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Journal of the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery

Journal of the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery

Free publication on www.friendsoftheuffizigallery.org Polistampa - Firenze

JOURNAL OF THE FRIENDS OF THE GALLERY N° 72 - August 2018 The “Rose of the Winds” In the new room, an opportune choice of works offers a panorama of the fundamental tendencies in development in and for years and centuries to follow

he new layout of the Michel- Tangelo room, sponsored by the Amici degli Uffizi and by the Friends of the Uffizi Galleries, conceived by Eike Schmidt and executed by Antonio Godoli, The new Raffaello and Michelangelo room of the Uffizi Galleries: in the center, the famedTondo Doni by Buonarroti. has advantageously put on ex- hibit the Doni alongside the transfer. The three Another eloquent juxtaposi- as the “Master of Serumido”. Ex- the portraits of its patrons, Agnolo have been joined by Raffaello’s tion is the placement alongside amining more closely the por- Doni and Maddalena Strozzi. other Florentine masterwork, the Tondo Doni of the Dying Al- traits themselves, among the su- The former is an early master- the so-called of the exander, a fragment of a late Hel- preme masterpieces of all times, piece by Michelangelo; the two Goldfinch and other particularly lenistic probably from we are reminded that Raffaello portraits are works by Raffaello, significant works by Fra’ Bar- Pergamum. The bust rests on a was just twenty-five when he put dating to his Florentine sojourn tolomeo, all on display in their magnificent ancient column of his hand to the task and still full between 1504 and 1508. protective crystal glass cases Phrygian flowering alabaster, of memories of . Un- In early Flor- that allow for close examination a gift to the Uffizi by the great doubtedly, he had in mind and ence, the union of Agnolo Doni within the room’s white and art historian Detlef Heikamp. heart the Diptych of the Dukes of and Maddalena Strozzi, both ivory grey tonalities. Together The work exemplifies the An- Urbino by heirs of two great Florentine they form what I call the “Rosa tiquity that most inspired the that he knew from the Ducal families, was the marriage of dei Venti (Rose of the Winds)”, young Michelangelo: naturalis- Palace of Urbino and that today the century. Two great fortunes the visual manifestation of what tic, dramatic Antiquity inspired stands within the Uffizi at just a were joined and two young art will be the fundamental tenden- by the pathos of the schools of few meters’ distance. From that lovers united. The heritage of cies in Italian and European art Pergamum and Rhodes; the An- model, he got the idea of repre- their passion is the tondo de- for years and centuries to follow. tiquity of the Vatican Laocoonte, senting the couple not in profile picting the painted Because – in the words of still today in the octagonal court- like Piero but frontally against a by Michelangelo and the por- – Michelangelo yard of the Pope’s , that vast background landscape ani- traits of the couple immortal- was like a lantern that illumi- Michelangelo himself witnessed mated by luminous events. And ized by Raffaello. nated the path of painters and emerging from the ground certain reflections of Leonardo Some might protest that the sculptors after him; while Raffa- upon its discovery one winter da Vinci are especially evident Doni portraits’ former place- ello represents in that day in the of 1506. Let’s in the female portrait in the fas- ment within the Palatine Gallery idea of harmony, order, felic- now take a closer look at the cination with aerial collection in had by ity and splendor that after him Doni portraits noting the scenes and in the profound humanism. now been historicized. However, passed through Guido Reni, An- now visible on the reverse side But the optic subtleties in his de- the historical significance and nibale Carracci, Poussin, , of the panels invoking conjugal the didactic objectives of the Ingres, to arrive at Picasso in his fertility by the hand of a man- move to the Uffizi amply justify Classical period. nerist painter known to scholars (ccontinue on p. 2)

IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI 1 scriptions of the garments, the faello studied them. To finally Mariotto Albertinelli of that “vir- the through an opportune coiffure, the woman’s jewels, de- come full circle on this handful tuous beauty” that, in the wake selection of works, then we have pend on the vivid recollections of years among the most pro- of the teachings of Girolamo to recognize that the new layout of Flemish masterpieces by Van ductive and richly endowed with Savonarola, had fascinated the of the Michelangelo room in Eyck, Rogier van der Weiden, regards to future developments young Raffaello. the Uffizi has perfectly centered Justus of Ghent that filled the in the , the room If the main of a its target. halls of the Ducal Palace of Ur- also includes some paintings by of ancient art is to render com- bino where the adolescent Raf- Fra’ Bartolomeo, testimony with prehensible the development of Antonio Paolucci Harmony and Practicality In the new Leonardo, Raffaello and Michelangelo rooms, paintings have been placed within innovative climatized display cases. The elegant new layout and the opening of new doors guarantee an improved visitors’ The new Leonardo room. In the center the , the masterpiece flow along the galleries’ itinerary restored thanks to the Amici degli Uffizi.

t the beginning of the sum- fered fewer damages during the then exits through the main nality that recalls the spatula Amer, two large rooms along war. The fundamental change door opening onto the third smoothed plaster walls of a the third corridor of the his- that has been made today, be- corridor. The display of the placid church interior; for both toric gallery in the west wing of sides the completely new and works follows the project design rooms, the materials chosen are the Uffizi were opened to the original layout, is the manner of the Uffizi, which has already all traditional, like slaked lime public. We owe the new museo- in which the visitors’ flow has been adopted in the Botticelli and natural pigments which graphic layout also to the gen- been redesigned; this in effect and rooms. The have been applied to the walls erosity of the Amici degli Uffizi has been a major priority in the paintings are on display within using the traditional method of and the Friends of the Uffizi general reconfiguration of the glass cases, located along the multiple applications to obtain Galleries. Both the first room Uffizi as planned and executed rooms’ main axes so they can transparency and vibration. (room 35 - Leonardo), that oc- by Eike Schmidt. The opening be observed at a close distance With the new layout, the sys- cupies the space that was once of the ancient doors rediscov- without barriers that would tem for the regulation of natu- the hall of self-portraits at the ered through the examination otherwise take up useful viewer ral light from the ceiling has time of Cosimo III from the of eighteenth century floor space. The climatic conditions also been renovated; on the in- late Seventeenth to early Eigh- plans and subsequently found within these large prismatic terior of the air space under the teenth centuries, and the sec- within the wall structure, eases encasements, are instrument- roof, a system of sunshades elim- ond (room 41 – Raffaello and visitor movement between the controlled and monitored by inates excess light and captures Michelangelo) follow the same Leonardo room and that of the curators and guarantee an the maximum daylight with cov- design in dimension and archi- Raffaello and Michelangelo. ideal state of conservation that ered skies. In implementing the tectural style. Instead of entering and exit- slows the exchange of air in the sunshades, we strived to re-es- These two rooms, formerly ing through the door opening room with that within the case. tablish the relationship - held to designed by the lead archi- onto the third corridor in each The metal frame support struc- be of primary importance in tect of the Superintendence, of the chambers, as was done ture is also antiseismic protect- contemporary museography - Guido Morozzi between 1950 in the past in an often chaotic ing the paintings within. between the interior of the mu- and 1952 (Superintendent of exchange of the public, now As in the remodeled Cara- seum and the natural environ- the Galleries, Guglielmo Pac- the visitors can pass from the vaggio rooms and for those ment outside perceived through chioni, Director of the Uffizi, Leonardo room through the newly assigned to the Contini the variations in light with the Roberto Salvini) were then newly reopened door to the Bonacossi Collection, much at- passing of clouds. The original opened to the public as the hall of Inscriptions. Worthy of tention has been given to the design of the cases (that have Barocci room (35) and the Ru- note is the upcoming redesign color of the walls. If for the hall been adopted elsewhere in con- bens room (41) on March 20, of the hall by Fabrizio Paolucci of Raffaello and Michelangelo temporary museography) en- 1952. This was when the Uffizi inspired by the eighteenth cen- the colors of the sixteenth cen- hances the observer’s attention reopened for the second time tury layout of the original mar- tury paintings emerge from and the works appear and stand after the Second World War bles. From there, the visitor pro- the depth of the limestone out as an abstract and absolute following the first opening, on ceeds through the second newly grey backdrop, the paintings vision. June 24, 1948, of only the east reopened door to the room of by Leonardo are immersed in wing of the gallery that had suf- Raffaello and Michelangelo and an atmosphere of lighter to- Antonio Godoli

