La Pala Robbiana #castellogradara

During the research on the history of Gradara, extensive correspondence was found regarding the ownership of the greatest masterpiece that the town boasts: Andrea Della Robbia's glazed terra cotta behind the altar of the chapel in the Malatesta castle. The property is still disputed between the municipality of Gradara and the State Administration, owner of the fortress. The history is quite interesting, above all because it is little known and not in exact terms, both by those directly interested - the citizens of Gradara who for over a hundred years have considered themselves the undisputed owners of one of Robbia's most beautiful masterpieces - and by the numerous tourists whose legitimate questions are replied evasively. While there are numerous brochures regarding the castle and its history, none of these makes exhaustive mention of the works of art it contains. The Pala Robbiana measures mt. at the base. 1.72 and in height mt. 2.13. It was carried out around 1480 specifically for the chapel which dates back twenty years. For a long time it was believed to be the work of Luca Della Robbia, while recently, art critics agree on the name of his nephew Andrea (Florence 1435-1525). Within a classic aedicule formed by a dais, two pillars and the cornice above, you can admire the Madonna and Child in high relief who has the natural gesture of the little finger in her mouth, sitting on a purple stool; on the right there is S. Maria Maddalena and S. Girolamo, on the left S. Caterina d'Alessandria and S. Ludovico di Toulouse. On the step, divided by three spaces, a bas-relief depicts St. Francis receiving the Stigmata, the Annunciation and the Communion of St. Mary of Egypt in the desert. On the pillars and cornices there are ornaments of white foliage on a blue background - the capitals, the ovules and the other architectural friezes are fire-gilded as are the edges of the drapery of the individual figures, the radiant halo of the Madonna, the wheel of St. Catherine and the cope of the Holy Bishop studded here and there with golden lilies. The figures stand out white against a deep blue background. For a brief but essential stylistic description, we report the words of the prof. Luigi Serra, former Royal Superintendent of Galleries and art objects of the Marche: He writes: The Altarpiece of the Rocca di Gradara is rightly assigned to Andrea. there Marquand assigns the date 1480. And, in truth, the clarity and sobriety of the composition, the simplicity of the drapery, the contained gestures, the intimacy of the feeling, the immediacy of the touch and of the expression makes one think of a work prior to the end of the 15th century. Among Andrea's best despite the fact that his signature note of melancholy veils the figures with a certain uniformity of accent and weakens them somewhat. The scenes on the predella are more lively and lively, in which the artist seems to free himself from the burdens of religious composure that he had imposed on himself in the main figuration. Marked inequalities in the workmanship are not noticeable, so as to accuse an intemperate participation of aid, but they do not completely exclude it. On 6 April 1861, on behalf of Quintino Sella, the royal commissioners Giovanni Mornili and Giovanbattista Cavalcaselle, well-known nineteenth-century art historians, carried out a "reconnaissance" of the altarpiece "work by Luca della Robbia" and found it to be of outstanding beauty. They then placed the royal seal on the mutilated left foot of the Blessed Virgin. They also observed a mutilation on the nose of St. Francis. They estimated the work to be worth approximately L.40,000. The permanence of the soldiers in the Rocca over the centuries and, in particular, the devastating fury of the French did not spare the Pala Robbiana! She too fought in the war. The gilding has almost all disappeared; the chips and cracks cannot be counted! Likewise the "saber and blunt weapon blows". Only in the Child's neck and right arm were "ten shots". The upper lip of the Holy Bishop "was removed by a blunt weapon". His cloak withstood two saber blows. St. Catherine's wheel is missing four teeth. Santa herself has "saber cuts in her upper lip and the tip of her nose". It's just a three-page essay full of these wounds! While the dismantled masterpiece rested in the elm chest, the Great War ended and the municipality urgently turned to the Morandi-Bonacossi heirs so that, in compliance with the agreements signed in the purchase, they began urgent restoration work on the fortress. The owners preferred to sell the castle to the engineer in 1920. Umberto Zanvettori. After having completely restored the castle, he worked to relocate the Robbiana work to its old location.

Видео La Pala Robbiana #castellogradara канала Pietro Pecco