not appear to have diminished his powers of activity, and many of his
best works belong to the years immediately following this event, which he
deplored so deeply. In 1509 he painted the “Baptism of Christ,” now at
Dresden, which still retains its rich glow of colour in spite of injuries
received from the splinters of a shell during the bombardment of that
city in 1760. Christ is represented standing on the waters of Jordan
while the Baptist bends forward from one of the banks, and two angels
with wistful faces wait on the other. A good replica of the subject, with
the same hilly landscape but some variations, is at Hampton Court, and
originally belonged to the Mantuan collection purchased by Charles I. The
Dresden Gallery possesses two other fine works of Francia, an “Adoration
of the Magi,” with a lake and mountain background, which bears strong
marks of Raphael’s influence, and a “Madonna” from the Quandt collection.
This last is one of the half-length figures of the Virgin with the child,
and one or more attendant saints, which became so popular a subject in
Francia’s school, and of which so many repetitions are to be seen. The
example in the National Gallery, acquired from the Beaucousin collection,
has unfortunately lost much of its original clearness, owing to the wash
of burnt sienna which has been laid on the surface.
Another finely conceived work, which has been ruined by repainting, is
the “Madonna and Saints” of the Belvedere at Vienna, while the same fate
has attended the Berlin altar-piece, originally painted for the Friars of
the Osservanza at Modena.
[Illustration: THE MADONNA OF THE ROSE-GARDEN. BY FRANCIA.
_In the Pinakothek, Munich._]
Two other panels, which, in type and execution, bear a marked resemblance
to the frescoes of St. Cecilia’s chapel, and were evidently painted
soon afterwards, are in a better state of preservation. The first, an
“Annunciation,” with St. Jerome and the Baptist, in the Bologna Gallery,
is a picture of the same class as the earlier Annunziata altar-piece,
and is distinguished by the refinement and gentleness of the Virgin’s
face. The other is the beautiful “Madonna of the Rose Garden,” originally
painted for the Gonzagas, into whose service Francia’s old friend,
Lorenzo Costa, had passed after the exile of the Bentivogli. It remained
in the Mantua collection till 1786, and after experiencing many changes
of hands, became the property of the Empress Josephine, until in 1815
it passed from Malmaison into the Pinakothek of Munich. The child lies
on a bed of flowery grass, stretching out its little arms with a smile
of delight to its mother, who is in the act of sinking upon her knees
in a rapture of loving adoration. A trellis of tall roses, which might
have been painted by a Botticelli or Filippino, fences the garden round,
and, in the pleasant meadows beyond, horses are feeding on the banks of
a winding stream, and church-towers rise in the distance. Nowhere is the
transparent delicacy of Francia’s colouring more pleasing than in the
silver-grey tones of the Virgin’s robe, while her countenance wears the
same gentle air of tender melancholy which haunts his conceptions in the
same way as the smile on Leonardo’s faces, and the deeper sadness of
Botticelli’s Madonnas.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
CHAPTER V.
LAST WORKS AND DEATH, A.D. 1509-1517.
We have few details of the last years of Francia’s life, but the dates
that mark some of his pictures show us that his powers were not impaired,
nor his activity diminished with advancing age.
It would be interesting to know how he was affected by the return of
his friends, the Bentivogli, who in 1511 entered Bologna again, on the
retreat of the Papal troops before the French army under Gaston de Foix.
The fickle Bolognese were as glad to be rid of the Pope as they had ever
been to expel their former tyrant, and destroyed the statue which Julius
II. had erected of himself on the principal square. But the Bentivogli
only enjoyed their return to power during a very brief space. In a few
months the conquering advance of the French army was checked by the death
of Gaston de Foix in the battle of Ravenna; the Pope’s troops again
entered Bologna, the Bentivogli fled once more, and the city was heavily
fined and deprived of many of its former privileges.
All we hear of Francia in these stormy times is that in 1511 he was
elected one of the sixteen Gonfalioneri of the people, which proves
that he still retained the popular favour, and that his changeable
fellow-countrymen had not wavered in their affection and regard for
him. In 1512 he was once more elected master of the Goldsmiths’ Guild,
and in 1514 he attained the dignity of Master of the four arts. “He
was reverenced as a god in Bologna,” says Vasari, “and not even his
friendship for Raphael, and his desire to see the larger works of the
great painter, could tear him away from his native city.”
The fame of his works had spread over all Italy and had attracted a large
number of scholars, as many, it is said, as two hundred. Several of the
best of these passed into the school of Raphael, as Timoteo Viti had
already done, and adopted a style which has little in common with that
of Francia. Such were Innocenza da Imola and Bartolommeo Ramenghi, of
Bagnacavallo, whose influence became prominent in the Bolognese school
after Francia’s death, and who have left many of their works in the
churches and Gallery of Bologna.
Others followed more closely in Francia’s steps, and contented themselves
for the most part with weak and conventional repetitions of those Saints
and Madonnas which his genius had rendered popular. Chief among these was
Francia’s own son, Giacomo Raibolini, an active and careful artist who
never aspired to originality, and whose conceptions are generally wanting
in life and freedom. Three of his best panels are in the Berlin Museum,
and we often find them in other collections under his father’s name.
There is a fine portrait of him in the Pitti Palace, Florence, and as an
engraver he rose to the first rank, some of his prints being equal in
delicacy and finish to those of Marc Antonio himself.
Francia’s second son, Giulio by name, also became a painter, and was
associated with Giacomo in the execution of several panels, which are
distinguished by the signature J. J. Francia. Giacomo died in 1557;
Giulio at some time after 1543.
