Tabernacles of Florence
Via Folco Portinari
THE TABERNACLE
Madonna col Bambino
The “Madonna col Bambino” (the “Madonna and Child”) is a solitary and valuable tabernacle on the long wall that leads from Piazza Santa Maria Nuova to Via dell'Oriuolo. The fresco, with its realistic image of the Madonna holding a blessing Child, is by Matteo Rosselli, with documented attribution, and the inscriptions on the scroll and on the collection plate, just below, give us the date 1618-1621. But the most beautiful testimony on the tabernacle is the crutch emblem in relief on the frame that ends at the bottom of the stone shrine: a noble-hospitaller-order seal.
Tabernacle
We have a beautiful pietra serena hollow with an arched-shaped tympanum on two soberly-elegant capitals supported by pilasters carved with angels and floral motifs. In the center of the tympanum, there is the Baldovinetti family’s coat of arms, and more precisely of the cardinal of this family, as indicated by the cardinal's hat that surmounts it.
THE STREET
VIA FOLCO PORTINARI
Once known as "Via delle Pappe" to commemorate the fact that here the hospital workers (“pappini”) distributed hot soup to the city's poorest every day. The name remained until recent times, when a fitting tribute to Folco Portinari was decided.
AUTHOR
Matteo Rosselli
(Florence, August 8, 1578 - January 18, 1650) A member of a large but wealthy family, at the age of nine he was sent by his father to Gregorio Pagani's workshop. His long stay at Pagani's side continued well after his matriculation at the “Accademia del disegno” (the “Design Academy”) on February 26, 1600. It proved to be decisive for the painter's professional growth.
The artist
(Florence, August 8, 1578 - January 18, 1650) In parallel to some assignments taken outside Florence, in Rome and elsewhere, Rosselli entered the Medici orbit by taking part in the decorations for the future Grand Duke Cosimo II’s wedding with Maria Maddalena of Austria (1608) and for Henry IV of France’s funeral in the church of S. Lorenzo (1610). From now on, the painter grew in fame in Florence, imposing himself on the religious orders.
Curiosity
The sanctity of this tabernacle for Florentines is emphasized by the many ex-votos that have been hung over time, around the image of the Virgin: evidence of the fervor with which healing graces were invoked.
OTHER INFORMATION
Info
AMICI DEI MUSEI FIORENTINI ODV - COMITATO PER IL DECORO E IL RESTAURO DEI TABERNACOLI - Card by Chiara Sestini and Doretta Ermini - Restoration by Alberto Bruschi
PICTURES
Tabernacle
Via Folco Portinari
Tabernacle
Via Folco Portinari
Plaque
In memory of Albertina Bruschi
