevant designs of Piermarini (which can be dated

t\..t...
between 1 7 6 2 and 1764) , we find1Palazzo Barberini and San Andrea,

but Borromini appears more often, for example, via different aspects

of S . . Andrea dell a Vall e . Among the numerous designs o f Girolamo

Toma in the drat·1ing collection at Palazzo Braschi and the Busiri-

Vici collection, there is S . Andrea al Quirinale again, but also ��

Palazzo ..Ea·n1e.s e and the Farnes ina , Villa Madama and )'alazzo Yidoni-
.

Caffarelli , S . Carlino, and the Chigi and Cibo chapels . Toma , an

unknown architec t , was in the second class at the Accademia di San

 256

Luca , as was Virginia Bracci , with whom Toma and Andrea Vici probably

formed a group . Like Pierrnarini, they too were first with Carlo Mur-

ena in Rome (himself a disciple and successor of S<lvi and Vanvitelli) ,

shto.:e� �A�Act.u.-- ·
and later during the 1 760s they Eeek�Vanvitell ��cour s�n Caserta. ,
'
c(l'J_ J-
According to these criteria , Bernini Q.ees. not o ccupy a �- 'fteCA.'a.J-
.
position within the Roman tradition, as he liJaa aeen, b�e first re-
(_.,_w.- \f"\'e<w<:� w.:-
formers of the eighteenth centurY,/. in fact , quite the contrary .
� f"-
Lea:ling thiet:t'gh Vanvitelli ' s letters while· ·liC i'fl Naples
. was

.
to his brother Urbano
�- y
A� recipient oft-'\-.•);:·benifices��from S t . Peter ' s)
S v�.w t
·

e&H'lregin
·

in Rome) , 'ii'e to reddi2e �Ab eyond t.R.e- continuous comparisons

::J�
l>etweea, Rome and Naples ( largely unfavorable to the latter) , \lanvi ten.ik

held a 11cer tain idea" o f Rome .

notiov.s
�'o ov.t" """l ._;?;"";}1 '-"'-
.
Although difficult to grasp , this idea
9-
revolved around the serious .and grand ,in archi tectur e , .i-t-s---Ei �
/\ ) ,
that is , to fixed values connected with Rome and especially with

the epicenter of S t . Peter ' where Vanvitell i , like Bernini , had been
,
uf,
chief architec t . Here Bernini enter)!' o f necessity: " S t . Peter ' s should

not b e nibbled on by just anyone, ,S ...,t"}he

�
baldachins for the reli-

quary niches in the piers executed by the foundryman Giardoni are

./

condemned also because �rtisan claimed to have adhered precisely

6
to Bernini ' s model , but in reality he departed from i t . Additionally ,
k:. kv.L- ""'-'- �_,_
in Vanvitelli ' s letteiS\tfie R�e• cf references to Borromini and Cortona
�
;s larg� , especially to the latter , of whom Vanvitelli demanded details
7
so as to make use of them in his own designs . As for Bernini , there

is only a detached "a delle cose belle, rna vi sana delle altre non

imitabili; per altro il tut t ' insieme � cos a degna del Berninitt with

reference to designs for the Louvre , a recognition of a classic defense

 257

against the French , nothing more.

g

Let us turn to the testimony offered by the works themselves .

. :6 1-i-r, 4� - • ,
. I . dv
. 1-:::'
Sal.vi
e/- ().-� C... ,O 't"oj L-e.k / h vJn.�''
I
0.}1.- "" �,

-±<
.:r:..
He4 l.=J
7.£4.<;
5_,,, and Vanvitelli .ia- collaborat"'- �eenerete contact :z;<...C�
" ·

�
.;, rHo
with a work by Bernini which they al tered profoundly; Duke Odeschalchi ' s

enlargement o f the Palazzo Chigi . For our purposes , this fact is un-
......� \) �
important, since obviously there was little � for artistic choices .

The task largely suggested its own solution , that is , the repetition
J.<.-(f"""l v{.
o f the elements of Bernini ' s elevation, which also 8�m�d the character

o f the whole. The resul t , an only slightly inflected repetition of the

larger order of the pilasters of the upper floors , becomes nothing less

�
than typically eighteenth century solution. 9 It should be added that
0"-'
,PRe attempt was made to derive the contemporaneous Palazzo Cenci-Bolognetti

(about 1745) of Ferdinanda Fuga from the same Berniniesque mode l , but
e.-
with such profound transfor.matio115 that the relationship remaind too
�
10
generic .
�

. �,. ,"'-"' : Salvi initiated his career in 1728 with a pyrotechnic �

����
, Vf'l" h 1....,. Jh'<;f:o.....,c._�.ts. . u: C....O .�o.�s"'- tt--L.. t'r.. w.":
.. : -r-: ,,._��·-; c.. t.. � :::;h 1>-z-�t-.... � ;,_�
� V� � .a:ha:t(l3ernini was the 'sourc � 9f 2-_ts co�l?_ination of ,:f, s �os--,.,:t'iii,.,.e->"
W
_
I • (...•"''-"1'� � --y-
J>e'e.n hypothesized in analyzing the iwreatieHs ef F-ischer�

�';
''
IV' ()¥\w,J. C1':'Lu�tJarteng� �e, " arch of foreign merchants of 1699)7, but
"

); � 7
• u.��
n���b o f this type is known among Bernini • s work , and th e c 1osest
�·-
reference is still the great mass of� first design for the Louvre .

In 1 7 3 7 , the reconstruction of S_,_ M?_r;ta dei Gradi in Viterbo--

his only large church--began (Fi g . 1 ) . The combination of fasces

and coffers , windows and fes toons , for a rich and festive decoration

of the cupola s eems close enough to Bernini ' s � formulations

at S . Andrea , Ariccia and Caste �

/"!
andolfo ,
.
even �f the elements are
�.
 258

12
also present in the work of Bernini ' s contemporaries . For the

- sail vault [fupola a- vel a_?one could also think of Berniniesque

chapels ·such as that of S . Lorenzo in Lucina, but in this case it

is. useful to refer to more monumental examples , such as the Lancellotti

chapel at S . Giovanni in Laterano .

We find the same decorative elements in a particularly dense

G:
application in the vault of the S . )iiovanni Battista Chapel at

San Rocco in Lisbon, executed in Rome in 1 743 and based on the design

of Salvi and Vanvitelli (Fig . 2 ) . The alter of this chapel achieves

1;\.-t.- .{ �
a perspec tive effect byt beveling the arch itself and foreshortening
t I
o J
the coffering . Once again, this is not a solution which only Bernini
13
hit upon , but surely in the work o f no o ther artist does i t seem

so meaningful or is it applied with a power such as we find in the

Alaleona and Altieri chapels . The motif recurs on different occasions

in Vanvitelli, fully integrated into the architectural whole and not as

an isolated form: S . Maria Maddalena in Pesano , SS . Annunziata in Naples ,

/'\'--·
and various o ther designs (Casferta No . 2 1 7 & 324) ; and also with Fuga :
v
S . Maria dell-Orazione e Mar t e , S . Apollinare .
....., ,
The oval altar �iec.e. carried by angels , the maj or example of which
'-
is in the Fonseca Chapel , is an exquisitely Berniniesque idea . Oval

frames proliferate in the first half of the eighteenth c entury , and

even Bernini ' s idea was picked up again by his student s .

cuted design for the Lisbon chapel , by contrast with the use of the

oval in a decorative mode, can certainly be considered a return to Bernini 's

_/
,·� c;
as a: souree . We find it again �n a less precise form �n one of Van-
Vitell i ' s projects for the Maddalena in Pesaro ( 1 740-47 ) , in the altar

of S . Anna at S . Andrea delle Fratte ( 1 7 4 9 ) , and in Fuga ' s reconstruction

 ----···-- -- ----
-�-------

259

14
o f S . Maria Maggiore ( 1 743-49) .

The decorative scheme of Bernini ' s basin at S . Lorenzo in

Damaso is an intermediate step between the cupola of the Clementine

15
chapel at S t . Peter ' s and Vanvitelli ' s basins in the same basilica.

As we have already seen with the pyrotechnic machine of 1 7 2 8 ,

Q.A�v..J.- oc. c.. � �
':>
the reception of Bernini� models ..<>r monumental archi tecture � · "\
9- """"' ...... �\o ovclC "'·"'"- <:;::---- (j' (!.C ,,_ h -�
� in a different way{ than happened with the minor<\ elem <?;nts . S.

Andrea al Quirinale is not only his most perfect architectural crea-

tion , it i s also the one which mos t frequently served as a model, as

the list cited above indicates .

J:: ""
Vanvitelli was inspired by1 the little Ruffinella chapel in

Frascati, when he was summoned to modify the villa for the Jesuits

of the Collegia Romar.oGJI would not go so far as to say that this

is due to the fact tha' both had the same patron . There are many

elements from the original : oval plan in transvers � o s ition, trans­

verse blind axis (but not entirely in Frascati , since here there is

a sacristy door on one side and a niche on the other) , the articula-

tion o f the back wall of the little chapels with the gables of the

altar ' s aedicule thatL . 1v � the light falling through the

(are s1 .houette v
In spite o f these intellective;-
16 -
open lunette resemblances , in

visible reality one does no t feel

�
�kinship : Vanvitel l i ' s chapel is

white and luminous , the little chapels are without depth , the vault
W''i'k.. �<-t- ' ""'
continues �interrupt� the articulation of the chapels and the ver-
17
. 1 memb ers .
t1ca
(._
The longitudinal p llipse o f the Missione Church (Fig . 3)--a late
b<..ls
work by Vanvitelli--&eepsfi into a long line of churches of this type
18
in Rome and Naples . Nonetheless , the possibility o f a precise rela-

tionship with S . Maria in Montesanto should not be excluded : the

articulation o f the cupola , the choir as an entirely separate space

1
 260

and in both churches a mo : i f which derives from S . Andrea, that is;

the alteration of the arcade with small rec tangular exedras to

both sides of the major axis .