Another of Francia’s assistants whom he employed, as he did Giacomo, in
the frescoes of Cecilia, was Amico Aspertini, a wayward and eccentric
artist, who travelled in many parts of Italy, and received the surname
“dai due pennelle,” from his habit of working with both hands, holding
one brush for dark, and the other for pale tints. His numerous paintings
in Bologna have mostly perished, and the best works by him which remain
are the frescoes of the Volto Santo in San Frediano at Lucca, painted by
him about the same time that Francia executed his two altar-pieces for
that church.
Besides these, Francia’s influence left its mark on several of the
Ferrarese, especially on Costa’s pupil, Ercole Grandi II., and on the
Ravenna artists, one of whom, Girolamo Marchesi da Cotignola, painted
several works at Bologna, and was summoned to take the portrait of Gaston
de Foix as he lay dead on the battle-field.
Thus the latter part of Francia’s life was partly spent in directing the
efforts of this large number of scholars, all engaged in the production
of the numerous works in his style, and often bearing his name, which are
scattered throughout Europe. A few genuine panels of his last years are
still, however, to be seen. A Madonna dated 1511 is in Casa Pertusati
at Milan, and a small God the Father in the Ercolani collection at
Bologna bears Francia’s signature and the date 1514. Two larger and
more important works belong to the following year, 1515. One of these
is the “Madonna and Saints” in the Gallery of Parma, formerly in the
possession of the Sanvitale family, and resembling his earlier creations
in most points; it is remarkable for the fine profile of St. Justina,
who kneels on the pedestal of the Virgin’s throne, looking upward with
ardent devotion. The other is the Pietà of the Turin Gallery, a work
which has lost the richness of its colouring from subsequent restoration,
but still retains much of its former excellence. The leading features
are the same as those of the larger Parma “Deposition.” The dead Christ
lies in the Virgin’s arms supported by the Magdalen and St. John. Behind
them Nicodemus raises his hands with a sorrowing gesture, and a monk
stands with a lily in his hand, while tall palm-trees in the background
spread their fan-like branches against the western skies. There is the
same majesty of repose in the dead Christ, the same expression of piteous
sorrow on the Virgin’s face, which we expect in a Pietà by Francia. It
was the old conception of earlier days, which had lost none of its force
in declining years, but was still present as vividly as ever to his mind.
The following year is rendered memorable by a last communication which
took place between Raphael and Francia. The great painter had finished
his famous altar-piece of St. Cecilia for the chapel, which a noble
Bolognese lady, the Beata Elena Duglioli, had erected in the church of
San Giovanni del Monte, and wrote to Francia, begging him as a friend
whom he trusted implicitly, to repair any accident the picture might have
suffered on the journey, and to make any correction which might appear to
him advisable. The picture reached Bologna safely early in the year 1516.
Francia, in accordance with his friend’s directions, placed it above the
altar in the chapel for which it was destined. The Bolognese hailed the
appearance of Raphael’s masterpiece with enthusiastic acclamations, and
we may well believe that Francia shared in their delight with the same
generous appreciation which he had always shown for his friend’s genius.
On the strength of these simple facts, the voice of slander founded the
ridiculous story, which Vasari repeats, of Francia having died from
the transport of jealous rage with which he was filled at the sight of
Raphael’s masterpiece. The absurdity of the fabrication is evident when
we remember the pictures which had been exchanged and the letters which
had passed between the two masters, and is contrary to all we know of
Francia’s character and natural disposition. Vasari himself seems to
have felt some misgivings as to the truth of the story, for he proceeds
to qualify his statement with the words “_come alcuni credono_” (as some
believe), and adds that others say Francia died of poison.
Malvasia, in his zeal to vindicate the memory of Francia, endeavours to
prove that the Bolognese master lived till 1522, but the real date of his
death has been finally proved by the discovery of three separate notices
in contemporary chronicles, which all record the fact that Francesco
Francia, that most excellent goldsmith and painter, died on the 5th of
January, 1517 (new style 1518). The illness which ended his life, and the
grave where he lies, are both unknown, but it seems probable that he was
buried in the cloister of the large church of San Francesco, a favourite
place of sepulchre in his days, and which contains the tomb of his son
Giacomo.
* * * * *
During the next thirty years his pupils continued to paint in Bologna,
and maintained in some measure the honour of his name, but before the
end of the century a new school, utterly different in aim and style,
sprang up, and—in the sudden blaze of fame which encircled the names
of the Carracci, Domenichino, and Guido—the works of the older masters
were forgotten. Travellers who visited Bologna in the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries were attracted solely by the creations of the
Eclectic school, and returned home without being even aware of Francia’s
existence. M. Rio points out a striking proof of the neglect into which
his works had fallen, in the curious fact that among all the pictures
which the French invaders carried back to Paris not a single piece was by
Francia.
With the revival of a better taste the great master of the old school of
Bologna soon received just recognition, and his purity and gentleness
will always appeal to a large class of sympathetic natures who are
attracted by the charm of an art which is apparent to all.
If we consider the place which he holds in contemporary art we shall see
how little he had in common with the spirit of his age, and how much of
his aspirations and sympathies belonged to the old world of the earlier
religious painters. Living as he did in the days of Raphael, at a moment
when the Renaissance was fast hastening to its culminating point, Francia
took no share in the great movement that was swaying forward at every
point, but stood apart in a sphere of his own. In an age when revived
Paganism had penetrated into every part of society, and the love of the
antique was the ruling impulse of intellectual thought, he scarcely shows
a trace of this influence, and derives his inspiration exclusively from
Christian sources. He paints Lucrezia dying with the ecstatic smile of a
martyred saint on her lips, and designs classical figures only to give
them the yearning expression of religious emotion.
