Fano Altarpiece
Encyclopedia
Fano Altarpiece is a painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Pietro Perugino
, executed in 1497, and housed in the church of Santa Maria Nuova, Fano
, central Italy
. It also includes a lunette
with a Pietà and several predella
panels.
Perugino had already painted an Annunciation in 1488-1490. Several scholars have supposed that a young Raphael
collaborated on the predella.
of 1495-1496.
At the sides are the saints John the Baptist (with a camel skin and a stick with the cross), Louis of Toulouse, who wears a bishop dress, Francis of Assisi (reading), Peter with the Keys of Heaven, Paul (with a long beard and a red vest) and Mary Magdalene with offerings to the Madonna. The portico is a typical element of Perugino's paintings of the period, such as the Albani Torlonia Polyptych
; also typical of his late works is the Madonna's figure as a more mature woman, different than the elegantly youthful portrayal painted before. Less usual are the differentiated proportions of the saints and of the Madonna herself.
The lunette depicts Jesus raised from his sepulchre by Joseph of Arimathea
and Nicodemus, with Mary and John the Apostle at the sides. The predella includes the scenes of the Nativity of Mary, the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, the Marriage of the Virgin, the Annunciation and the Assumption. In these secondary paintings Perugino used some of his typical themes, including the portico and the oval in a valley.
Pietro Perugino
Pietro Perugino , born Pietro Vannucci, was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance...
, executed in 1497, and housed in the church of Santa Maria Nuova, Fano
Fano
Fano is a town and comune of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort 12 km southeast of Pesaro, located where the Via Flaminia reaches the Adriatic Sea...
, central Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It also includes a lunette
Lunette
In architecture, a lunette is a half-moon shaped space, either filled with recessed masonry or void. A lunette is formed when a horizontal cornice transects a round-headed arch at the level of the imposts, where the arch springs. If a door is set within a round-headed arch, the space within the...
with a Pietà and several predella
Predella
A predella is the platform or step on which an altar stands . In painting, the predella is the painting or sculpture along the frame at the bottom of an altarpiece...
panels.
Perugino had already painted an Annunciation in 1488-1490. Several scholars have supposed that a young Raphael
Raphael
Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino , better known simply as Raphael, was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form and ease of composition and for its visual achievement of the Neoplatonic ideal of human grandeur...
collaborated on the predella.
Description
The Madonna is portrayed on a luminous landscape of hills, on a high throne; in front of her is a pedestal with, on it, a mystic vase, and featuring the signature and date, which were always added by Perugino when the painting was produced in his workshop and then shipped to the destination. Mary holds the Child in the same fashion of the Decemviri AltarpieceDecemviri Altarpiece
Decemviri Altarpiece is a painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Pietro Perugino, executed in 1495-1496, and housed in the Pinacoteca Vaticana in Rome....
of 1495-1496.
At the sides are the saints John the Baptist (with a camel skin and a stick with the cross), Louis of Toulouse, who wears a bishop dress, Francis of Assisi (reading), Peter with the Keys of Heaven, Paul (with a long beard and a red vest) and Mary Magdalene with offerings to the Madonna. The portico is a typical element of Perugino's paintings of the period, such as the Albani Torlonia Polyptych
Albani Torlonia Polyptych
The Albani Torlonia Altarpiece is a painting by the Italian Renaissance painter Pietro Perugino, executed in 1491 and housed in the Torlonia Collection, Rome...
; also typical of his late works is the Madonna's figure as a more mature woman, different than the elegantly youthful portrayal painted before. Less usual are the differentiated proportions of the saints and of the Madonna herself.
The lunette depicts Jesus raised from his sepulchre by Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea was, according to the Gospels, the man who donated his own prepared tomb for the burial of Jesus after Jesus' Crucifixion. He is mentioned in all four Gospels.-Gospel references:...
and Nicodemus, with Mary and John the Apostle at the sides. The predella includes the scenes of the Nativity of Mary, the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple, the Marriage of the Virgin, the Annunciation and the Assumption. In these secondary paintings Perugino used some of his typical themes, including the portico and the oval in a valley.