In a manner which parallels the transformation o f s. Andrea ' s

interior volume, the power of another typical Bernini motif is re-

duced when Vanvitelli appropriates it : a convex body within a con-

cave one, as in the theme o f the first project for the Louvre and

for the Assunta of Ariccia . Here we have a chapel isolated in front

of the rear of the cortile o f the Caserma at Ponte della Maddalena

( 1 754- 5 7 ) --as at Ariccia--and of the Oratory o f the Scala Santa

integrated as the first � between the minor and maj or courtyards

19
of the monastery of S S . Marcellino a�g_f_��9- ( 1 7 7 2 ) in Naples .

The effect is not monumental, for they are courtyards ; one small
.......
convex body cannot counter balance the dominant concavity--the guiding
v
form of the eighteenth century and especially of Vanvitelli . On the

other hand , the restless game of small opposing movements has been

surpassed .

So far, Caserta has been missing from the picture . One would

expect to f ind some allusion to the des igns for the Louvre, and Blunt
1:\�.
sees in Caserta the echo o f Bernini ' s concept of the palace ,{block,
�·LA- � \f"'·ew v
butfl this latter is useful only to the extent that it represents a

typology which opposes that of Versailles . There is nothing but the

formula of the colossal order raised on the soccle of the ground

A ,._�fnMu./.; 20
� 1' '-'-'""L�� Y/,.falaces .
. floor which had become canonical One could
)

instead think of Rainaldi ' s designs for the tempietto and towers with
 261

'
which Vanvitelli wanted to crown the building . With arms formed by
cit>VVW.. �
(e.vv'-"" "'-"<
barracks , the royal palace would have the city. The � :r:id.C..........

formula is that of the Vatican Basilica ' s colonnade

21
(�here is also
� )
the rec tangular piazz � even if again the artistic elaboration differ­

entiate� it profoundly.

In a final group of works the connections are more precise �d

\'V\.0 cJ.<...L._,
substantial , and we return to the �1�, of S t . Peter ' s . In his un-

fortunate throne for the bronze image of S t . Peter, Vanvitelli proposes

•

a variation on the theme o f enshrining the cattedra of S t . Peter ' s at

the rear of the choir.

22
The idea of a great tabernacle-
......
mpietto �;
23
was particularly important for Vanvitelli . Even i f his solutions

are closer to those of Rainaldi ( S . Maria della Scala) and Juvarra

(Chambery and numerous designs ) , the supreme example of Bernini ' s

designs for S t . Peter ' s was clearly impressed in Vanvitelli ' s mind

in the choice o f that theme in successive stages . For the primary

altar of the monastery church of Monte Cassino ( 1 727) , Salvi was com-

missioned to execute and copy the tabernacle of S . Andrea al Quirjhale,

24
reputedly by Bernini .

How are we to evaluate our evidence? Can we speak of a Bernini

revival? Only in a highly limited �e . Little of a unitary charac-

ter , of the remarkableness of Bernini ' s creations , remains .

But in the search f o r a serious and solemn architecture with a

renewed dignity, Salvi and Vanvitelli turned to the past and to major

Roman . real izations . In this sense Bernini occupies a privileged posi-

tion, even in relation to Borromini and Pietro da Contona .

 262

However, Bernini ' s moment was brief--or indeed did not exist

in the fullest sense of the term--since very quickly things passed

25
. to th e Slxteent
far b eyond h 1m . h century , or toward a neoclassical

purity, in which Bernini ' s simplicity no longer sufficed .

The re turn to Bernini occurred in 2 different ways : a relatively

faithful revival of mino r , more or less decorative forms , and the

[«A�'- 1."-..U.. ;'-
abstract manipulation of concepts of architectur ��tge ./
1
P�rhaps we draw closer to the spirit of the seventeenth century

in a work where the intention of the patron was already partially

retrospec tive and �·rried a�eolog���8e�h�"hnaadd�a�t���·ttss cente��n-

comparable dignity o f papal Rome and the Rome of the Basilica o f the

Prince o f Apostles : the Chapel of the Jesuit Church in Lisbon, which

the King wanted to be spec tacularly splendid .

The spirit o f B ernin i , finally , i s certainly present in that major

work of eighteenth century Rome , the Trevi Fountain : the juxtaposition

27
of art and nature , architecture and rock , united by flowing water .
263
264
 265
Rudolf Kuhn

Sculptures with Three Distinct Views by Gian Lorenzo

Bernini and Ignaz GUnther ·k

dedicated to Wilhelm Messerer on his 60th birthday

•• 1
Of the sculptures by Ignaz Gun ther and Bernini to be discussed in the

following article , one has three and only three views

when one views them first from half-left (at an angle about 45° ) , then

from exactly front-on and finally from half-right (again at an angle

'
of about 45°) . Let us begin with one example : the Pieta 2 ( 1 7 64 )

by Ignaz Gunther i n Weyarn . The frontal and primary view o f the

3
Pieta is insufficient on its own : Chris t ' s head falls so far back

that the face canno t be seen a t all . And this in an Andachtsb ild !

In this group Ignaz G�nther has indicated the main view by making the

edge of the ground cun more or less straight at the front : the

correct standpoint lies perpendicular to this s traight line . Such

sho r t , more or less s traight sections also occur at half-left and

half-right; opposite them lie the correct s tandpoints for the first

and third views .

••
Each of the three views in sculptures by Ignaz Gunther and Bernini

has a d i fferent conten t ; together they o f fer three thematically di ffer-

ent aspects of the same subj ec t . A parallel example emerges in a comparison

4
of two older \Yorks in Munich · --the Pat rona Bavariae by

Hans Krumper on the facade of the Residenz in Munich ( 1 6 1 6 ) and the

5
s tatue of the Virgin by Hubert Gerhard on the Virgin ' s column in the

Marienplatz (before 1 5 9 8 , from the Fr�l!eni.:irche) . The more recent work

by Krumper also had three views , Gerhard ' s only one . But in Krumper ' s

work there is no change o f content in the three views ; i t i s s imply a

matter o f arrangement , o f grouping , with no thematic differentiation

Bu t thematic differentiation
and dispo s i t ion . f\ is precisely the issue with GUnther and Bernini .
 .;;
· •
266

In the Pier � the first (or half-left) view shows violent pain, with

Christ .' s body bruken over the suffering Virgin ' s knee . The fold of

the body reveals Chirs t ' s heart wound (as the fold s of the loincloth

divide at the right) . Clearly these features aim to arouse the viewer ' s

emo tions . Addi tionally , only here are both legs and thereby the Virgin ' s

s i t t ing position visib l e ; only here is the correspondence b etween the

garment draped over the protruding leg of the Virgin, with its folds
and
spread out near her foo t , and Chris t ' s arm�broken, half-open hand

apparent . From this view also Christ ' s outstretched arm , the part of

the Virgin ' s garment which juts out, and the part

of Chris t ' s loincloth which flutters foward are visible and parallel ;

b e tween them are the retreating leg o f the Virgin and the retreating

leg of Chri s t . Final l y , only from the frontal posi tion can one see

hm; the sharp edges of the folds in the Virgin ' s garment and in Christ ' s

loincloth isolate and accentuate Chris t ' s limbs a t the points of con-

tac t . The representation o f pain which arouses pity and other feelings

in the firs t view is followed in the main (or frontal) view by another

subj ect with its own enhancement . The beholder is now offered the full

view of the Corpus Domini as the object of the Virgin ' s mourning and in

a manner to which one is accus tomed from altarpieces (such as Rogier van

der Weyden ' s Deposition) . The width o f ' the cross corresponds exactly

to that of the group and emphasizes the thema tic rapport between
It
6 .
them ·�b ecomes fu1 1y visibl e , as d oes th e geometry o r- th e wound s --that 1s ,
.

the wounds in Chris t ' s foot , the Virgin ' s heart and the end o f the cross ' s

horizontal b eam are aligned on one line and the wounds in Christ ' s hand ,

in his side and in the virgin ' s heart on ano ther . The final view in
 267

Ignaz Gunther ' s work i s s imple : i t o f fers for our veneration both the

wounds in Christ ' s feet and his hand; placing between them the putti ,

whose lament brings a resolution to the pain. Pain, mourning , and

lamentation follow closely upon one another . A similar resolution

of the beholder ' s agitation is known to us from Poussin ' s Lamentation

of Christ 7 which an inventory of 1 7 4 8 8 placed

in the Residenz at Munich . In a mos t general sense, Poussin uses

separate figure-units--the upbeat figure of S t . John and the closing

group o f putti --to achieve the same kind of upbeat conclusion which
.......

Gunther integrates into the main group .

II .

Let us turn to triple views in Bernini ' s sculptures . The main

view o f his earliest monumental sculptures alone informs us that the

group probably has distinct views . The primary view o f the Aeneas

group i s insufficient for a complete grasp o f the three figures , their

relationship to one another , their moods and the pietas developed in them.

Only the half-left view reveals Aeneas ' face and the enthroned Penates ;

and from the fro one perceives Ascanius with his li ttle oil lamp as
�
form, mo ti f , moo d , and figure .

With the subs equent sculptures--the Pluto group , the figure of David ,

the Apollo and Daphne--Bernini ' s achievement with triple views

and the direction in which he develops them becomes apparent . Comparing

· - - ·

the pro f ile and front of Apollo ' s head the eyes and the hair it becomes
A ft
apparent that the expressions in two views are considerably dif ferent .