But in this realm of mystic art it must be owned that he takes the
highest place. That fine saying of Raphael, when he declared that no
other Madonnas were as beautiful or as religious as those which Francia
painted, was no empty compliment. Since those days many have felt
the truth of his words, and have confirmed his judgment. For to the
earnestness and purity of Fra Angelico’s conceptions Francia brought a
mastery of resources which had been lacking to those older painters. His
creations are animated with a warmer humanity and a more vigorous life,
they have all the charm of glowing colours and strongly contrasted light
and shadow, while secular influences are allowed a larger part in the
rich ornament and noble architecture which surround them.
Thus Francia shares with Perugino the praise of having combined the
technical perfection of a later age with the Christian motives which
had so largely influenced the first efforts of Italian art. But, unlike
Perugino, the religious feeling which formed the secret of Francia’s
inspiration remained fresh and strong within his breast to the end of his
life, and was with him still a real and living power, when it had sunk
into conventionalism and affectation in the later works of the Umbrian
master, and was rapidly yielding to the growing influences of a worldly
age in the creations of Raphael.
Slowly but surely men’s thoughts and their ideals of life had undergone
a complete change, and the art of Italy was entering on a new phase in
which there was no longer room for the rapture of Fra Angelico’s faces,
or the sweet gentleness of the Madonnas who haunted Francia’s dreams.
“The old order changeth, yielding place to new,
And God fulfils himself in many ways.”
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE PRINCIPAL WORKS OF MANTEGNA.
BERGAMO.
_Lochis-Carrara Gallery._
Madonna and Child.
Portrait of man in red dress (Francesco Gonzaga?).
BERLIN.
_Museum._
Portrait of an Ecclesiastic. (Matteo Bossi, Abbot of Fiesole.)
Madonna and Child. (_Painted about 1464._)
Presentation in the Temple. (_Painted about 1464._)
COPENHAGEN.
_Museum._
Man of Sorrow supported by Angels. (ANDREAS MANTINEA. _Painted
about 1489._)
DRESDEN.
_Gallery._
Holy Family (_formerly in the possession of Sir Charles
Eastlake_).
FLORENCE.
_Uffizi._
Madonna and Child, in a rocky landscape. (_Painted in 1488-90._)
Adoration of the Magi; Presentation; and Ascension. (_A
triptych, painted about 1464._)
FRANKFORT.
_Städel._
St. Mark (_doubtful_.)
GLASGOW.
_Hamilton Collection._
Woman carrying a basin. (_Painted about 1470._)
Woman drinking. (_Painted about 1470._)
HAMPTON COURT.
The Triumphs of Julius Cæsar, 1492. (_Nine cartoons._)
LA MOTTA.
_Scarpa Collection._
St. Sebastian.
LONDON.
_National Gallery._
The Virgin and Child enthroned; St. John the Baptist and the
Magdalen. _With the annexed signature (C.P.F. = Civis Patavinus
fecit.)_
[Illustration: Andreas Mantinia C.P.F.]
The Triumph of Scipio (_in monochrome: painted in 1505_).
MADRID.
_Museum._
Death of the Virgin (_formerly in the collection of Charles I.;
painted about 1470_).
MANTUA.
_Castello_ [_frescoes in the Camera degli Sposi, 1470-74_].
Lodovico Gonzaga and Barbara of Brandenburg surrounded by their
family and Court (_on the walls_).
Lodovico meeting his son, Cardinal Francesco, on his return
from Rome (_on the walls_).
Scenes from the fables of Hercules, Orpheus, Apollo, &c.;
Medallions of Cæsars, Cupids, and other figures (_in
monochrome, on the ceiling_).
MILAN.
_Brera._
St. Luke and other saints (_altar-piece in twelve parts:
painted for Santa Giustina, Padua, in 1454_).
The dead Christ bewailed by the Maries.
_Casa Trivulzi._
Virgin and Child in glory, with SS. John the Baptist, Romualdo,
and Jerome, a bishop and three angels. A MANTINIA P. AN.
GRACIE, 1497, 15 AUGUSTI.
MUNICH.
_Pinakothek._
Madonna enthroned with Saints.
NAPLES.
_Museum._
St. Euphemia, OPUS ANDREÆ MANTEGNÆ, MCCCCLIII.
PADUA.
_Church of the Eremitani._
St. James baptizing Hermogenes.
St. James before Herod.
St. James blessing a convert on his way to execution.
Martyrdom of St. James.
Martyrdom of St. Christopher.
Burial of St. Christopher. _Six frescoes_, 1453-1459.
_Basilica of Sant’ Antonio._
St. Bernardino and St. Anthony, 1452 (_fresco in a lunette over
the portal_).
PARIS.
_Louvre._
The Crucifixion (_part of the predella of the altar-piece of
San Zeno in Verona_).
Madonna della Vittoria (_painted in 1495-96 for Santa Maria
della Vittoria, Mantua_).
Parnassus.
Wisdom victorious over the Vices (_from Isabella Gonzaga’s
“Grotto”_).
PARMA.
_Pinacoteca._
Copies in oil of the frescoes in the church of the Eremitani at
Padua (_doubtful_).
TOURS.
_Museum._
Christ on the Mount of Olives (_part of the predella of the
altar-piece of San Zeno in Verona_).
The Ascension (_part of the predella of the altar-piece of San
Zeno in Verona_).
TURIN.
_Gallery._
Madonna and five saints.
VENICE.
_Academy._
St. George. (_Painted about 1464_).
VERONA.
_San Zeno._
Madonna and eight Saints. (_Painted about 1459; altar-piece:
the predella, a copy of which is in San Zeno, is part in the
Louvre and part in the Tours Museum._)
VIENNA.
_Belvedere._
St. Sebastian. (_Painted about 1464._)
Studies for the Triumphs of Julius Cæsar (_doubtful_).
PAINTINGS BY MANTEGNA IN PRIVATE COLLECTIONS IN ENGLAND EXHIBITED AT
VARIOUS TIMES.[11]
AT THE BRITISH INSTITUTION (1816-1852).
Date. Subject. Owner.
