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Siena Cathedral Pulpit

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184:"The Virgin Annuciate introduces the Visitation relief" In the first corner, on your left hand side there is the image of the Madonna with the announcing angel. To the right of that there are two women, who look like Roman matrons who clasp hands "enacting the visitation" Below them are two midwives washing the child, which may be the work of Arnolfo di Cambi. In the center of the relief, Mary lounges like a "classical goddess or empress" To the right of her the panel depicts the visiting shepherds, who "are dressed in Roman tunics, while their sheep, clustered around the Virgin’s bed, have surely strayed in from some Virgilian Pastoral, or from Jasons quest. At the Upper right, above the shepherds, intrudes the large head of a Roman Emperor, his beard and hair well-drilled in true lapidary fashion." Also on this panel one can see the French Gothic influence. Above the two Roman matrons emerges an image of a Gothic arch and "the character of this architecture, its relative elegance and thinness of proportions, suggests transalpine influence." 256: 222: 193: 230:
it depicts when King Herod decreed the mass killing of the baby boys in Bethlehem to avoid the prophecy that the "King of Jews" would take his throne. This panel is also a new addition to the tradition of pulpits. It cannot be found in Nicolas previous Pisa pulpit and it also differs from its predecessors by having 24 nude children rather than the common 3 or 4. This panel is a good example of Nicolas attention to emotion and movement. The struggle between the families clutching their children and the Roman soldiers (wearing traditional Roman uniform) is true classical form. With none of the characters arranged stiffly but rather lunging, shirking and squirming in the panel. It is said that with “the sharpened dramatic effects” that Giovanni Pisano may have had a hand in creating this relief.
75:, which he had finished in 1260. This contract stipulated precise clauses such as "the materials, times of work (Nicola was to be absent only for 60 days a year) payment and collaborators." It also stated that there were to be seven panels instead of five such as in Pisa and it also stated that Pisano needed to use the Sienese Carrara marble. "For this labour Nicola, magister lapisorum, would receive eight Pisan soldi per day, his two pupils Arnolfo di Cambio and Lapo would each receive six soldi per day and—should he work—then ... Nicoli was to receive four soldi per day, to be paid to his father." 123:
and lions.">On the Panels, there are carved reliefs that "represent a Christological cycle from the Visitation to the Last Judgment. An aspect of these panels is that each one shows more than one subject, whereas, the Last Judgment is told in the space of two reliefs. The panels of this monumental pulpit share the same compression style of the Late Antique and Roman sarcophagi. In between each of the panels on the corner sections Nicola chose to include Christian symbols to help make the story line of the panels to flow more effortlessly. The many figures in each scene with their
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individualized almost done in portrait style. The figures of the saved in the panel on the left of Christ sit calmly, some looking up towards Jesus whereas on the right side of Christ the scene of the characters being pushed into Hell is much more chaotic and emotional. There are monsters and devils tearing at the characters and in the left hand corner there is an image of angels deciding who is to be damned. The pulpit ends its narrative sequence with a sculpture of "sad and dismayed angels sounding the bugles of destruction."
239: 204:; who was an 8th-century prophet The panels reliefs begin with horsemen riding in from the left with other animals, such as camels and dogs carved into the panel as well. Added with the flora sculpted above the magi, it can be seen that Nicola wanted to embrace naturalistic themes. The upper right hand corner holds the scene with Jesus being adored by the Magi while sitting on his mother’s lap. The fold of the robes that each character wears and the S-shape pattern in the hair denotes Roman stylistic influence. 247:
new addition that Nicola made to the crucified Savior is the joining of Christ’s feet upon the cross with one nail. This had not been seen before the 13th century. Surrounding Jesus is a scene of onlookers and mourners. To the left of Christ stands the image of Mary physically grieving. Her stance and emotion is another motif of the 13th century as it became common to depict the Virgin as swooning. This panel is also a good example of Nicolas understanding of depth with the foreground figures being the largest.
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sarcophagi had on Nicola, Vasari wrote, "Nicola, pondering over the beauty of this work and being greatly pleased therewith, put so much study and diligence into imitating this manner and some other good sculptures that were in these other ancient sarcophagi, that he was judged, after no long time, the best sculptor of his day; there being in Tuscany in those times."
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raised up on columns three "resting on plain bases" and three "resting on the backs of lions" This pulpit, like the Sienese one also has rectangular relief panels that contain the Narrative of the life of Christ, but is told in only six sections where as there are eight panels on Siena’s pulpit. With the Pisan pulpit we see Nicola hone his classical style.
98:. Nicola may have trained in the imperial workshops of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II who encouraged artists towards the "revival of classical forms" where "the representational traditions of classical art were given new life and spiritual force". Frederick favoured the fusion of the classical and Christian traditions. 68:
the ninth century. Many artists were commissioned to gild the interior and the façade of the new cathedral. For the construction of the pulpit, a contract was drawn up in Pisa on September 29, 1265 between the artist Nicola Pisano and the Cistercian Fra Melano, who was the Master of the Cathedral works of Siena.
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is juxtaposed with the Roman style characters of the panel. On the bottom of the left side there is the narrative of Mary and Joseph with baby Jesus meeting Simeon outside the temple. Then immediately to the right of these figures there is the carving of the Holy family fleeing to Egypt on the back of a mule.
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The pulpit itself is octagonal and it has a central column on a pedestal that is encircled with the carved figures of ‘Philosophy’ and the ‘Seven Liberal Arts’. There are eight outer columns made of granite, porphyry and green marble that are "supported alternately, like the Pisa pulpit on flat bases
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The prosperity of the city of Siena during the thirteenth century led to an increase in civic pride and interest in public works. In 1196, the cathedral masons' guild, the Opera di Santa Maria, was commissioned to construct a new cathedral to take the place of the original structure that was built in
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Nicolas' first recorded work was the pulpit inside the Baptistery in Pisa, Italy in 1260. This piece is the forerunner of the Sienese pulpit in multiple ways. One being the "Synthesis of French Gothic and Classical elements and incorporates a programme of great complexity." This Pisan pulpit is also
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To the right of the massacre, stands the image Jesus and the Four Evangelists. This carving introduces the next relief panel depicting the Crucifixion. In the center on the panel Jesus hangs upon the cross traditionally shown with his head falling to the side and modestly covered in a loin cloth. A
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Leading from the Flight into Egypt to the Fourth Panel of the Massacre there is the image of three angels. This relief is the one that takes central spot upon the pulpit. It is also the only panel that does not contain Jesus or his family, in fact it is concerned with the absence of Christ, because
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An image of Mary holding the Christ child is the carving that separates The Adoration from the next panel containing the Presentation and then the Flight. The temple sits in the upper left hand corner presiding over the Toga cloaked figures below. The Style of the building is yet again Gothic which
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Before his commission on the Siena Cathedral Pulpit, Nicola had worked on two griffin heads in Apulia modeled with "light surface undulations, giving a soft chiaroscuro effect" which shows that he was influenced by Roman sculpture early on in his career. Commenting on the inspiration that Roman