The expression is found in the eyes and as so o f ten in the visual arts-­
)
the hair . The arch o f the upper eye lid is not posi tioned vertically
 268

above the pupil, as one would expect from the profile view , rather

the uppermos t part of the eyelid is shifted towards the middle of the fac e . This

small change makes it an expression of speechlessness . The pupil

is not a bored hole, as one would expect from the profile view , but

a piece of marble which has been left free and around which the iris

has been hollowed out : the glance is f ixed and s taring . The locks

of hair on the forehead part from one ano ther to the left and the

righ t , so that the glance lacks orientation. In profile the eye was

carved sharply and precisely in even lines , the pupil a deepened hole ;

the glance was exalted and clear and open, and the backward movement

of the ' blazing' locks lent it strength. But the express ion is

different and changing not only in Apollo ' s fac e : with the shifts

in viewpoint the who le group emerges as a narrative progression. The

profile of Apollo is part of the main view of the group and the front

view belongs to the closing one . I shall attempt to characterize this

narrative progression. (As is well known , the plinth was subsequently

10
altered and the orientation of the group changed, s o that today the

first view is from front-on , perpendicular to the plinth , the main view
11
. h t , d 2agona
from ha lf -r1g . 11 y on the p 1 1nth , and the c 1o s 1ng v1ew
.
. . perpen-

dicular to the right-hand side of the plinth) . Originally , the first

view portrayed Apollo approaching, hovering , s eeking Daphne ' s glanc e ,

reaching her and tenderly drawing clo s e . In the main view the drapery

arching behind Apollo ' s back is not s een, but the inclination o f his

body and hmv he raises his right arm to one side are visible . In profile

we see him, with his right arm at his side, gently halting and--looking

at his head--proudly wondering , j oyfully and openly awaiting her glanc e .

 269

Daphne raises herself and bends backwards in order to escape him;

he becomes thereby a s tring to her bow and the group as a whole a

symbol of Apollo . This view discloses the narration ' s cl imax , with

the narrative exposition provided by the first view and the conclusion

by the final one . This closing view commences with the theme o f

metamorphos i s , with the leaves , the roots and Daphne ' s foo t . We

see her e , for the firs t and only time , how the tree ' s bark grows

into her flesh beneath Apollo ' s left hand ( this hand is visible only

here) . Her flesh fades into bark, and the metamorphosis clearly is

guided by the hand of God . Of Apollo hims elf , to the left of Daphn e ,

there remains li ttle more than the speechless amazement which is now

revealed in the front view o f his face ; he had fallen from those

exalted heights of radiance and pride of the main view. Daphne

stretches herself high above him (as Proserpina also stretches her-

self above Pluto) and, in a movement from her right foot up to her

left arm , twis t s herself further and further out of his reach , rising

from the earth and undergoing a metamorpho sis . Bernini has accomplished

the difficult task of achieving a narrative progression by exploiting

the possibilities of changes in viewpoint .

III .

In demonstrating that there are differentiated views in Bernini ' s

sculptures and revealing what these views achieve in context I have

. . 12
s o f ar cited groups wh1. ch he created b e f ore the turn1ng po1nt in his life ,
13
religious belief s , and art ( 1 64 2 / � 3 ) which I have elsewhere explained
 270

in terms of the writings o f Francis o f Sales and their influence on

his art . Let us now turn the s tatue o f Daniel , created after this

turning-point. Thanks to the fact that the studies for this s tatue

have survived , we have evidence of how such views with differentiated

contents could be produced . It goes without saying that designin? and

carving statues and groups with an eye to offering compositionally

and thematically differentiated or changing views

is extraordinarily difficul t .

To begin with, let us examine the three vi ews ; Daniel is represented

. 14
�n entreat�ng,
. hope fu 1 prayer .

The expo sition view. The lion licks Daniel ' s foot) so Daniel is

out of danger and not praying because of the lion . The leg , which

comes forward and then retreats , leads to the drapery . At the point

of transition the drapery is flattenedJ and then it winds over the

body and continues , flaming up as a metaphor for prayer . The arms ,

held high and stretched wide apart with folded hand s , overlap with

the bead as it inclines backward s . Daniel is raising himself up ,

his arms and his bands folded in prayer.

The main view. The arms no longer overlap with the head ; they

have shifted to the side . The head now appears to b e above the arms .

more precisely , framed by the upper and lower left arm . Daniel J

raised up in prayer in the expo si tion view , now looks up to heaven

in prayer and speaks .

The closing vietv . The connection bettveen body and head is no

longer visib l e ; the head , with cheek rounded at the bo ttom , is raised

above the round shoulder, in this way the head hovers , no longer held

in place and no longer fra�ed . Daniel , who was raised in prayer in

the expo sition view and looking heavenward and speaking in the main
 [ . i:
..
271

view, in the closing view has been brought through prayer to a state

of exaltation beyond his body .

According to the information provided by this work, these three

moments are at the same time a representation of what prayer was to

Bernini .

Among the surviving studies for the figure o f Daniel , two in Leipzi ?

show the following two views , the exposition and main views .
15
The study for the main view. The treatment o f the arms and the

position o f the head above the bend in the arm co rrespond to that of

the completed work. Smaller changes can be ignored , but the posi tion

of the legs shows conclusively that the intention is really to represent

the figure in this view.

l6
The study f or th e exposition V1· ew . A comparison of the executed

work on several points--the raised and outstretched arms) the way they

overlap with the head , the way they conceal the prayerful glance from

view, and the posi tion o f the legs--reveals that the intention is to

represent the figure in this view. This is no t , then, a differen t ,

older conception that was later rejected .

In these two s tudies we have proof directly from Bernini that he

really did dis tinguish b e tween views and work out each one separately .
17
In another foglio with three studies , the intensity o f the chalk-

strokes indicates that he is concerned with the neck and the transition

from the head to the torso . Upon close examina tion of the center study

we see that the problem concerned the inclination of the head towards

the left shoulder ; Bernini emphasized the curve for curve S)�metry of the

arch of the back with that o f the shoulder . As already explained , the

latter was important in the closing view and was made possible in the main

view .
 ;;;
I . •
272

I t would be impossible to produce a figure from the sum of such

drawings , o f such worked-out poses . Put another way , it would be

impo ssible to take views that had first been worked out separately

and then immed iately merge them in the finished sculpture . The

bozzetto provided an opportunity for uniting the three views and

balancing them against one another . For this purpose the surviving
18
clay bozzetto o f the Daniel figure (which canno t b e accepted as

from Bernini ' s hand without reservations) is too finished ; it is a

later phase , more or less comparable with that of the drawn s tudies .

Small clay figures could , hm;ever , be modelled until the body, head ,

limbs and drapery were differen t , ordered and intelligible from three

viewpoints � Once the views were sketched in this manner in the bozzetto ,

and the composit ional context had been worked out , it was time to work
19
through the separate views in drawn studies or futher clay bozzetti

(among these I rank the surviving bozzetto ) . As is well known , Bernini

distinguished between clay and wax bozzetti , and naturally enough , none

of the latter have survived. We might hypothetically assume that in

the earlier years the more plastic material of wax served for the sketch-

bozzetti ) and the quickly drying material of clay for the s tudy-bo zzet ti ,

until Bernini changed to wooden models for some o f the larger objects
20
(e . g . the Cathedra Petri) . This hypo thesis would make Joachim von Sandrar t ' s

s tatement that Bernini had shm;n him in his s tudio no less than 2 2 wax

bozzetti for the single figure of Long inus more plausible--opnortunity

enough , therefor e , for sketching three views in their relation

to one ano ther . In view of such a gradual creative proces � Irving Lavin

has aptly remarked that "we are faced with the paradox that behind Bernini ' s

revolutionary effects o f freedom and spontaneity there lav

 273

21
an equally unprecedented degree of conscious premeditation . "

IV.

Before I return to the sculptures of Ignaz Gunther , there are two

additional matters .

a) Concerning Hittkower . In the chapter on Bernini in his volume in

the Pelican History of Art , Rudolf 1vittkower devoted a major section

22
to the problem of "sculpture with one and many views . " Here he

advances in no uncertain terms the thesis that Bernini ' s s culptures in

particular have only one view , not many . On the s trength of the draw­

ings under consideration--namely the studies for the figure of Daniel

in relation to the finished sta tue--and on the strength of the evidence

provided by the sculptures themselves , I am forced to contradict this

thesis . My propo s i tion that there are triple views in Bernini ' s

sculptures impl ies , however , a correspondingly emphatic agreement with

two insights of Wittkower ' s . Firs t , Wit tkower himself recognized and

insisted on the fac t that Bernirrl ' s s culptures have fixed , picture-like

views and canno t be viewed correctly from ju�t any given point on their cir-

cumferences . And secondly , the viewpoint Hittkower identified has priority

over the o thers : i t is the main view and should be so named . The first

and third views are subsidiary views ; but as such and in the sequence of

views they have their own , quite specific value . They are no t totally

insignificant and it is incorrect to say "that they reveal details withou t ,

23
however , contributing to a clarification of the overall design ; " on

the contrary, all three views in Bernini ' s figures and groups have se-

quences in which they develop a meaning--which is also an iconographical

 274

meaning that can be abstracted from the whole . Wittkower ' s per-

ceptions can thus also be included in my thesis .

b) Concerning differences in the relation of the three views to one

!nether and conc erning tradition and innovation . One must dis tinguish

between four kinds o f triple view . Firs t , purely formal triple views

with no recognizable thematic differentiation engendered in the three

views (our exampl e : Krumper ' s Patrona Bavariae) . S econd , triple

views which are formal as well � epresentational , wherein individual

moments of content are isolated and formed into subsidiary views �

which then complete the sum of the content (for example , Bernini ' s

Aeneas group) . The historical precedent for this group o f Bernini ' s

work is a work that has already been cited in this contex t : Michel-

angelo ' s statue of Christ in Sta . Maria sopra Minerva , where the

beholder stands exactly opposite the ins truments of the passion in the

first view, exactly opposite the Herculean body in the second , and

exactly opposite Chris t ' s mild face in the third . None o f these moments

annuls the o thers . In Bernini ' s later work the role o f the three

views is accentuated insofaras the beholder is denied a view o f , for

example , the enthroned Penates and especially of Ascanius ; this is not

the case with Michelangelo ' s Chris t . Third , those representational

triple views in which--as in Ignaz GUnther ' s Piet�--the three thematic

aspects supersede one another . Another work by Michelangelo s erves as

a precedent : the Piet � in Florence cathedral . The beholder stands

opposite the richly articulated body of the dead Chri s t , which crumples

and s inks to the ground in the first view, followed in the main view by

the dead Christ enclosed on all sides by human beings �rho take Him fully
 275

into their circle as a symbol for reincarnation through death , and

finally the rising and falling veneration of the human beings in

the third view. Here, too , the later work by G�nther accentuates

the dis tinctness of the views insofaras the beholder is denied a

view of Chris t ' s head in the main view ; this is not the case with

Michelangelo ' s Piet�. Although Michelangelo ' s work is a precedent in

some respects , there are significant s tylistic differences which

are also important for grasping the nature of the triple views .