1835. Triumph of Scipio George Vivian, Esq.
1861. The Children of Medea rescued by
the Nurse J. C. Robinson, Esq.
AT THE MANCHESTER ART TREASURES EXHIBITION, 1857.
Cat. No. Subject. Owner.
91. Pietà, with the Crucifixion in
the Distance Liverpool Royal Institution.
96. Judith Earl of Pembroke.
97. Christ bearing the Cross Christ Church, Oxford.
98. Christ on the Mount of Olives Thomas Baring, Esq.
102. The Triumph of Scipio George Vivian, Esq.
AT THE LEEDS ART TREASURES EXHIBITION, 1868.
Cat. No. Subject. Owner.
54. Saint Colonel Markham.
55. A Triumphal Procession H. D. Owen, Esq.
57. Judith with the Head of Holofernes Colonel Markham.
59. Virgin and Child, surrounded by
scenes in the Life of the Virgin J. W. Faulkner, Esq.
AT THE “EXHIBITION OF THE WORKS OF THE OLD MASTERS.”
Date. Subject. Owner.
1870. Virgin and Child and St. John with
SS. Joachim and Anna Lady Eastlake.
Christ on the Mount of Olives Thomas Baring, Esq., M.P.
Angel at the Tomb Lady Taunton
1871. The Triumph of Scipio George Vivian, Esq.
The Wise Men’s Offerings Louisa, Lady Ashburton.
Subjects (four) from the Life of
Christ Earl of Dudley.
1872. Two Figures; a Study Duke of Buccleuch.
1875. The Flight into Egypt W. Graham, Esq.
1876. Judith with the Head of Holofernes Colonel Markham.
Dido ”
1878. A Triumphal Procession Hugh Owen, Esq.
1880. The Virgin and Child Charles Butler, Esq.
1881. A Pietà Sir William N. Abdy, Bart.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
THE PRINCIPAL WORKS OF FRANCIA.
BERLIN.
_Museum._
Madonna and Child, with SS. Geminiano, Bernard, Dorothea,
Catharine, Jerome, and Louis of France. FRANCIA AURIFABER
BONON̅, 1502 (_painted for Santa Cecilia, Modena_).
Holy Family (_early work_) BARTHOLEMEI SUM(PTU) BIANCHINI
MAXIMA MATROM HIC VIVIT MANIBUS FRANCIA PICTA TUIS.
BOLOGNA.
_Pinacoteca._
78. Madonna and Child, with SS. John the Baptist, Monica,
Augustin, Francis, Proculus and Sebastian and an Angel (_with
portrait of Bartolommeo Felicini, for whom it was painted_,
OPUS FRANCIÆ AURIFICIS, MCCCCLXXXX (IV?).)
80. Madonna and Child, with SS. John the Baptist, Augustin,
Jerome, and Stephen, and an angel (_painted for the Manzuoli_).
81. The Infant Christ adored by the Virgin, SS. Joseph,
Augustin, and Francis, the donor and two angels. (_Painted for
Antonio Galeazzo Bentivoglio in 1499._)
82. Birth; Infancy; Death of Christ. (_A predella._)
83. Pietà.
[_These five were formerly in Santa Maria della
Misericordia, Bologna._]
371. Annunciation, with SS. George, Bernardino of Siena,
Francis of Assisi, and John the Evangelist. FRANCIA AURIFEX
PINXIT, MCCCCC.
372. Madonna and Child, with SS. John the Baptist, Paul, and
Francis of Assisi.
373. Crucifixion, with the Madonna, the Magdalen, St. Jerome,
and St. John the Evangelist. OPUS FRANCIÆ AURIF.
[_These three were formerly in the SS. Annunziata,
Bologna._]
79. Annunciation, with SS. John the Baptist and Jerome.
[_Formerly in the Oratorio of San Girolamo di Miramonte
Bologna._]
_San Giacomo Maggiore._
Madonna, with Saints and Angels. JOHANNI BENTIVOGLIO II.
FRANCIA AURIFEX PINXIT. (_in 1499_). [_In the Bentivoglio
Chapel._]
Marriage; and Burial of St. Cecilia, _fresco 1509_. [_In the
Oratory of Santa Cecilia._]
_San Martino Maggiore._
Madonna and Child, with SS. Roch, Sebastian, Bernardino, and
Anthony of Padua. FRANCIA AURIFEX P.
_SS. Vitale ed Agricola._
Angels playing musical instruments (_round an older picture of
the Madonna_).
_Casa Ercolani._
God the Father, 1514.
CESENA.
_Pinacoteca._
Presentation. FRANCIA AURIFEX.
DRESDEN.
_Gallery._
Adoration of the Kings (_a predella_).
Madonna and Child, with the bird, and St. John the Baptist.
Baptism of Christ. FRANCIA AURIFEX BON. F. M. V. VIIII. (1509).
FERRARA.
_Cathedral._
Coronation of the Virgin, with SS. George, Stephen,
Bartholomew, John the Baptist, Peter, Augustin and Paul,
Catherine, and another female Saint. (_The altar-piece “of all
the Saints.”_)
FLORENCE.
_Uffizi._
Portrait of Evangelista Scappi. SO. VANGELISTA SCARPI.
FORLI.
_Pinacoteca._
Adoration of the Child (_from the Palazzo Zambeccari, Bologna_).
FRANKFORT.
_Städel._
Portrait of a young man.
HAMPTON COURT.
Baptism of Christ. FRANCIA AURIFEX BON. (_replica of the
Dresden Gallery picture_).
LONDON.
_National Gallery._
The Virgin with the Infant Christ and St. Anne, enthroned,
surrounded by SS. John the Baptist, Sebastian, Paul, Lawrence
and Romualdo (_with the annexed signature_).