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The pulpit ends with two separate panels depicting the Final Judgment with Christ intersecting the Blessed and the Damned. Like in Pisa pulpit, these panels are also arranged in the amphitheatre style placing the figures in rows on top of one another. Each character in both reliefs is highly
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The outer columns that alternate between ending at a base or upon a lions back are examples of medieval traditions as are the tri-lobed arches. The ornate foliage qualities of the capitals are a gothic expansion on the traditional Corinthian capital The upper and lower
84: 59:, showcases Nicola Pisano's talent for integrating classical themes into Christian traditions, making both Nicola Pisano and the Siena pulpit forerunners of the classical revival of the Italian Renaissance. 255: 454:
Frothingham, Jr., A. L., The Revival of Sculpture in Europe in the Thirteenth Century, The American Journal of Archaeology and of the History of the Fine Arts, Vol. 1, No. 4 (Oct., 1885)
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Houton, Kerr, Eucharistic and Baptismal Allusions in Late Medieval Italian Images of the Massacre of Innocents, Southeastern College Art Conference Review 15 No. 5 536-42, 2010
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Between the images of the Shepherds visitation to Mary and the new born Jesus to the next panel containing the journey and adoration of the magi stands a carving of
323:. At the same time, the pulpit was moved from the choir to its present location. It was raised on a square base, with a rectangular base jutting out on each side 868: 713: 351: 624: 556: 573: 484:
Kleiner, Fred S., and Helen Gardner. Gardner's Art through the Ages. the Western Perspective. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010.
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between the fall of 1265 and the fall of 1268. The pulpit, with its seven narrative panels and nine decorative columns carved out of
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The central column ends in a large pedestal that is decorated with the representations of the Seven Liberal Arts and Philosophers.
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Maginnis, Hayden B. J., The World of the Early Sienese Painter, The Pennsylvania State University Press, Pennsylvania, 2001
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Vasari, Giorgio, VASARI'S LIFE OF NICOLA PISANO, Vasari's Lives of the Artists. Editor, Adrienne DeAngelis Web.
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According to the Siena Cathedral archives, Nicola Pisano was born to Petrus de Apulia between 1200 and 1205 in
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Murray, Peter and Linda, The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architecture, Oxford University Press, 1996
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Eucharistic and Baptismal Allusions in Late Medieval Italian Images of the Massacre of the Innocents
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Frothingham, A. L. (1885). "The Revival of Sculpture in Europe in the Thirteenth Century".
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Polzer, Joseph, The Lucca Reliefs and Nicola Pisano, Art Bulletin, 46:2 (1964: June)
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Testi Cristiani, Maria Laura. "Pisano (i)." In Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online,
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Ayrton, Michael, Giovanni Pisano, sculptor, Weybright & Talley, New York, 1969
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Lusini, Aldo, The Cathedral of Siena, Tipografia ex Cooperatiral, Siena, 1950
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Philosophy, as a woman dressed in richly adorned clothes and holding a torch
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The American Journal of Archaeology and of the History of the Fine Arts
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http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T067893pg1
344: 538:(Thesis). Southeastern College Art Conference Review 15 No. 5 536-42. 201: 139: 95: 633: 271: 254: 237: 220: 191: 129: 113: 82: 26: 606: 502:
Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs
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Astronomy, as a scholar holding an astrolabe (library book)
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effect show a richness of surface, motion and narrative.
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The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architecture
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http://members.efn.org/~acd/vite/VasariNicPisano.html
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Nicola Pisani's Pulpit in the Cathedral of Siena
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Arithmetic, as a lady who is counting on her fingers
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Grammar, as a young boy reading a book upon his lap
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Paris: Librairie Gründ. 290:Rhetoric, as a woman pointing to book 51:, Lapo di Ricevuto, and Nicolas' son 7: 299:Music, as a woman playing a cithara 25: 196:Journey and Adoration of the Magi 188:Journey and Adoration of the Magi 155:Journey and Adoration of the Magi 142:on the parapet show parts of the 771: 543:Murray, Peter and Linda (1996). 180:The Visitation and the Nativity 251:Last Judgment with the Blessed 167:Last Judgment with the Blessed 1: 749:San Sebastiano in Vallepiatta 170:Last Judgment with the Damned 73:pulpit in the Pisa Baptistery 39:is an octagonal structure in 729:San Pellegrino alla Sapienza 551:. Oxford University Press. 311:are equally richly carved. 947: 709:Battistero di San Giovanni 259:Last Judgment: the Blessed 138:Seven scenes of narrative 862:Gardens or public squares 769: 225:Massacre of the Innocents 217:Massacre of the Innocents 161:Massacre of the Innocents 759:Santo Stefano alla Lizza 714:Oratorio di Sant'Antonio 87:Much later sculpture of 853:Santa Maria della Scala 734:San Pietro alla Magione 427:(accessed May 10, 2012) 411:(accessed June 1, 2012) 352:Encyclopædia Britannica 346:"Pisano, Niccola"  152:Visitation and Nativity 134:Visitation and Nativity 315:Additions after Pisano 277: 260: 243: 226: 197: 135: 119: 118:Siena Cathedral Pulpit 91: 37:Siena Cathedral Pulpit 32: 883:Events and traditions 739:San Pietro alle Scale 693:Santa Maria dei Servi 589:43.31750°N 11.32889°E 534:Houton, Kerr (2010). 275: 258: 241: 224: 195: 133: 117: 86: 30: 848:Pinacoteca Nazionale 498:Benezit, E. (1976). 926:Duecento sculptures 585: /  47:and his assistants 905:March of the Palio 594:43.31750; 11.32889 278: 261: 244: 227: 198: 136: 120: 92: 33: 913: 912: 890:Contrade of Siena 767: 766: 558:978-0-19-866165-8 321:Bartolomeo Neroni 49:Arnolfo di Cambio 16:(Redirected from 938: 874:Piazza del Campo 798:Bottini of Siena 793:Fortezza Medicea 775: 660:Cathedral Pulpit 645: 627: 620: 613: 604: 600: 599: 597: 596: 595: 590: 586: 583: 582: 581: 578: 562: 550: 539: 530: 517: 505: 485: 482: 476: 473: 467: 464: 455: 452: 446: 443: 428: 421: 412: 405: 390: 387: 378: 375: 366: 363: 357: 356: 348: 337: 21: 946: 945: 941: 940: 939: 937: 936: 935: 916: 915: 914: 909: 878: 857: 836: 802: 776: 763: 697: 666: 655:Siena Cathedral 636: 631: 593: 591: 587: 584: 579: 576: 574: 572: 571: 569: 559: 542: 533: 520: 514: 497: 494: 489: 488: 483: 479: 474: 470: 465: 458: 453: 449: 444: 431: 422: 415: 406: 393: 388: 381: 376: 369: 364: 360: 339: 338: 334: 329: 317: 270: 177: 112: 81: 65: 53:Giovanni Pisano 41:Siena Cathedral 23: 22: 15: 12: 11: 5: 944: 942: 934: 933: 928: 918: 917: 911: 910: 908: 907: 902: 900:Palio di Siena 897: 895:Corteo Storico 892: 886: 884: 880: 879: 877: 876: 871: 865: 863: 859: 858: 856: 855: 850: 844: 842: 838: 837: 835: 834: 829: 824: 819: 817:Chigi-Saracini 813: 811: 804: 803: 801: 800: 795: 790: 784: 782: 778: 777: 770: 768: 765: 764: 762: 761: 756: 751: 746: 741: 736: 731: 726: 721: 716: 711: 705: 703: 699: 698: 696: 695: 690: 685: 680: 674: 672: 668: 667: 665: 664: 663: 662: 651: 649: 642: 638: 637: 632: 630: 629: 622: 615: 607: 568: 567:External links 565: 564: 563: 557: 540: 531: 518: 512: 493: 490: 487: 486: 477: 468: 456: 447: 429: 413: 391: 379: 367: 358: 343:, ed. 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Index

Nicola Pisani's Pulpit in the Cathedral of Siena

Siena Cathedral
Nicola Pisano
Arnolfo di Cambio
Giovanni Pisano
Carrara marble
pulpit in the Pisa Baptistery

Nicola Pisano
Apulia

chiaroscuro

relief
Life of Christ

Isaiah




cornices
Bartolomeo Neroni
Chisholm, Hugh
"Pisano, Niccola" 
Encyclopædia Britannica


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