The subsidiary views in Michelangelo ' s works are set back further

into the block (which remains perceptible) , just as the altar in

Noah ' s Offering stands at an angle in the midst of the figures ,

tightening the compo sition . Bernini and G�nther allow the subsidi-

ary views to protrude more, without reference to the block.

Fourth , and most important, there is another type of triple view,

once again representational , in which different aspects follow one

another with no possibility of simul taneity, in which spiritual

or existential processes are represented or narrated in their

temporal succession. The examples discussed here are Bernini ' s

Apollo group and the figure of Dani el . To the best of my knowl edge ,

this type of triple view is without precedent ; Bernini invented it .

We encounter it in the Pluto group , in the figure o f David , and in

the Apollo group, and it is also decisive for his more important

. 24
figures of sa1nts .

v.

Let us return to Ignaz G�nther and consider his Annunciat ion

25 26
group of 1 7 64 in Heyarn and the group of the Guardian Ans:e1 of
 276

1 7 63 for the Carmel ite church and now in the Burgersaal , both in

Munich. Gunther develops the fourth type of triple view in both

of these works .

�he Annunciation group. The first view is of the angel , drapery

fluttering to the right ; who enters and greets the Virgin bowing

before him. She in turn bends as though pierced by the rays o f

the Holy Spirit behind her neck . In the main view (which like

Gunther ' s Pieta is an enhancement) the dove of the Holy Spirit spreads

its wings above the Annunciation, and the angel, who has drifted

down between drapery folds which flut ter apar t , points at the Holy

Spirit above. His wing seems to form a shade over the Virgin ' s

head, and her extended right hand seems to be beneath the dove . In

the third view, the Virgin closes herself off with both hands before

her body and drawn towards her breas t , conserving that which she has

accepted . The angel now appears to have s traight ened up between the

draperies a t the front and the back, which from this view is now also

fluttering . The Virgin, then, has three narrative moments : bowing �

bending as though pierced ; yielding to the Holy Spirit ; and drawing

back into herse l f . In turn, the angel too has three moments : greeting

and entering; announcing while dri f t ing down ; and straigh tening up

in parting ; these stages are comparable to those des cribed by S t . Luke

27
in his gospel . The parallelism o f the part o f the Virgin ' s cloak

which is dra"tvn back over her thigh and the drapery fluttering in front o f

and behind the angel emphasizes the self-contained

character o f the final view, as does the correspondence between the

Virgin ' s right arm and the angel ' s outer wing.
 i:
...
277

The group of the Guardian Angel . In the first view, the

angel ' s breast is turned towards the front , and the drapery

billows up ; he has stepped b e tween the snake on the ground and

the child , thereby placing himself at the child ' s side so as to

accompany him. He holds the child firmly by the hand and responds

to the child ' s upwards glance with a cal l . In this view Gunther has

arranged correspondences between the bil lowing drapery and the leading

arm of the angel , between the large wing at the left and the pointing

finger , between the finger, hair and small wing to the right of the

angel and the arches of the fold s , neck , back and the cap of the child .

In the main view, angel and child s tep towards the beholder . The child

is now under the protective canopy of the angel ' s wing and is beside the

angel who turns and speaks to the lis tening child . In the third view )

the angel ' s swelling drapery is out o f sigh t , but the fluttering point

of the child ' s shirt is visible ; and one sees the angel pointing straight

to heaven and under his rustling wing the child, now aligned with the

movement of the drapery over the angel ' s l e f t leg) follows his words .

The angel as earthly companion in time of need calls the child , the

angel as guardian speaks to the lis tener ; the angel as guide to heaven--

GUnther here represents these three thematic manifestati � hich the

28
angel conveys to his charge .

Gian Lorenzo Bernini invented his narrative type of triple view .

When I cite Bernini as predec essor, I do so without considering the

stylistic d ifferences which separate him from G�nther . For exampl e ,

with Ignaz GUnther , the self-contained character of the groups within

i�
the changing aspects not altvays due to the figures or the movement
"
 i:
•
278

of their bodie s , but--as repeatedly d emonstrated--derives from ,

say, the parallelism of individual pieces of drapery . And logically

s o , for the center of Ignaz SUnther ' s subject matter--however inade-

quate the inves tigation o f his art s till is in this respect--certainly

does not lie in the continuous and unified movement o f the figures

(which with Bernini is always more d eeply founded in emo tion , passion
29
and , finally, patho s ) , but could perhaps be judged rather in terms

o f its dis tance from or proximity to the newly awakened religious

sensibility .

Finall y , the precise way in which transmission from Bernini to

Gunther took place canno t yet be determined with any certainty .

There is no evidence that Gunther stayed in Rome , and a stay in

30
Venice could as yet only be guessed a t . The personal connections

between the ar tists GUnther , Egell , Permoser and Bernini seem irrele-

vant to our question . So for the time being only reproductions in

the form o f engravings come into consideration ; for example , Domenico de

31
Rossi ' s Raccolta di statue antiche e moderne , which GUnther came

to know at the latest during his s tudies at the Viennese Acad emy

and which he would have looked at no t with the dilettantish eye of

an amateur but with the expert eye o f a speciali s t .

Ludwig-Haximilians-Universit a t , Hunich
 ;;;
279 •

NOTES

1
Catalogue and reproductions of the works of Franz Ignaz Gunther

( 1 725- 1 775) : A. Schoenberger, Ignaz Gunther , Munich 1 9 54 ; G . P . Woeckel ,

Ignaz Gunther , die Handzeichnungen des kurfurs tl . bayer . Hofbildhauers

Franz Ignaz Gunther, Weiss enhorn 1 9 7 5 , 2nd ed . 1 9 7 6 . Further important

li teratur e : A . Feulner , Ignaz Gunther , kurfurstl . baver . Hofbildhauer ,

Vienna 1 9 2 0 ; A . Feulner , Ignaz Gunther, der grosse Bildhauer des baver .

Rokoko , Munich 1 9 4 7 ; G . P . Woeckel , "S tudien zu Ignaz Gunther kurfurstl .

,,
bayer . hofbefrei tem Bildhauer , unpublished Phd . thesis , Munich 1 949 ;

Th.Muller, Ignaz Gunthe r , Bildwerke in Wevarn , S tuttgart) 1964 .

Schoenb erger , GUnther , 4 8 f . ; Feulner , GUnthe r , 1 9 2 0 ,

1 7 f . ; Feulner , Gunther, 1 947�

3
Feulner , GUnther , 1 9 2 0 , 1 8 : "Die Ansicht von vorne 1a·sst zun�chst

unbefriedig t , bis sich der Bes chauer durch Herumgehen die fehlenden
u

Erganzungen geholt hat ; wichtige Teile wie der rechte Arm Mariens werden

erst in der Seitenansicht sichtbar . "

4
Krumper ' s Patrona Bavariae : E . Hubal a , Die Kunst des 1 7 . Jahr-

hunderts (=Propyl a en Kunstgeschichte , IX) , Berlin 1 9 7 0 , 2 9 7 & fig . 340 .

5
Gerhard ' s statue of the Virgin : M . Schattenho fer , Die Mariensaule

in Miinchen, Hunich-Zurich 1 9 7 0 , 2nd e d . 1 9 7 1 ; R . A . Pelzer , "Der Bild-

hauer Hubert Gerhard in Munchen und Innsbruck , 11 Kunst and Kunsthandwer k ,

XXI , 1 9 1 8 , 1 09ff . , esp . 148ff .

6
Schoenberger, GUnther , 49. .
 ;;
•
280

7
K . Bad t , Die Kuns t des Nicolas Poussin, Cologne 1 9 6 9 , passim .

8
Alte Pinakothek M�nchen , Katalog IV : Franz �sische und spanische

Malerei , Munich 1 9 7 2 , 5 0 .

9
• upbea t ' and ' clos e ' in paintings : K . Bad t , 'Modell und Maler '

von Vermeer , Probleme der Interpretation, Cologne 1 9 6 1 ; R. Kuhn ,

..
Komposition und Rhythmus , Beitrage zur Neubegrundung einer Historischen

Kompositionslehre, Berlin 1 9 7 9 . In Poussin ' s Lamentation the s till

life functions as prelud e .

10
R. Wit tkower, Gian Lorenzo Bernin i , the Sculptor of the Roman

Baroque, 2nd ed. , London 1 9 6 6 , 1 8 3 ; P . A . Ried l , Gian Lorenzo Bernini ,

Apoll und Daphne , S tuttgart 1 9 6 0 , 1 2 .

11
The closing view was used by Bernardo Bello tto in his Entrance to

a Palace �1-iashington National Gallery) , cited by H . Kauffmann , in

Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini , die figUriichen Kompo sitionen , Berlin 1 9 7 0 ,

fig. 4 0 .

12
The turning-point : Bernini praised the writings of Francis of Sales

to Chantelou (cf . Journal , 23 August 1 6 6 5 , concerning the Introduzione

alla vera divozione or Philothea: "Le livre de Philot �e est encore fort

excellent, c ' es t le livre, que le Pape ( i . e . Alexander VI) es time le plus " ) .

Important for the turning-point in religious feelings and art : Francois

de Sales , Traitt � de l ' amour de Dieu, Lyon 1 608 ; in Ital ian : Trattato

dell ' amor di Dio , Venice 1 64 2 ; Oeuvre s , e'"d i tion compl � t e , vols . IV & V.

Annecy 1 894 .
 281

The turning-point in Bernini ' s life and religious feelings was known

to his contemporaries . Filippo Baldinucci and Domenico Bernini recog-

nized it as such and dated it in retrospect to the years 1 6 3 9 / 4 0 ( "forty

years before his death , " "at the time of his marriage'' ) . See the lives

as compar .fby I . Lavin , "Bernini ' s Death , " Art Bulletin , LIV, 1 9 7 2 , 1 6 0 ,
II
1 84f . , 1 8 6 .