[Illustration: FRANCIA · AVRIFEX · BONONIE̅S̅IS · P.]
The Virgin and two angels weeping over the dead body of Christ
(_lunette of the above_).
[_These two pictures, formerly an altar-piece, were
originally in the Buonvisi Chapel in San Frediano, at
Lucca._]
The Virgin and Child with two Saints.
_Dudley House._
Virgin and Child with St. Joseph. JACOBUS CAMBARUS BONON. PER
FRANCIAM AURIFABRUM HOC OPUS FIERI CURAVIT, 1495.
Virgin and Child.
LUCCA.
_San Frediano._
The Virgin in glory blessed by Christ, with SS. Anselm,
Augustin, Anthony, and David and Solomon.
Scenes from the History of the Augustine order (_predella_).
_Galleria Mansi da San Pellegrino._
Madonna and Child.
MADRID.
_Duke of Fernan Nunez._
St. Sebastian.
MILAN.
_Brera._
Annunciation.
_Casa Pertusati._
Madonna and Saints. 1511.
MUNICH.
_Pinakothek._
Madonna of the Rose-garden. FRANCIA AURIFEX BONO. (_A copy is
in the Berlin Museum, and another in the Pinacoteca, Bologna._)
Madonna and Child (who holds a bird), with two angels.
PARIS.
_Louvre._
The Nativity.
Christ on the Cross, with Job, the Virgin, and St. John.
FRANCIA AURIFABER (_formerly in San Giobbe, Bologna_).
PARMA.
_Accademia._
Deposition. FRANCIA AURIFEX BONON. F.
Madonna and Child, St. John the Baptist, and SS. Joseph,
Benedict, Scolastica, and Placida. FRANCIA AURIFEX BONONIENSIS,
F. MDXV.
Madonna with the little St. John.
ROME.
_Palazzo Borghese._
St. Stephen. VINCENTII DESIDERII VOTUM FRA̅CIÆ EXPRESSUM MANU
(_early work_).
Madonna and Child.
ST. PETERSBURG.
_Hermitage._
Madonna and Child (_in the background the “Resurrection” and
“Transfiguration”_). F. FRANCIA.
Madonna and Child, with St. Jerome, St. Lawrence, and two
angels. D.S. LUDOVICUS DE CALCINA. DECRETORU̅ DOCTOR CANONICUS.
S.P BON REDIFICATOR AUCTORQ. DOMUS ET RESTAURATOR HUIUS ECLESIÆ
FECIT FIERI. P. ME FRANCIAM AURIFICE̅ BONON. ANO. MCCCCC.
TURIN.
_Museum._
Pietà, with the Virgin, the Magdalen, the Evangelist, and a
Saint. F. FRANCIA AURIFEX BONONIENSIS F. MDXV.
VIENNA.
_Belvedere._
Madonna and Child, with SS. John the Baptist, Francis, and
Catherine (_repainted_).
_Academy._
Madonna and Child, with Saints (_repainted, and doubtful_).
_Liechtenstein Gallery._
Portrait of a Bolognese nobleman (_formerly ascribed to
Raphael_).
PAINTINGS BY FRANCIA IN PRIVATE COLLECTIONS IN ENGLAND EXHIBITED AT
VARIOUS TIMES.
AT THE BRITISH INSTITUTION (1816-1852).
Date. Subject. Owner.
1843. Madonna and Child, with St.
Jerome and St. Francis Hon. T. Frankland Lewis.
1852. Baptism of our Saviour Right Hon. H. Labouchere, M.P.
1853. A Man’s Head John Freeborn, Esq.
1861. Virgin and Child with Angels W. F. Maitland, Esq.
1863. Portrait of a Young Man J. C. Robinson, Esq.
AT THE MANCHESTER ART TREASURES EXHIBITION, 1857.
Cat. No. Subject. Owner.
81. The Baptism of Christ Right Hon. H. Labouchere.
108. The Madonna and Child, with St.
Joseph Lord Ward.
124. Madonna and Child Daniel Lee, Esq.
127. Virgin and Child Lord Northwick.
132. The Baptism The Queen (Hampton Court).
146. St. Roch Sir W. R. Farquhar, Bart.
AT THE LEEDS ART TREASURES EXHIBITION, 1868.
Cat. No. Subject. Owner.
60. Virgin and Child. Triptych J. W. Faulkner, Esq.
80. Head of a Saint Alexander Barker, Esq.
83. Virgin and Child, with Saints
Sixtus and Laurence Wolsey Moreau, Esq.
86. Saint Alexander Barker, Esq.
248. Holy Family The Right Hon. the Speaker.
AT THE “EXHIBITION OF THE WORKS OF THE OLD MASTERS.”
Date. Subject. Owner.
1871. The Virgin and Child Earl of Dudley.
1873. The Virgin and Child J. F. Jesse, Esq.
1876. The Virgin and Child—rocky
landscape in distance Thomas Sheffield, Esq.
1879. St. Francis William Graham, Esq.
1881. Portrait of the Painter Sir William N. Abdy, Bart.
Portrait of Giovanni Bentivoglio,
of Bologna ” ”
CHRONOLOGY
OF MANTEGNA.
1431. Born in the neighbourhood of Padua. (_Page_ 3.)
1441. Entered on the register of Paduan painters as the
adopted son of his master Squarcione. (_P._ 3.)
1448. Painted the altar-piece for Santa Sofia of Padua. (_P._ 3.)
1452. Painted the fresco over the portal of Sant’ Antonio. (_P._ 3.)
1452-58. Painted the frescoes of the Eremitani Church, and
married Niccolosia Bellini. (_Pp._ 3-11.)
1454. Painted the altar-piece for Santa Giustina, Padua. (_P._ 14.)
1456. Entered into correspondence with Lodovico Gonzaga. (_P._ 14.)
1457-59. Painted the altar-piece of San Zeno at Verona. (_P._ 15.)
