“Peace” thinks about things…
In Siena, everyone is drawn to the Piazza del Campo, and sooner or later they take a picture – or dozens – of the tall tower that stands photogenically over the piazza. This is the Torre del Mangia, and it dominates the Palazzo Pubblico, or Town Hall, that lines one side of Piazza del Campo, curving around to fit its oval shape. The Palazzo was built in 1297, and the tower added between 1325 and 1344. In its day, it was the tallest tower in Italy (deliberately built to out-do a rival tower in Florence). It’s possible to climb the Torre, and the effort is thoroughly worthwhile (if you don’t mind hundreds of steps and aren’t claustrophobic) — the views of lovely Siena are divine.
But what’s this about “good and bad government?” I hear you ask. Siena’s republican government, known as the “Council of Nine”, originally inhabited the Palazzo Pubblico, and they had it’s inside walls adorned with room after room of fabulous frescoes, remarkable because they were commissioned by a secular governing body instead of the church, and many are on secular subjects. Although there’s been some damage, it’s quite a miracle that these gorgeous paintings survive from so long ago – most are from the 14th century.
Touring the Palace, you walk through lofty halls covered in art, small ante-rooms, a chapel, hallways and a loggia. But one special room, not very large, is called ‘The Hall of the Nine’ (or sometimes Sala della Pace). It was the meeting rooms of the Council, and to decorate its walls they had the artist Ambrogio Lorenzetti (in about 1338-39) paint a series of frescoes entitled “The Allegory of Good and Bad Government”. This famous series includes Justice meting out punishments and rewards, surrounded by various personifications of the virtues, of which the most famous of all is a broody female in white draperies and elaborate blond plaits, looking pensive and holding an olive branch. This is Pax, or Peace, and a lovely thing she is too.
On the two side walls, we have scenes of a city recognisably Siena, one showing what things would be like in a well-governed city (prosperous townspeople, dancing in the streets, lush countryside beyond), and the other showing what things would be like under bad government (rampant crime, disease, drought and general mayhem). Timely reminders to the governors of the city.
Elsewhere in the Palazzo you can find a wonderful fresco of a chap on a horse, with the horse and rider wearing matching outfits – cloth of gold decorated with black diamonds. They’re riding towards a castle from what looks like medieval Siena. This is a Condottiere named Guido Riccio da Fogliano, painted by Simone Martini in 1328. We would have forgotten all about this minor warlord if not for this wonderful painting, which covers one whole end wall of the huge Sala di Mappomondo (named after maps of the world which used to be on the walls but are now lost). As it is, I was so impressed by the fashionable horse and rider that I couldn’t resist buying a long poster of the scene in the Palazzo’s gift shop. I envisioned him riding across my sitting room wall….
by Simone Martini.
One of the earliest works in the Palazzo was painted in 1312 – 15 (that’s very old!) and covers the whole of the north wall of the same Hall. It’s also by Simone Martini and is known as the La Maestà (‘The Majesty’). It’s considered to be one of the most important works of fourteenth century Italy. It’s certainly absorbing to look at, as you contemplate each of the intriguing figures. The subject is an enthroned Madonna and Child surrounded by angels and saints. It’s a religious theme, but the virgin is represented as a princess surrounded by her court, and an eclectic and characterful lot they are. You may recall this blog’s post on the wonderful frescoes of Giotto in Padua, which date from 1305. It’s said that Martini was heavily influenced by Giotto.
As you make your way out of the art-rich Palazzo Pubblico and into the Piazza del Campo, and as you pause to consider which of the tempting cafés to stop at for a well-earned aperitivo, don’t forget the lessons you’ve learnt about good and bad government from the artists of the 14th century.
La Maestà di Palazzo Pubblico, Siena. By Simone Martini, 1315.
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