The turning-point in Bernini ' s art is stylistically and compositionally

evident in the Teresa, i . e . from 1 64 4 onwards .

The time period 1 639 /44 is still too great. Baldinucci cites

Bernini ' s marriage ( 1 63 9 ) as the reason for the crisis . \<hen he says ,

"we may truthfully say . . . that from that hour (viz . of his marriage) he

began to behave more like a cleric than a layman" it sounds rather odd ,

as though obscured by the passing years . A crisis in life and , as a

resul t , one in religion; is more likely to have been caused by the disaster

of 1 6 4 1 when the third story of the tower of S t . Peter ' s had to be de-

molished and Bernini fell into disgrace with the Pope and suffered

from a lack of public commissions . Connecting the resolution of the

crisis with the publication in Italian of Francis of Sal es ' book in

1 642 yields a date of 1 6 4 1 for the crisis and one of 1 642 for the resolu-

tion of the crisis ; this is certainly more probable and , seen from the

perspec tive of the end of his life, agrees with the statements "forty

years before his death" and roughly "at the t ime of his marriage11 •

A connection between Bernini ' s recovery and Francis of Sales would also

suggest a connection between the latter and Bernini ' s tomb of Urban VIII

in the f inal version and would indicate a date for this final version

later than 1 6 4 2 . This is compa tib le with Wittkower , Bernini , 1 98 j c f . note 1 4 .

 I .
282

The turning point can be recognized stylistically and compositional�y

in figures which are no longer unreservedly active and emotional (Pluto ,

David, Apollo ) , which try to escape in an unrestrictedly emotional

manner (Pros erpina)1 and which actually do escape (Daphne) , which no

longer stand directly and self-sufficiently before God (Bibiana) or

place themselves before Him in passionate off ering (Longinus) , but which

all recoil in shock (Constantine, Habakkuk) or shrink back into them-

selves , kneeling or s tanding in a collapsed , crumpled state (Daniel ,

Mary Magdalen, Jerom e , not to mention Teresa and Ludovica) , and which

emerge in prayer only from such recoiling and shrinking positions .

Together with this go garments and drapery which are no longer of a

forthright plasticity, but which instead show only ridges , valleys and

troughs of folds as a symbol of receptivity . And even the bodies appear

more and more interspersed with troughs , down to the emaciated S t . Jerome .

A life experience is proffered here which makes the point of departure

for religious elevation in prayer and the like a straightforward , active

vitality which has been pierced , bent and repul sed . With Teresa this

goes as far as a Unio mystica with God

13
R . Kuhn , Die Entst ehung des Bernini ' schen Heiligenbildes , Disserta-

tion uo er die Auffassung , den Stil und die Komuosition der Skulpturen

von 1 6 2 1 bis in die flinfziger Jahre , Phd . thesis , Munich 1 9 6 6 , 2nd ed .

Berlin 1 9 6 7 .

14
Bernini sought commission after commission so as not to repeat

hims elf thematicall y ; ins tead , he sought each time to represent di fferent

internal conditions , which step for s tep approach the Unio mvstica (Teresa)
 283

and the love-death (Lddovii:ca). To this Histoire du d ivin amour belong

following f igures : the initial shock and emo tional s tirring of divinity

in Constantine (cf . Francis of Sales , Traitt ,, Oeuvres , IV, 1 1 6 f . , 1 2 5) ;

the f'aithful obedience to a divine direc tive in Habakkuk (cf . Sales ,

Oeuvres , V . 39ff . , 1 0 1 f f . ) ; the hopeful prayer in Daniel (cf . Sales ,

Oeuvres , IV , 1 40ff . ) ; the yearning , repentant love in Mary Magdalen

(cf. Sales , Oeuvres , IV , 1 5 3 f f . ) ; the contemplative love which bends

over Chris t ' s suffering in Jerome ( c f . Sales , Oeuvres , IV , 1 5 5 , 272ff . ) ;

the Unio mystica in Teresa (cf . Sales , Oeuvres , IV, 335 ; V , 1 2 , 18 , 23-25 ,

1 1 2ff . , 1 1 6 ff . ) ; and the love-death in Lodovica Albertoni (cf . Sales ,

Oeuvres , V 4 2 ) . To these examples I add the tomb of Urban VIII in the

final version and that of Alexander VII . (cf . Sales , Oeuvres , V , 36ff)

See R . Kuhn , "Gian Lorenzo Bernini und Ignatius von Loyola , " Argo :
,,
Festschrift fur Kurt Bad t , Ed. M. Gosebruch & L . Dittmann , Cologne 1 9 7 0 ,

309fJ for the relation o f this theme t o Bernini ' s other subject matter ,

3 1 0ffJ for the contrast with the subj ect matter of the late works , and

308 � for the difference in the significance for Bernini of Ignatius

of Loyola and Francis of Sales .

15
H . Brauer & R. Wit tkmver , Die Zei chnungen des Gian Lorenzo Bernini ,

Berlin 1 9 3 1 , plate 4 5 .

16
srauer & Wittkower, Zeichnungen, plate 4 6 .

17
Brauer & Wittkower, Zeichnungen , plate 4 7 .

18
Bozzetto , for the figure o f Daniel in the Vatican; Wittkower , Bernini , 2 3 3 .
 284

19
The distinction here between the functions of the sketch-bozzetti

and the s tudy-bo zzetti is analogous to that between the drawn sketches

and studies in K. Bad t , Eug�ne Delacroix , Drawings , Oxford 1 9 4 6 , 33-44 .

J. von Sandrart , Academie der Bau;' Bild-und Mahle;rey-K,;nst ·von 1 6.75

20

Ed . A . R . Peltzer, Munich 1 9 2 5 , 286 ; Wit tkower , Bernini , 1 9 7 ; I . Lavin ,

"Bozzetti and Modell i , Notes on sculptural Procedure from the early

Renaissance through Bernini , " S til und iib erlieferung in der Kuns t des

Abendlandes (=Akten des 2 1 . internationalen Kongresses fur Kuns tgeschichte

in Bonn 1 9 64 ) , Berlin 1 9 67 , III , 93ff . , esp . 1 0 2 .

21 .
1av�n, S t il und Uberlieferung , 1 0 3 .

22
R. Wit tkower , Art and Archi tecture in I talv 1 600 to 1 7 5 0 , 3rd

ed . , Harmondsworth 1 9 7 3 , 1 00- 1 0 3 . R . Wi t tkower, "Le Bernin et le

baroque Romain , " Gazette des Beaux-Ar ts , 68 p triode , XI , 1 9 34 , 327ff . :

"Cette mul tiplicit � des point de vue d ans l a sculpture es t une caract �r-

istique de la seconde moiti � du X�I e s i � cl e . Pour la plastique de la

Renaissanc e , 1 ' unit ' de l ' action va de s o i . Presque toutes les sculp-

tures , jusque vers 1 5 2 5 , sent faites pour etre contemplles d ' un seul

point de vue . . • Lorsque le Bernin adopte un point d e vue principa l , il

marque un retour aux principes de la plas tique de la Renaissance , mais

c ' es t l� sa seule facon de r �aliser 1 ' unit � d ' action et de rnouvement .

Telle est done la ligne de partage qui s� pare le Bernin et Jean de Bologne :

d 1 une par t , un1teI d e po1nt

•
. de vue , de 1 ' autre mu 1 t1p ' ' 1 d e po1nt
. 1 1c1te . d e vue "

(p . 330) . As Brinckmann had already argued : A . E . Brinckmann ,

Barockskulntur (= Handbuch der Kuns twissenschaft) , Berl in-Neubabelsberg

1 9 1 7 , 23o : "Bernini verzichtet damit bew"Us s t auf j ene nach allen Sei ten
 ;:;
i 285 •

interessante Ansichten bietende Rundskulptur , die gegen Ausgang des

1 6 . Jahrhunderts programmatisch war , und nahert sich dem maleris chen

"
Flachenbild . " L .O . Larsson, Von allen Seiten gleich 'schon , S tudien zum

Begriff der Vielansichtigkeit in der europaischen Plastik von der

Renaissance bis zum Klassizismus , Stockholm 1 9 7 4 .

23
wittkower , Art and Architecture , 1 0 1 .

24
Kuhn, Entstehung, 92- 1 1 5 .

25
Annunciation : Schoenberger, GUnther, 49f . ; Feulner , GUnther , 1 9 2 0 ,

1 7 ; Feulner , Gunther , 1 94 7 , 9 1 .

26
schutzengel : Schoenberger, Gunther, 44-4 6 ; Feulner, Gunther ,

1 9 2 0 , 3 0 ; Feulner, Gunther, 1 947 , 94 .

27
Luke I , 28-29 , 30- 3 7 , 3 8 .

28
Compare on the other hand the Sehutzengel group in the Altarpiece

of Mary Magdalen by Josef G'ci tsch (Rott am Inn, former Benedictine

monastery church) , executed under the influence of Gunther ' s group , but

intended to be seen only from one viewpoin t .

29
Kuhn , Ents tehung, 8 1 - 8 6 , 1 1 5-1 1 7 .

30
woeckel , Gunther, Hand zeichnugen , 23 .