1459. Settled at Mantua with his family. (_P._ 17.)
1466. Visited Florence. (_P._ 22.)
1472. Visited Cardinal Francesco Gonzaga at Bologna. (_P._ 22.)
” Received a grant of land at Buscoldo. (_P._ 22.)
1470-1474. Painted the frescoes of the Camera degli
Sposi. (_Pp._ 25-28.)
1473. Received a grant of land in Mantua upon which he
built his house. (_P._ 29.)
1481. Painted at Marmirolo. (_P._ 30.)
1483. Received a visit from Lorenzo de’ Medici. (_P._ 30.)
1485. Painted a Madonna for the Duchess of Ferrara. (_P._ 32.)
1485-1488. Painted the first pieces of the “Triumphs.” (_P._ 32.)
1488-1490. Painted the frescoes of the Belvedere Chapel
of the Vatican for Innocent VIII. (_P._ 32.)
” Painted the Madonna and Child of the Uffizi for
Lorenzo de’ Medici. (_P._ 34.)
1490. Left Rome and returned to Mantua, Sept. 6. (_P._ 34.)
1490-92. Worked at the “Triumphs of Julius Cæsar” and
completed the series. (_P._ 39.)
1492. Received a fresh grant of land from Francesco Gonzaga,
Feb. 4. (_P._ 43.)
1494. Furnished his house in the parish of S. Sebastian. (_P._ 43.)
1495-96. Painted the Madonna della Vittoria. (_P._ 47.)
1496-97. Painted an altar-piece for Santa Maria in Organo
at Verona, now in Casa Trivulzi, Milan. (_P._ 48.)
1499. Designed a monument to Virgil. (_P._ 49.)
1499. Marriage of his daughter Taddea to Viano Vianesi. (_P._ 43.)
1504. Made his first will, March 1. (_P._ 51.)
” Entered into a contract with the Canons of Sant’
Andrea by which he obtained possession of a chapel
in that church, Aug. 11. (_P._ 51.)
” Sold his house in Mantua. (_P._ 51.)
1505. Disgrace and banishment of his son Francesco. (_P._ 51.)
” Painted the St. Sebastian of the Scarpa gallery,
and the Triumph of Scipio for Francesco Cornaro. (_P._ 52.)
” Bought a house in the Contrada Unicorno. (_P._ 53.)
1506. Altered his will in favour of Gian’ Andrea, his
illegitimate son, Jan. 24. (_P._ 51.)
” Painted the Masque of Comus for Isabella Gonzaga. (_P._ 53.)
” Sold his bust of Faustina to Isabella’s agent, Aug. 1. (_P._ 54.)
” Died at Mantua, Sept. 13. (_P._ 54.)
OF FRANCIA.
1450. Born at Bologna. (_P._ 75.)
1482. Entered the Goldsmiths’ Guild. (_P._ 76.)
1483. Elected steward of the Guild. (_P._ 70.)
1485. Birth of his son Giacomo. (_P._ 76.)
1487. Birth of his son Giulio. (_P._ 76.)
1489. Elected steward of the Goldsmiths’ Guild a second time. (_P._ 76.)
1490. Painted his first altar-piece for Bartolommeo Felicini. (_P._ 79.)
1495. Painted a Madonna and Child for Jacopo Gambaro. (_P._ 81.)
1499. Painted altar-pieces for the Bentivoglio Chapel and
Church of the Misericordia. (_P._ 81.)
1500. Painted altar-pieces for the Church of the
Annunziata, and for San Lorenzo. (_Pp._ 84, 85.)
1502. Painted Madonna and Saints for the Friars dell’
Osservanza at Modena. (_P._ 100.)
1505-1506. Painted frescoes of the Chapel of St. Cecilia. (_P._ 94.)
1507. Expulsion of the Bentivogli. (_P._ 97.)
1508. Coined money for Pope Julius II. (_P._ 97.)
” Sent his portrait to Raphael in Rome, Sept. (_P._ 97.)
1509. Painted the Baptism of Christ (now in the Dresden
Gallery). (_P._ 99.)
1511. Elected one of the six Gonfalonieri of the People. (_P._ 102.)
1512. Elected steward of the Guild. (_P._ 103.)
1514. Elected steward of the four Guilds. (_P._ 103.)
1515. Painted Sanvitale altar-piece at Parma, and Pietà
at Turin. (_P._ 104.)
1516. Raphael sent his St. Cecilia to Bologna. (_P._ 105.)
1517. (New style, 1518). Died, Jan. 5. (_P._ 106.)
FOOTNOTES
[1] Crowe and Cavalcaselle doubt that he went to Greece.
[2] We have Professor Colvin’s authority for assigning this print to
Mantegna, as well as the strong inference drawn from the likeness of the
engravings to the frescoes of the Castello di Corte. (Portfolio, vol. 8.)
[3] The Raphael Cartoons only realised £300.
[4] Crowe and Cavalcaselle doubt that Francia studied under Zoppo.
[5] See Crowe and Cavalcaselle. “A History of Painting in North Italy,”
Vol. I., p. 294. Crevalcore’s name, however, does not occur in the Berlin
official catalogue.
[6] No. 80, in the Pinacoteoa, Bologna.
[7] No. 81.
[8] At Tew Park, Oxfordshire.
[9] These two frescoes are usually ascribed to Giacomo Raibolini;
but Frizzoni and Milanese after him attribute them to Tamaroccio, who
assisted his master Francia in the chapel.
[10] The picture exhibited by Sir William Abdy at Burlington House last
winter (1881) as the painter’s own likeness has too little in common with
Francia’s style to be accepted as genuine with any certainty, although a
print of it, bearing the date 1763 and the name of the goldsmith painter,
is said to exist.
