Published in the present article is a new sculpture by Benedetto da Maiano: a marble tondo, representing the Madonna and Child with the Young Saint John within a garland of angels’ heads, which for several generations belonged to a Florentine family and has passed totally unnoticed until now. It is clear, however, that this work – an original by Benedetto both in its invention and in the “sbozzatura” (rough-modelling) of the entire surface – was given its final form by an anonymous sculptor of the 16th century. It must therefore have remained unfinished in the workshop of Benedetto at his death (1497), together with many other marbles by him already known to scholars. The majority of these were left untouched, such as the ‘Saint Sebastian’ in the Oratory of the Misericordia in Florence, the various elements of the ‘Coronation of King Alfonso II of Aragon’ for Naples (today in Florence, Museo Nazionale del Bargello), and a ‘Blessing God the Father’ (today in the church of San Severo a Legri, near Calenzano). But other marbles, less legible in their provisional state, and also more suited to being reused for worship in other contexts, were completed by other masters during the following century, as was the case for the monumental ‘Madonna and Child’ at the Misericordia of Florence, concluded by Battista Lorenzi del Cavaliere in 1574-1575. An examination of the well-known posthumous inventory of Benedetto’s workshop reveals the presence of the new ‘Madonna’, along with the other sculptures already mentioned. The relief is listed as “un tondo bozzato di Nostra Donna di braccia 1 1⁄4”. The corresponding measurement in the decimal system would amount to something significantly different compared to the diameter of our tondo, which is in fact much larger. However, if one considers the plausible possibility of a small mistake in the transcription of the document, which has survived only through a later copy, and supposes that the original entry may have actually read “braccia 1 3⁄4”, then the dimensions match perfectly. Among the several marble tondos of the Madonna executed by Benedetto, a genre in which he is to be considered the undisputed master of his time, none measure “braccia 1 1⁄4”. All these tondos are larger in size, including that of “braccia 1 3⁄4”. The late dating of the newly discovered tondo, which is immediately suggested by its unfinished condition, is fully confirmed by the composition, in which the young Saint John appears for the first time, and by the style, close to the “Maniera Moderna”. In fact the discovery of this work provides us the missing link between Benedetto’s tondos of the Madonna and those of his pupils Giovanfrancesco Rustici and, above all, Michelangelo. The article also explores the distinctive stylistic connection between the rectangular Maianesque ‘Madonna and Child with the Young Saint John’ in marble owned by the Monte dei Paschi in Siena and the marble altar frontal with the ‘Pietà’ under the ‘Madonna dell’Ulivo’, today in the Cathedral of Prato: the author of both must have been Giovanni da Maiano, brother and assistant of Giuliano and Benedetto, who died prematurely in 1478.

Viene pubblicata in questo articolo una nuova scultura di Benedetto da Maiano: un tondo in marmo, rappresentante la Madonna col Bambino e San Giovannino entro una corona di teste angeliche, che appartiene da più generazioni a una famiglia di Firenze ed è rimasto del tutto sconosciuto finora. L’opera, autografa di Benedetto nell’invenzione e nella completa sbozzatura, rivela nondimeno di essere stata condotta all’ultima finitura da uno scultore diverso, cinquecentesco e anonimo. Essa dovette dunque rimanere incompiuta nella bottega di Benedetto alla sua morte (1497), così come accadde a una nutrita serie di altri marmi già noti alla bibliografia. In maggioranza essi non furono più toccati: il ‘San Sebastiano’ nell’Oratorio della Misericordia a Firenze, o i vari elementi dell’‘Incoronazione di re Alfonso II d’Aragona’ per Napoli (oggi a Firenze, Museo Nazionale del Bargello), o un ‘Eterno benedicente’ (oggi nella pieve di San Severo a Legri, presso Calenzano). Ma altri marmi, meno leggibili nel loro ‘non finito’, e insieme più adatti a essere reimpiegati per il culto, furono completati da altri scultori nel corso del secolo successivo, come fu della monumentale ‘Madonna col Bambino’ alla Misericordia di Firenze, perfezionata da Battista Lorenzi del Cavaliere nel 1574-75. La verifica sul celebre inventario postumo della bottega di Benedetto permette di rintracciarvi la nuova ‘Madonna’ al pari delle opere già citate. Essa vi figura come “un tondo bozzato di Nostra Donna di braccia 1 ¼”. Il passaggio dalle braccia fiorentine al sistema metrico decimale denuncia in verità uno scarto significativo rispetto al diametro del tondo pervenutoci, che è ben maggiore: ma la corrispondenza diventa perfetta se si considera quanto facilmente l’inventario, noto solo attraverso una copia tarda, sia potuto andare incontro a una lieve svista di trascrizione, recitando invece nell’originale “braccia 1 ¾”. La misura di “braccia 1 ¼” non si ritrova mai tra i non pochi tondi mariani in marmo di Benedetto, un genere di cui egli fu ai suoi giorni l’indiscusso maestro. Tutti questi tondi impegnano misure più alte, compresa quella di “braccia 1 ¾”. La cronologia tarda del nuovo tondo, immediatamente suggerita dalla sua incompiutezza, è confermata appieno dall’invenzione, nella quale compare per la prima volta il San Giovannino, e dallo stile, ormai prossimo alla Maniera Moderna. Di fatto la riscoperta di questo tondo ci restituisce l’anello mancante tra i tondi mariani di Benedetto e quelli dei suoi allievi Giovanfrancesco Rustici e soprattutto Michelangelo. Nel corso dell’argomentazione si offre anche l’opportunità di precisare lo speciale nesso di stile tra la ‘Madonna’ maianesca in marmo di formato rettangolare presso il Monte dei Paschi di Siena e il paliotto marmoreo con la ‘Pietà’ sottostante alla ‘Madonna dell’Ulivo’, oggi nel Duomo di Prato: l’autore di entrambi dev’essere stato Giovanni da Maiano, fratello e collaboratore di Giuliano e Benedetto, morto anzitempo nel 1478.