31
n . de Rossi ' s Raccolta die Statue antiche e moderne , Rome 1 7 04 ,

made almost all o f Bernini ' s Roman figures and groups known (Cons tantine

plate 1 0 , Pluto , plate 68 ; Neptune , plate 7 1 ; Apollo , plate 8 1 ; David ,

plate 8 2 ; the Rivergods from the Fountain o f the Four Rivers , plates
 ;;;
..
286

97-1 00; More , plate 1 0 1 ; Verit� , plate 1 4 2 ; Urban VIII from the

Capitol , plate 1 5 2 ; Habakkuk , plate 1 5 6 , Daniel , plate 1 5 7 ; Longinus ,

plate 1 5 9 ; Bibiana, plate 1 60) with the notable exception o f Teresa ,

Ludovica and the angels for the Ponte S . Angelo . In contrast to the

rendering o f Michelangelo ' s statues the views reproduced are , as a

rul e , the main one s ; in the present context the exception o f the Pluto group

is notab l e ; it is reproduced in the first view�

Some of Gunther ' s early <drawings after statues (Woeckel , Gunther ,

Handzeichnugen , nos . 93-95) have been los t ; reproductions have pre­

sumably not survived . H . Hohn �D ie Handzeichnugen des Bildhauers

Franz Ignaz Gunther , " Anzeiger des Gerrnanischen National Museums 1 9 3 2 / 3 3 ,

Nuremberg 1 9 3 3 , 1 6 2 ff . , esp . 163) says nothing about their appearanc e ;

however , Feulner (Gunther , 1 9 4 7 , 33) notes that the statues are

"modelled nervously with cross-hatching" ( mit gekreuzter Schraffur

angstlich modelliert ) and that the movements are "clumsily reproduced"

( "unbehol f en wiedergegeben") . Two o f these statues - Meleager and

Michelangelo ' s Bacchus (Woeckel , Gunther , Hand zeichnungen , no s . 9 3 and

9 5 respec tively) --are reproduced in Rossi , Raccol ta , in the first view

(Meleager , plate 1 4 1 ) and the third view (Michelangelo ' s Bacchus , plate

46) respec tively . Since cross-hatching is rather untypical of Gunther

but used extensively in the engravings and since movements are without

exception clumsily reproduced in these engravings , it would be worth con-

sidering whether GUnther ' s drawings were not copies after plaster casts ,

as has hitherto been assumed , but after engravings , and if he copied

these statues , the Mnemnosyne and perhaps o thers from engravings that

he was able to inspect .

 287
-1-

EPILOGUE

To commemorate Bernin i ' s death 3 0 0 years ago we have talked for

two long days about his work and its influence , and we are all aware

that we have only scratched the surface of a few selected aspects of

both these subj ects . In the face of h i s massive production and its

massive importance for European culture , I fear we have neglected Bernini

himsel f , the man responsible for it al l . We could easily devote another

col loquium to Bernini the human being, since he lived a long life , and

we know a great deal about him. Yet , neglecting him personally is part

of a long tradition . His contemporaries , too , astonished by his vast

production, fantastic technical virtuosity and prodigious imagination ,

tended to think of him less as a person than as a superhuman prodigy who

created by some sort of magi c . One aspect of his brilliance , howeve r ,

was the ability t o find the right response , the mot j uste , to those who

misunderstood him. When one admirer expressed his amazement at the

apparent ease and facil ity of his creativity , the mot j uste he found

was borrowed--as was often the case--from Michelangel o . He replied

simply, "Nelle mie opere caco sangue . " \f/

I.L.

t P . Fr{art de Chantelou, Journal du voyage du Cavalier Bernin en

Franc e , ed. L . Lalanne , Paris , 1885 , 174.

288
289
 Winner 290
ILLUSTRATIONS
1. Bernini , P luto and Proserpin a , V i l l a Borghe s e , Rome ( GFN E 59451)

2. Roman Sarcophagus , with Rape of Proserpin a , 2nd century AD (

3. Detail of Map o f Campus Mart iu s ( after A . Donato , Roma Vetus a c

Recen s , Rome 1 6 4 8 , p . 2 8 4 )
4. Bernin i , Laur e l tree s tump on b acks i de o f P luto and Pros erpin a ,
detail of Fig . 1 (
5. Bernini , Cerberus , detail o f Fig . 1 (

6. Bernini , Apol l o and D aphn e , detail , Vil l a Borgh es e , Rome ( GFN E 59594)
'

7. Jacopo Pontormo , Cos ima de ' Medici i l Vecchio , Florence , Uffizi

(
8. Giovanni Lanfranco , Coun c i l o f the Gods , fresc o , Logg i a , Villa Bar-
ghe s e , Rome (
9. Lanfranco , Coun c i l of the Gods , detail , c enter of Fig . 8 , Villa
Borghe s e , Rome (
10. Lanfranco , Council o f the Gods , detail o f r ight half o f F ig . 8 ,
Villa Borgh e s e , Rome (
11. Lanfranco , Coun c i l o f the Gods , det a i l o f l e f t half of Fig . 8 ,
Villa Borghe s e , Rome (
12. The "Pasguino " , e tching ( af t er P . Tot t i , Ritratto di Roma Antica ,
Rome 1 6 3 3 , p . 3 6 5 )
1 3 . "Dios cur" inscribed o n the b a s e "Praxite l e s " , Monte Cava l lo , Rome
(Anderson 2 3 9 3 )
14. Bernin i , workshop , Proj e c t o f the P i a z z a Quirina l e , p en wash , Berl in
S t iftung Preus s . Kulturb e s it z , Kup f e r s t ichkabine t t (

15. Bernin i , Head o f Pros erpina , detail o f F i g . 1, Villa Borghes e , Rome

( GFN E 59463)
 Hibbard 291
ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Bernin i , Anima Dannat a , Palazzo di S p agna , Rome ( Fototeca Unione

10112)
2. Caravagg io , Boy B i t t en by a Lizard , Fondazione Rob erto Longhi ,

Florence (Alinari 49883)

3. Caravagg io , David with the Head o f Go liath , Galleria Borghe s e , Rome

( GFN E 59360)
4. Bernin i , David , Galleria Borghe s e , Rome (Anderson , 1922)
5. Caravagg io , Supper at Emmaus , National Gallery , London (National

Gallery )

6. Bernin i , S t . Longinus , S t . Pe ter ' s Rome (Anderson 20588)

7. Caravaggio , Conver s ion o f St . Paul , C er a s i Chap e l , Santa Maria del

Popolo ( GFN E 48474)

8. Bernini , The Death o f the Beata Ludovica Albertoni , Altieri Chap e l ,

S. Fran c e s c o a Rip a , Rome (Anderson 2385)

9. Caravagg io , The E c s t asy of S t . Franc i s , Wadsworth Athenaeum , Hart-

ford (Wadsworth Athenaeum)

...
10. Louis Finson , after Caravaggio , Repentent Magdalen , Mus e e des Beaux-

Art s , Mar s e i l l e s (Mus e e des Beaux-Ar t s )

11 . Bernin i , The E c s tasy o f St . Tere s a , Cornaro Chap e l , S anta Maria della

Vittoria , Rome (Anderson 2388)

12. Caravagg io , The "Madonna dei P e l l egrini" , Cavalletti Chap e l , Sant '

Ago s t ino , Rome ( GFN E 35407)

 292
Faldi

I l lustrat ions

1. Bernini , Crucifixion , locat ion unknown ( author)

2. Writing on the back of the canvas of Fig . 1 ( autho r )

 U. Schlegel 293

ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Bernini , The Dead Chr i s t , St . Peter ' s , Rome CArte Fotogra f ic a ,

Rome)

2. Bernini , The Dying Chr i s t , S t . Peter ' s , Rome CArte Fotograf i c a ,

Rome )

3. Algardi , The Dead Chris t , Chapel o f the Palazzo del Governator­

ato , Vat i c an C ity CArte Fotograf i c a , Rome )

4. Algar d i , The Dying Chr i s t , S . Maria d e l Popo l o , Rome (Arte

Fotograf i c a , Rome )

5. Algardi , detail of The Dead Chr i s t , Chap e l o f the Palazzo d e l

Governatorato , Vat i c an C ity CArte Fotograf ic a , Rome )

6. Bernin i , detail of The Dead Chr i s t , S t . Peter ' s , Rome CArte

Fotograf i c a , Rome )

7. Bernini , The Dead Chr i s t , C o l l egia , E s coriale ( after Wittkower ,

Bernin i )

8. Algar d i , detail of The Dying Chr i s t , S . Maria del Popo lo , Rome

(Arte Fotograf i c a , Rome )

9. Bernin i , detail o f The Dying Chr i s t , S t . Peter ' s , Rome CArte

Fotograf i c a , Rome )

10. At tribut e d to Ferrat a , The Dead Chr i s t , Ac c ademia delle B e l l e

Art i , B o l o gna (Accademia Pho t o )

11 . Attributed to Ferrat a , The Dying Chr i s t ( p r ivate c o l l e c t ion )

 Fagiolo 294

ILLUSTRATIONS

1. L . Cruy l , engraving of P iazza Navona flooded ( Fagiolo Archive s ,

Rome )

2. G . Va s i , engraving of Piazza Navona flooded (Fagiolo Archive s ,

Rome)

3. Engraving of P iazza Navona f l o o de d , after F . Cance l l i er i , P iazza

Navona . . . Rome , 1811 ( Fagiolo Archive s , Rome )

4. One o f the last floods in P iazza Navona in a photograph c a . 1860

( Fagiolo Archive s , Rome )

5. Feast o f the Resurrection in P iazza N avona , 1589 . Note the gall eon

in the center ( F agiolo Archive s , Rome)

6. Gio s tr a del Saracino in P iazza Navona , 1634 ( F agiolo Archive s , Rome)

7. Heraldic P amphili e l ements connected to the Arc : medal for the

foundation of Sant ' Andrea al Quirina l e , 1658 (Fagiolo Archive s ,

Rome )

8. Heraldic P amphi l i e lements conne c t e d to the Ar c : engraving from

the
Ro c c amora , with o l ive tree in / center and the Arc on Mt . Ararat

(Fagiolo Archive s , Rome )

9, 10 : Two contraptions to c e l ebrate the inve s t iture of the Pop e ,

with the four continents and the Arc on Mt . Ararat , after

Banck , 1 6 44 ( Fagiolo Archive s , Rome )

11. Fron t i s p i e c e from A . Kircher , Ob e l i s cus Pamph i l ius (Fagiolo Archives ,

Rome )

1 2 . Front i s p ie c e from A . Kircher , Area N o e ( Fagiolo Archive s , Rome )

13. G. B. Grima l di , S c ene with C a s t e l S ant ' Angelo and the T iber ,

for Chr i s t ina of Sweden , from one o f Bernini ' s ideas (Fagio l o

Archive s , Rome)

14 . Anonymous , Bernini on horseback and Innocent X in sedan visiting the Fontana

dei Fiurni , Museo di Roma , Rome (Oscar Savio , Rome)