[11] In the lists of Mantegna’s and Francia’s works exhibited at the
British Institution, Manchester, Leeds, and the “Old Masters” at
Burlington House, the official catalogues have been strictly adhered
to; it must not be supposed that _every_ picture classed as the work
of Mantegna or of Francia is recognised as genuine by the critics; for
example, the Royal Academy merely catalogues the works “under the names
given to them by the contributors,” and “can accept no responsibility as
to their authenticity.”
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
CROWE AND CAVALCASELLE. A history of painting in North Italy. London,
1871.
MILANESI, GAETANO. Le opere di Giorgio Vasari; con nuove annotazioni e
Commenti di Milanesi. Firenze, 1879.
MANTEGNA.
GOETHE, J. W. VON. Triumphzug von Mantegna. Werke, XXXIX.
ARCO, CARLO D’. Delle Arti e degli Artifici di Mantova, notizie raccolte
ed illustrate con disegni e con documenti. Mantova, 1859.
BASCHET, ARMAND. Documents sur Mantegna. In the “Gazette des Beaux Arts.”
Paris, 1866.
BRAGHIROLLI, WILLELMO. Alcuni documenti inedite relative ad Andrea
Mantegna: in the “Giornale d’Erudizione Artistica.” Perugia, 1872.
BRUN, KARL. Neue Documente über Andrea Mantegna: in the “Zeitschrift für
Bildende Kunst,” vol. xi. Leipzig, 1875-6.
WOLTMANN, DR. ALFRED. Biography of ANDREA MANTEGNA in the “Kunst und
Künstler des Mittelalters und der Neuzeit.” Edited by DR. ROBERT DOHME.
Leipzig, 1876.
FRANCIA.
CALVI, JACOPO ALESSANDRO. Memorie della vita ed opere di Francesco
Raibolini. Bologna, 1812.
MALVASIA, CARLO CESARE. Felsina Pittrice. Vite de Pittori Bolognesi.
Bologna, 1841.
GIORDANI, GAETANO. Catalogo dei Quadri della Pinacoteca. Bologna, 1841.
AMORINI, ANTONIO BOLOGNINI, Marchese, Vite dei Pittori ed Artefici
Bolognesi. Bologna, 1841-43.
FRIZZONI, GUSTAVO. Gli Affreschi di Santa Cecilia in Bologna. Bologna,
1876.
INDEX.
TO MANTEGNA.
Aldobrandini, 22
Aliprandi, quarrel with, 23
exchanged land with, 43
Altichieri of Verona, 2
Andrea, Zoan, 23, 35
Ansuino of Forli, 5
Ariosto, 59
Avanzo, Jacopo d’, 2
Barbaro, Daniele, 8
Bellini, the, 8, 9, 10, 12, 17
Bono of Ferrara, 5
Bossi, Matteo, 13, 18
Bust of Mantegna, 7
Calandra, 54
Camera degli Sposi, 25-28
Campagnola, 35
Caracalla, Baths of, 13
Cerdo, Vitruvius, 13
Donatello, 9, 12, 14
Drawings—
_Calumny of Apelles_, 45
_Chalice, Design for_, 46
_Entombment_, 45
_Hercules killing the Lion_, 45
_Judgment of Solomon_, 45
_Judith_, 45, 46
_Mars, Diana and Venus_, 45
_Sagrifizio_, 45, 46
Dürer, 36, 55
Dwarfs at Mantua, 26
Engravings—
_Battle of the Sea-Gods_, 35, 45, 59
_Dancing Muses of the Parnassus_, 35
_Descent from the Cross_, 36
_Entombment_, 36, 59, 62
_Hercules and Antæus_, 36, 45
_Portraits of Lodovico and Barbara Gonzaga_, 36
_St. Andrew, St. Longinus and the Risen Christ_, 36
_St. Sebastian_, 36
_Scourging of Christ_, 4
_Triumphs_, 35, 40
_Virgin of the Grotto_, 18, 35
Eremitani Frescoes, 4-11
Este, Isabella d’, 31, 34
Fancelli, 14
Faustina, Mantegna’s, 53, 54, 56
Feliciano, 13
Finiguerra, 35
Gian’ Andrea, 43, 50, 51
Giotto, 1
Giusto of Florence, 2
Gonzaga, Federico, 30, 31
Gonzaga, Francesco, 22
Gonzaga, Francesco II., 32, 33, 43
Gonzaga, Lodovico, 14, 15, 17, 21, 25, 26, 29, 30
Gonzaga, Sigismondo, 51
Influence of Mantegna on—
Bellini, the, 57
Bonsignori, 57
Buonconsiglio, 57
Caroto, 57
Correggio, 58
Costa, 57
Dürer, 59
Forli, Melozzo da, 58
Francia, 58
Holbein, 59
Libri, Girolamo dai, 57
Grandi, Ercole, 57
Leonardo, 58, 60
Liberale, 57
Michelangelo, 58, 61
Montagna, 57
Morone, 57
Raphael, 58, 60
Rubens, 59
Tura, Cosimo, 57
Vivarini, Luigi, 57
Innocent VIII., 32, 33
Julius II., 54
Lomazzo, 8
Lorenzo di Pavia, 55
Mantegna, Andrea (_See_ Chronology p. 119)
Mantegna, Francesco, 51, 57
Mantegna, Lodovico, 32, 43, 51
Mantegna, Niccolosia, 43, 51
Mantegna, Taddea, 43
Mantua, sack of, 24
Medici, Lorenzo de’, visits Mantegna, 30
Melozzo da Forli, 28
Mocetto, 35
Niccolosia, 43, 51
Norsa, 47
Paintings—
_Adoration of the Magi_, of the Uffizi, 18