“Un tondo bozzato di Nostra Donna”, opera di Benedetto da Maiano

Francesco Caglioti
2017

Abstract

Published in the present article is a new sculpture by Benedetto da Maiano: a marble tondo, representing the Madonna and Child with the Young Saint John within a garland of angels’ heads, which for several generations belonged to a Florentine family and has passed totally unnoticed until now. It is clear, however, that this work – an original by Benedetto both in its invention and in the “sbozzatura” (rough-modelling) of the entire surface – was given its final form by an anonymous sculptor of the 16th century. It must therefore have remained unfinished in the workshop of Benedetto at his death (1497), together with many other marbles by him already known to scholars. The majority of these were left untouched, such as the ‘Saint Sebastian’ in the Oratory of the Misericordia in Florence, the various elements of the ‘Coronation of King Alfonso II of Aragon’ for Naples (today in Florence, Museo Nazionale del Bargello), and a ‘Blessing God the Father’ (today in the church of San Severo a Legri, near Calenzano). But other marbles, less legible in their provisional state, and also more suited to being reused for worship in other contexts, were completed by other masters during the following century, as was the case for the monumental ‘Madonna and Child’ at the Misericordia of Florence, concluded by Battista Lorenzi del Cavaliere in 1574-1575. An examination of the well-known posthumous inventory of Benedetto’s workshop reveals the presence of the new ‘Madonna’, along with the other sculptures already mentioned. The relief is listed as “un tondo bozzato di Nostra Donna di braccia 1 1⁄4”. The corresponding measurement in the decimal system would amount to something significantly different compared to the diameter of our tondo, which is in fact much larger. However, if one considers the plausible possibility of a small mistake in the transcription of the document, which has survived only through a later copy, and supposes that the original entry may have actually read “braccia 1 3⁄4”, then the dimensions match perfectly. Among the several marble tondos of the Madonna executed by Benedetto, a genre in which he is to be considered the undisputed master of his time, none measure “braccia 1 1⁄4”. All these tondos are larger in size, including that of “braccia 1 3⁄4”. The late dating of the newly discovered tondo, which is immediately suggested by its unfinished condition, is fully confirmed by the composition, in which the young Saint John appears for the first time, and by the style, close to the “Maniera Moderna”. In fact the discovery of this work provides us the missing link between Benedetto’s tondos of the Madonna and those of his pupils Giovanfrancesco Rustici and, above all, Michelangelo. The article also explores the distinctive stylistic connection between the rectangular Maianesque ‘Madonna and Child with the Young Saint John’ in marble owned by the Monte dei Paschi in Siena and the marble altar frontal with the ‘Pietà’ under the ‘Madonna dell’Ulivo’, today in the Cathedral of Prato: the author of both must have been Giovanni da Maiano, brother and assistant of Giuliano and Benedetto, who died prematurely in 1478.
2017
Settore L-ART/02 - Storia dell'Arte Moderna
Settore L-ART/04 - Museologia e Critica Artistica e del Restauro
Benedetto da Maiano, Antonio Rossellino, Michelangelo Buonarroti, Giovanfrancesco Rustici, Scultura fiorentina del Rinascimento, Giovanni da Maiano
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11384/82664
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