 Bandera
295
ILLUSTRAT IONS

1. Bernin i , Urban V II I , Louvre , Paris ( Do cumentat ion Photographique , 7 9

EN 9 1 2 2 )

2. Bernini , Urban VIII , detail o f Fig . 1 , Louvre , Paris (Do cumentat ion

Photographique , 7 9 EN 9 1 2 4 )

3. Ph . de Buy s ter , Laub espin Tomb , detai l , Bourges Cathedral ( C a i s s e

Nationa l e , MH 1 6 2 . 8 0 0 )

4. Turgo t , P l an o f Paris 1 7 3 9 (1735 ) , detail showing H� t e l o f Hugues de

Lionne (

5. Jean Maro t , engraving o f the d e s i gn o f Louis Le Vau for the HB t e l

o f Hugues d e Lionne (

6. Jean Maro t , engraving o f the d e s ign o f Louis Le Vau for the HBt e l

o f Hugues d e Lionne (

7. P l an of the HB t e l de Lionne dr awn around 1 7 5 6 , P ar i s (Archives

Nationale s , N . IV S e ine 4 7 5 )

8. P l an of the H8 t e l de L ionne drawn around 1 8 0 0 , P a r i s (Archives

3
Nationa l e s N . I I I S e ine 1 2 0 7 )

9. Jean Marot , engraving o f the des ign o f Louis Le Vau for the H � t e l

o f Hugues d e Lionne (

10. Bernin i , or after Bernin i , Louis XIV , Kr e s s C o l l e c t ion , National

Gal lery , Washington (Nat ional Gal lery )

11 . Bernini (?) , Campanile , O s p e dale d e l l a carit � , Lyons ( Ca i s s e Nationale ,

1 - FS - 8 6 4 )

12. Bernini , Tabernac l e , bronze , in the Sacramento Chap el , S t . Peter ' s ,

Rome (

13 . E . D e l aume , Armor of Henry I I , Louvre , Paris ( C a i s s e National e , 4-3790-

0 0 1 - IE l )

14. P ierre P aul Sevin , fron t i s p i e c e for the Trait � du dro i t de la Guerre
Bander a , 2
296

�
et de l a Paix compose par H . Grotius , Paris , 1 6 87 ( engraving

of Verneulen)

15. Blain de Font enay , S t i l l L i fe with the bust o f Louis XIV ( o f Coysevox)

and the armor of Henry I I , Louvre , Paris ( Louvr e , 4464)

16. Bernini ( ? ) , Preparatory drawing for the fre sco of the cup o l a of the

Ges � , Rome , p ainted by Baciccio (Private c o l l e c t ion)

17. Bernini , Preparatory s tudy for the fre s co o f the cupola o f the G e s�

Rome , painted by B a c i c c io , Leip z ig , National Mus eum (Leipz ig,

National Mus eum 8 - 1 8 )

18 . Bernini ( ? ) , Verso o f Fig . 16 (Private c o l l e c t ion)

'
19. Gaul l i , Fr e s c o of the Cup o l a of the Gesu , Rome (

20 . P i erre Mignar d , Fresco o f the cup o l a of Val - de - Gr � c e , Paris (

21 . A . Raggi , decoration b a s e d on the des ign o f B ernin i ,

Church of San Tommas o di V i l l anova , C a s t e lgando lfo (

 Lavin
297

ILLUSTRATIONS
'
1. Giovanni Bat t i s ta Gaul li , Triumph o f the Name o f Jesus , Gesu ,

Rome (Alinari 27925)

2. Roman s ar cophagus , Mus e o delle Terme , Rome ( GFN E 26426)

3. Capp e l l a Pao l ini , high altar , Santa Maria Maggior e , Rome

(Anderson , 132)
4. Bernini , Lop ez de S i lva chap e l , Sant ' I s i doro , Rome (Renzet t i )

5. Raphae l , Loggie , Vatican Palace , Rome (Al inar i , 7810)

6. Annibale Carrac c i , Galleria Farne s e , P a l azzo Farne s e , Rome

( GFN C 11396)
7. P ietro da Cortona , Vis ion of S t . Phi lip Neri dur ing cons truction

of the Church , Santa Maria in V a l l i c e l l a , Rome (Alinari 28987)

8. Corregg io , As sump t ion o f the Virgin , Parma Cathedral (Alinari 1 5 5 1 1 )
detail o f
9. Bernini , Cornaro Chap e l , S anta Maria della V i t t oria , Rome (GFN E

102930)
10 . Giamb at t i s t a Tiep o l o , Trans lat ion o f the Santa C a s a o f Loreto

[ de s troy e d ] S anta Maria di Nazar e th , Venice (Anderson 13369)

 Hubal a
298
I l lustrat ions

1. Grand Augu s t ins , main altar b e fore des truction , Paris ( Engraving by

Millin)
�
2. Val - de - Gr ac e , Tabernac l e of the main a l t ar , Paris (Rupprich Rob er t )

3. P a l l adia , Detail o f . groundp l an , I l Redentore , Venice ( Univ . Wurzbur g )

4. P a l l adia , Ap s idal c o l onnade in front of the choir , I l Redentore ,

Venice ( Un iv . Wurzburg )

5. P a l l adia , Reconstruc t i on o f the c e l l a of the Mars Altar Temp l e , Rome

( P a l ladia , Quattro Libri IV , 19)

6. J o s ef Emanue l F i s cher von Erlach , D e s ign for a new main altar in the

church of Sal lapulka , Lower Aus tria 1720 (Herzogenburg , Archiv)

7. Main altar , former Fran c i s can Church , Ing o l d s t adt (Landesamt fur

D enkmalpfl ege , Munich)

8. Main Altar , Parish Church S t . P e t er , Munich ( Univ . Wurzburg )

9. Franz Anton Maulbert s ch , Paulus in front o f the altar o f the Unknown

God , detail o f mode l , S t adt . Kun s t s ammlungen , Aug sburg (Museum)

10 . B a l t a s ar Neumann , Main altar , St . Paul ' s , Trier ( Univ . Wurzburg )

11 . V i ew o f interior with main a l t ar co lonnade , Res idence , Chape l , Wurzburg

( Univ . Wurzbur g )
 Millon 299
ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Martinengo , fa�ade of S . Andre a Apo s t o l o , mid- 1 9 th- c entury , Bra

(Albaro , Bra)

2. Gius epp e Gallo , Interior of S . Andrea Ap o s t o l o , Bra . Altar aedicule

late 1 9 th- century ; main a l t ar , early 2 0 th - century . Relief o f

S . Andr ea by Davide Calandra (Albaro , Bra)

3. P l an o f S t e . Ann e - l a -Royale , P ari s , 1662 ( G . Guarini , Architettura

Civi l e , p l . 9)

4. S e c t ion o f S t e . Anne- la -Royale , Paris , 1662 ( G . Guarin i , Arch i t e t tura

Civile , p l . 23)

5. P l an o f p a l ac e ( Louvre ? ) , Paris , here dated 1 6 6 4 (G. Guarini , Archi­

t e t tura Civile , p l . 23)

6. E l evation and sect ion o f p alace ( Louvre ? ) , Par i s , here dated 1 6 6 4

(G. Guar in i , Architettura C ivi l e , p l . 24)

7. Bernini ( ? ) , p artial p er s p e c t ive from the e a s t , Louvre I , Par i s , 1664

Co l l . Margaret Whinney ( The Courtauld Institut e )

8. P l an , Louvre I , Par i s , 1664 ( C ab inet des E s t amp e s , P ar i s )

9. Persp e c t ive from the e a s t , Louvre I I , Par i s , 1665 ( T e s s in , Stockholm ,

National Museum)

10. Partial e l evation ( from the model ) , Louvre IV , P ar i s , after 1 6 6 7

( T e s s in , S t ockho lm , Nat ional Museum)

11 . P l an , Louvre I I I , Par i s , 1665 (J. F. B l onde l , L ' Archi t e c ture fran � o i se ,

IV , Book VI , no . 1 , pl. 3)

12. Guarin i , p l an o f Palazzo Car ignano I , Turin , 1679 (Archivio di S t ato ,

Turin)

13. Guarin i , p l an o f Palazzo Car ignano I I , Turin , 1679 (Archivio di S t ato ,

Turin)

14 . Guarin i , p l an of P a l a z zo Car ignano I I I , Turin , 1679 (Archivio di S t ate ,

Tur in )
Mil lon , 2
300

15. Guarini , e l evation and partial p lan o f we s t fa�ade , Palazzo Car ignano

IVB , Turin , 1679 (G. Guarini , Architet tura C ivile , p l . 31)

16. Guarini , e levat ion , s e c t ion , and partial p l an , Palazzo Car ignano IVB ,

Turin , 1679 (G. Guarini , Architet tura Civile , p l . 32)

17 . Guarini , ground floor p l an showing p o r t ions cons truc ted and p l anne d ,

Palazzo Carignano IVC , Turin ( drawing b y author )

18. Guar ini , view from the wes t , Palazzo Car ignano , Turin ( Cavag l i a )

19. Reconstruction o f Palatine P alac e , e a s t e l evation , 1 7 3 8 (Fran c e s c o

Bianchini , D e l Palazzo d e i C e s ar i , p l . XI I )

20 . Reconstruction o f P alatine P alace , view from the south , 1 6 0 0 ( Onofrio

P anvinio , De Ludis C ircens ibus , 49)

21 . Reconstruction o f P a lat ine P al a c e , view from the s outh , 1 6 1 2 ( Giacomo

Lauro , Antiquae Urb i s Splendor , Book I I , reproduced from the

edition of 1 6 4 1 )

22 . P l an o f Palatine Palace , 1600 ( 0 . P anvinio , D e Ludis Circensibus ,

reproduced from the e di t i on o f J . G. Graeviu s , The s aurus Romanarum

Antiguitatum, Veni c e , 1 7 3 5 , Vo l . IX , 54)

23 . Reconstruction o f P a l a t ine Palac e , south e l evation , 1 7 3 8 ( F . Bianchini ,

D e l P a l a z z o dei C e s ar i , Pl. XI I I )

24 . Reconstruction o f P a l a t ine P alac e , p lan , 1 73 8 (F. B i anchini , Del Palazzo

dei C e s ar i , p l . V I I I )
 301
.pP
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. C,W.\J.Ij}lr .