of the Vatican, 32
_Autumn_, 19
_Baptism of Christ_, 32
_Birth of Christ_, 32
_Burial of St. Christopher_, 10
_Christ on the Mount of Olives_, 16
_Cristo in Scurto_, 55
_Comus_, 53
_Dead Christ_, 19
_Death of the Virgin_, 19
_Descent of Christ into Limbo_, 34
_Execution of St. James_, 9
_Glorified Madonna_, of Milan, 48
_History of St. James and St. Christopher_, 4-11
_Lodovico Gonzaga and his son, Francesco_, 26
_Lodovico Gonzaga and his wife_, 25
_Madonna_, of Bergamo, 49
_holding the child on a parapet_, 18
_Madonna_, of the Dresden Gallery, 32
of San Zeno, 15, 16
_Madonna della Vittoria_, 46, 47, 48
_Man of Sorrows_, 34
_Martyrdom of St. Christopher_, 10
_Parnassus_, 44, 48
_Pietà_, 20
_Portrait of an Ecclesiastic_, 18
_Rubens’s copy of the Triumphs_, 41
_SS. Anthony and Bernardino_, 3
_St. Euphemia_, 14
_St. George_, 19
_St. James baptizing Converts_, 6
_before Herod_, 7
_blessing a kneeling disciple_, 7
_St. Luke_, 14
_St. Sebastian_, 19
of La Motta, 52, 55
_Summer_, 19
_Triumphs of Julius Cæsar_, 32, 33, 38, 43, 46, 60
_Triumph of Scipio_, 52, 55
_Virgin_, of the National Gallery, 48
of the Uffizi, 31, 34
_Wisdom Victorious over the Vices_, 44
Pannonio, 13
Pizzolo, Niccolo, 5, 6, 18
Santa Sofia, altar-piece for, 3
Santi, Giovanni, 28
Sperandio’s Bust of Mantegna, 56
Squarcione, 2, 8, 14
Uccelli, 8, 9, 12
Vianesi, 43
Virgil, Monument to, 49
Zizim, 33
Zoppo, Marco, 5
TO FRANCIA.
Angelico, Fra, 107, 108
Aspertini, 94, 95, 104
Avanzi, Jacopo degli, 67, 68
Avanzo, Jacopo d’, 68
Bagnacavallo, 103
Bentivoglio, Antonio Galeazzo Giovanni II., 73, 76, 81
Bentivogli driven from Bologna, 97
Bentivogli return to Bologna, 102
Bernardino da Siena, 70
Carracci, the, 69, 82, 106
Casio, 80, 83
Caterina, 76
Chiodarolo, 94, 95
Clement VIII., 67
Cossa, Francesco, 73
Costa, 73, 77, 78, 79, 94, 95
Credi, Lorenzo di, 83
Crevalcore, 80
Cristofano, 70
Dalmasii, Lippo, 66
Domenichino, 106
Drawings—
_Greek Youths_, 93
_Judgment of Paris_, 93
Franco Bolognese, 65
Felicini, 80, 83
Francia (_See_ Chronology p. 120)
Galassi, 68, 71, 72
Gambaro, 81
Gaston de Foix, 102
Grandi, Ercole, 73
Ercole II, 104
Gubbio, Oderisio da, 65
Guido of Bologna, 66
Guido Reni, 106
Imola, Innocenza da, 103
Julius II, 97
Lambertini, 72
Landscape, 84
Lianori, 72
Mantegna, 72, 77
Marchesi, 104
Mezzaratta, Frescoes of the, 68, 69
Michelangelo, 69
Nadi, 94
Niello work, 77
Paintings—
_Adoration of the Magi_, of the Brera, 84
at Dresden, 100
_Annunciation_, of the Annunziata, 85
Bologna Gallery, 100
of the Brera, 81
_Baptism of Christ_, Dresden, 99
Hampton Court, 100
_Burial of St. Cecilia_, 95, 96
_Coronation of the Virgin_, at Lucca, 91
at Ferrara, 92
_Crucifixion_, of the Louvre, 81
_Deposition_, Parma, 89, 104
_Dispute of Philosophers_, 92
_God the Father_, 104
_Holy Family_, of Berlin, 79
of Dudley House, 81
_Judith_, 92
_Lucrezia_, 88, 98
_Madonna_, of the Annunziata, 85
Bentivoglio, 82
Manzuoli, 82
Parma Gallery, 100
Dresden, 100
National Gallery, 100
Vienna, 100
Berlin, 100
St. Petersburg, 84
San Martino, 84
Munich, 81
of 1490, 79
of 1511, 104
_Madonna of the Rose Garden_, 100
_Marriage of Cecilia and Valerian_, 95
_Nativity_, of Bologna, 82
of Forli, 92
_Pietà_, at Bologna, 81
of the National Gallery, 89, 90
Turin Gallery, 104
_Portrait of Bartolommeo Bianchini_, 79
_Evangelista Scappi_, 99
_a Bolognese Noble_, 99
_Presentation_, of Cesena, 92
_St. Stephen_, 78
_Virgin enthroned with Saints_, of National Gallery, 91
Paxes, by Francia, 77
Perugino, 80, 83
Pietro della Francesca, 72
Raibolini, Francesco (_See_ Chronology p. 120)
Raibolini, Giacomo, 94, 95, 76, 103
Giulio, 76, 103
Raimondi, 93
Raphael, Francia’s friendship for, 86
Raphael visits Bologna, 87
and Francia exchange pictures, 88
Sonnet to, 88
influence of, 95
letter of, 97
sends his altar-piece to Francia, 105
St. Cecilia, Frescoes in Oratory of, 94, 95
Simone dai Crocifissi, 67, 68, 71
Tamaroccio, 94, 95
Ursone, 65
Ventura, 65
Vigri, Santa Caterina, 72
Vitale, 66, 70
Viti, Timoteo, 87
Zoppo, Marco, 73, 77, 78