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 303

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i.

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 304

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BD . .
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 H . Hager
305
I l lu s trations

1. C ar l o Fontana , D e s ign for the High Altar of h i s church p r o -

j e c t e d f o r the C o l o s seum, Rome ( London , S ir J ohn S o ane ' s Mus eum)

2. Andrea P o z z o , Baldacchino , Catherl�al , F o l i gno

3. Bernini , Proj ect for a Tomb o f the Doge Giovanni Cornaro

( London , C o l l e c t ion of Anthony B lunt )

4. Carlo Fontana , fa�ade o f S . B i ag i o in Camp it e l l i ( S . Rita) ,

Rome ( after Arch i t e t tura Mindre in I t a l i a )

5. Groundp l an of Bernin i ' s l o s t chap e l in the P a lazzo d i Prop a -

ganda Fide , Rome , b y France s c o B orromini (Deta il , Vienna ,

Albertina)

6. Gasparo Zuccal l i , groundp lan for St . Kaj e t an , Sal zburg ( after

H. Kel ler )

7. Bernini , e levation of fa�ade o f the l o s t chapel in the Palazzo

d i Prop aganda F i d e , Rome ( Vienna , Alb ertina)

8. Luigi Vanvit e l l i , Proj e c t for a church fa�ade ( C a s e rt a , B i b l i o -

teca P a latin a )

9. Bernini , e l evation of fa�ade , S . Andr e a a l Quirina l e , Rome

( F l orenc e , Uffi z i )
'
10. Car lo C e s are S c a l a t t i , mo d e l for S . Antonio Abate , Forli

11. Annibale C arrac c i , Lan d s cap e with the F l ight into Egyp t ,

detail ( Rome , G a l l er i a Doria P amphil i )

12 . Bernin i , As sunta and the P al a z z o Chigi in a 1 9 th century

engraving , Ar i c c i a ( Co l l ec t ion of the author )

13 . Bernini , Entrance facade of the A s s unt a , Ar iccia (Photo : Hager )

Hager , 2
306

14 . Carlo Fontana , Entrance Fa�ade , Loyo l a , Je suit C o l l eg e

( Photo : Hager)

15 . Detail o f the wal l surrounding the church o f the As sump tion

of the Holy Virg in at Ar i c c ia , on the right s i de (Photo : Hager)

16. Detail o f the s ham wall covering the house of St . Ignatius

at Loyo l a ( P ho t o : Hager )

17 . Fabrizio Gal l i ar i , State s e t des ign for "Demetr io , " Tur in ,

Biblioteca Rea l e , 1 7 62 (After Ferrero , La S c enografia del

' 7 0 0 . . . , Turin , 1963 , Fig . 56)

18. P ie tro Bianch i , S. Fran c e s c o d i P ao l a , Nap l e s (

19. Bernin i , S ca l a Regia , engraving by S . Sp ecchi ( after Carlo

Fontana , Il Tempio Vat i c ano )

20 . P i erre de V i l l eneuve , s e c t ion o f proj e c t for an Academy of

Fine Art s , Rome , Acc ademia di S . Luc a , Conc o r s o C l ement ino

of 1 7 0 8 ( Rome , Acc ademia di San Luc a )

 A . Braham
307

ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Bernini , e l evation o f e a s t fa�a d e , third Louvre proj ect ,

1665 ( engraving by Maret )
...
2. Bernini ( ? ) , proj ect for the Hot e l de Lionn e , over engraved
p lan by Maret ( Stockholm , Nat ional Museum)
3. Ange-Jacques Gabr i e l , e levation o f main fa�ade on Cour Royal e ,
Grand Pro j et for V er s ai l l e s , 1759 ( P ari s , Archives Nationale s )
4. P ierre B o s cry , p orch o f I r l andais Chap el , Paris , 1734 ( after
B lunt , Art and Architecture in France 1500-1700)

5. Boffran d , H3tel Amelot d e Gournay , Paris , 1712

6. G . -P . -M . Dumon t , groundp lan , proj e c t for a garden on the p l an

o f S t . P e t er ' s [ engraving by Taraval after Dumont ] ( after B lunt ,
Art and Architecture in France 1 500-1700)

7. Soufflot , d e t a i l o f transept s e ct i o n , proj e c t for S t e -Genevi�ve

( P ari s , Archives Nation a le s )
8. Souff lo t , perspective o f int erior , proj ect for S t e -G enevi�ve
[ de t a i l of engraving by P ou ll eau ] (private c o l l ect ion)
9. Legeay , e l evation and s ection o f proj ect for a church dedicated
� �
t o the Trinity ( after J . M . Perouse d e Mont c lo s , Bdu l l e e )
10. D e Wail ly , perspective view o f the Cattedr a Petri , 1755

(The Hermi t ag e , Leningra d )

11 . D e Wai l ly , perspective view , pro j e c t for the pulpit o f S t - Su l -

p i c e (The Hermi t ag e , Leningrad)

/ /
12 . D e Wail ly , pulp i t o f S t - Sulpice , 1789 ( Bu l l e t in de. l a Societe

?e l ' hi stoire de P ar i s )
13 . Victor Loui s , p erspective view o f B ernin i ' s piazza ( Bordeaux ,

Archives Municipale s )
Braham , 2
308

14. Victor Loui s , p l an , proj ect for the Royal Palace o f War s aw

(National Mus eum , War s aw )

15. P ierre -Adrien P �r i s , detail of p lan s howing forecourt o f

proj e c t for Ver s a i l l e s ( C h� teau d e Ver s a i l l e s )

/
16. Abb e de Lub ersac , p er s p e c t ive view of proj ect for a monument
�
in honor o f Louis XVI , 1 7 7 7 [ engraving by Laurent after Touze

and Ber taux ] ( P ar i s , B ib l i o theque Nationale)

17. Ledoux , detail of main entrance to s a l t works o f Arc and

Senans (Photo : author )

18. Le doux , p e r s p e c t ive view o f Ch � teau o f Egui � re ( engraving

from Ledoux ' s Architecture , 1804)

 Gould 309
ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Corne i l l e van C l ive , High Altar , Ver s a i l l e s Chapel ( C a i s s e Nationale ,

MH 1 7 2 . 9 6 9 )

2. Dupuis & Chr i s t o phl e , High Altar , Amiens Cathedral ( C a i s s e National e ,

MH 5 6 1 2 2 )

3. Jean Re s tout , Death o f S . S c o l as t ica , Tours Mus eum (Archives Pho t o ­

graphique s , 1 PE 628)

4. J . F . Detroy , T ime Reveal ing Truth , National Gallery , London (Nat ional

G a l l ery 6 4 5 4 )

5. J. F. Detroy , Death o f C l eopatra , . praguignan , Mus eum (Archives P h o t o ­

graphiques D 2 4 7 9 2 )

6. L - S . Adam , S e l f Portrait , Ashmo l e an Mus eum , Oxford (Ashmolean Mus eum)

 Kuhn 310
ILLUSTRATIONS

1. Gunther , P i e t � , first view , St . P e t er and Paul , Weyarn ( Sowiej a )

2. Gunther , P i e t � , main view , S t . P e t er and Paul , Weyarn ( Sowiej a )

3. Gunther , P i e t � , c l o s ing view , St. P eter and P aul , Weyarn ( S owiej a )

4. Pous s in , Lamentation o f Chr i s t , Alte P inakothek , Munich (Alte P inako thek)

5. Bernin i , Aeneas , Anchi s e s , and A s c anius , main view , Gal leria Borghes e ,

Rome ( GFN E 5 5 2 1 3 )

6. Bernin i , Head o f Apo l l o , main view , Gal leria Borghe s e , Rome (Ander s on , 21 7 5

7. Bernin i , Head o f Apo l lo , clo s ing view , Galleria Borghe s e , Rome (Anderson ,

2174)

8. Bernini , Apo l l o and Daphne , exp o s it ion view , Galleria Borghe se , Rome

( Bi b l i o t e c a Hetlzian a , Rome )

9. Bernin i , Apo l l o and Daphne , main view , Galleria Borghe s e , Rome (Ander­

s on , 1919)

10. Bernin i , Apo l l o and Daphne , c l o s ing view , Galleria Borghe s e , Rome

( B i b l i o t e c a Hertz iana , Rome )

11 . Bernini , Danie l , exp o s i t ion view , S t a . Maria del P o p o l o , Rome (Neubauer)

12. Bernin i , Danie l , main view , S t a . Maria del Popolo , Rome (Anderson , 1818)

13. Bernin i , Danie l , c l o s ing view , S t a . Maria del Pop o l o , Rome (Neubauer)

14. Bernin i , S tudy for the exp o s i t ion view o f the Dani e l , Leipzig ( after

Brauer-Wit tkower , Bernin i , p l . 45)

15 . Bernin i , S tudy for the main view o f the Danie l , Leipzig ( after Brauer­

Wittkower , Bernin i , p l . 46)

16 . Bernin i , S tudie s for the Dani e l , L e ip z i g ( after Brauer-Wit tkower , Ber­

nini , p l . 47)

17. Gunther , Annunc iation , exp o s i t ion view , S·t . P eter and P aul , Weyarn

( Sowiej a )

18. Gunther , Annun c iat ion , main view , S t . P et er and Paul , Weyarn ( S owiej a )
Kuhn , 2 311

19. Gunther , Annun c iation , c l o s ing view , S t . P eter and P aul , Weyarn

( S owiej a )

20. Gunther , Guardian Angel , exp o s it ion view , Burger s aal , Munich ( S owiej a )

21 . Gunther , Guardian Ange l , main view , Burger s aal , Munich ( S owiej a )

22 . Gunther , Guardian Ange l , c l o s ing view , Burger s aal , Munich ( Sowiej a )

23 . Bernin i , P luto and P r o s erpina , exp o s i t ion view ( after de Ro s s i , Racco lta ,

1 70 4 , p l . 68)