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An exhibit at the Uffizi and at the honors the great Fritz Koenig, a Retrospective German sculptor

The crystalline rational animal. A previous version of structure of Vasari’s Uffizi offers the composition, purchased by the ideal setting for the archi- Peggy Guggenheim, is on ex- tectonic sculpture of the Ger- hibit in the Galleria degli Uffizi. man artist. Here the more di- The aroused member is the ful- dactic aspects of the exhibition crum of the composition, while are found, organized according in the lower plate of the figure to iconographic themes. the shape of female breasts levi- A true miracle takes place tates. After the two-headed Ja- in the Boboli Gardens where a nus, the image of human life significant number of Fritz that inevitably has a beginning Koenig’s monumental works and an end, the Biga seems to have been gathered. The fig- enter the Boboli amphitheater ures insert themselves in the as in an arena that culminates Fritz Koenig, , 1955, Wittelsbacher Ausgleichsfonds. Two Oxen garden with the same natural- on high along its main axis with ism with which they were creat- the artist’s female figureMona , he Uffizi honors Fritz Koe- Etruscan art and by the works ed. The Grand Flora stands fac- as she stretches across the sky of Tnig (1924-2017), the great- of the slightly older English ing the panorama of the city it- . At the same time, est German sculptor of the sculptor Kenneth Armitage. self. “Fiorenza”, that is. In the near the Fountain of Neptune, twentieth century and friend He strived to reach an abstrac- scenographic setting of the the Two Oxen – an early work by of Marino Marini, with the larg- tion of the human form that amphitheater, as tall Koenig - and Mirror of Heaven est solo exhibition ever held in decomposed it into its basic as five meters almost seem to create an almost pastoral atmo- Florence for an artist from his stereometric components. be performing a ballet and, as sphere. One might almost say field. Koenig’s art became a type of though by chance, illustrate that the great master of moder- Koenig owes his fame with sign language with clarity of the artist’s profound fascina- nity and successor of Hildeb- the wider public to his monu- form and content uniting to tion with the sphere that char- rand was the last sculptor of the mental masterpiece The Sphere create a poetic in which the acterized his work. Gathered Medici court. that until September 11, 2001 perfection of form is synony- there are only three of the decorated the fountain located mous with beauty. monumental variations of the Alexander Rudigier between the Twin Towers in The Uffizi exhibit eluci- Couples, a series based on Paolo New York. Despite the serious dates for the first time the role and Francesca, the lovers sung damage it underwent, the work sexuality played as a prime by Dante. Nearby the large soli- survived the attack and now re- force in the artist’s work which tary space in front of the Me- stored is the most meaningful explored the fundamental con- ridiana, covered with gravel, symbol of the American me- ditions of human existence: provides a sudden change of tropolis’ will to survive. enthusiasm and solitude, des- scenery: the Man-bird appears Fritz Koenig knew like no peration, guilt and destiny, lost in his struggle and cannot one else how to bring Ger- fragility in relations between take flight. Right alongside, man sculpture – inclined up man and woman, fear of death, stands the Biga from the Bavar- to 1945 towards a certain late eternal questions without the ian State Collection in Munich neo-classicism in line with the answer why. Koenig was one - a monumental version of the tastes of the Nazi dictatorship of the major interpreters of type inspired by Etruscan – into the modern age. He was the Holocaust in art. One of “bronzetti” - in which the chari- the last and most important his most moving works is the oteer, the biga and the horses successor of Adolf von Hildeb- monument that the German fuse together in a unitary sys- rand, a resident of Florence Federal Republic had erected tem of masses, representing Fritz Koenig, Grand Icarus, 1985/1986, who laid the foundations for in the concentration camp of the joined strength of man and Fritz and Maria Koenig Foundation. a new manner of making art Mauthausen, a city twinned based on Antiquity and Mi- with Florence. chelangelo. He conceived the In the end, the German Fritz Koenig 1924-2017. A Retrospective human figure as a system of sculptor created art for over orthogonal coordinates with seventy years. And now at the Curators: Alexander Rudigier, the single members clearly Uffizi above all his profoundly Eike D. Schmidt, Stefanje Weinmayr detached one from the other, meaningful late works can be in what seemed at the time a admired for the first time giv- radical alternative to the art en that in the last few decades At the Uffizi of Rodin. Based on this com- of his life he decided to retire and the Boboli Gardens, Florence positive principle, Koenig from the art world, actually arrived at his own personal rejecting the art market in its Until October 7, 2018 style, inspired by African and present state.

IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI 3 Islam, the Unknown At the and the Uffizi an exhibition traces the original nature of the political, commercial and artistic Islamic Art and Florence from the Medici relations between Florence and Mediterranean Islam to the 20th Century he exhibit, promoted by two impact but are generally little Tof the most important mu- known if not neglected despite Curator Giovanni Curatola seums in the world, explores the the fact they come from the col- relations between the city of Flor- lections of the Grand Duchy and ence and the Islamic world, par- those of prestigious museums Uffizi Galleries, Bargello National Museum ticularly with regard to art (but around the world. These include not only, because art has always the , the British Museum, Until September 23, 2018 been politics in Florence). Al- the Metropolitan and many other though acknowledged in the past, important institutions from the the topic has remained an under- Middle East as well as Italy. The on display in every section of the prising quality. Then the French- current and never been systemati- exhibit traces the original profile exhibit, were once the most pre- man, Louis Carrand, for a happy cally studied, especially from the cious in commerce, flooding the circumstance for Florence, de- perspective that is most markets of the East and West with cided to donate his three thou- appropriate to marvelous gifts and precious mer- sand three hundred works (all the city of flowers- chandise: carpets, glass, dama- masterpieces many of which Is- art. And with the scene metals, manuscripts, ce- lamic) to the city in 1888. The do- idea that Florence, ramics and arms. Everything nation revolutionized the newly with its unique his- under the sun came from established Bargello Museum, tory, has always em- the Orient. An unending conditioning and determining its braced an open view weave of relations as strong future history. Baron Giulio of the world, a men- as silk fiber that despite ups Franchetti, an enlightened col- tality evident in the and downs was never inter- lector, wanted to tie his name to masterful and intelli- rupted and took on new vig- the Bargello by donating to the gent approach seen at or in the nineteenth and museum his extremely important the time of the unfor- twentieth centuries. Among textile collection. Once again gettable Giorgio La Pira the prime movers in this ex- many of these are oriental, stir- in the ‘50s and ‘60s of the change were Michele Amari (one ring up memories of those wool twentieth century. Rectangular Coffer, Omayyad Spain of the greatest experts on the and silk merchants who were at Islam Unknown could be (Cordova), X century, laminated with Middle East and professor at the the origins of the fortune and paraphrased, but not along the incised and carved ivory with a University of Florence as well as wealth of the city. banks of river. The exhibit is mounting in silver, semi- Minister of Education and an in- certainly an ambitious one, filled precious stones and colored glass. fluential Senator during the Giovanni Curatola Florence, Museo Nazionale del Bargello. with works that have a great visual Reign of Italy); the merchant Stefano Bardini, who of the political, historic, com- found hundreds of mercial and obviously artistic re- splendid ancient car- lations that Florence entertained pets among the with Mediterranean Islamic pop- noble houses of ulations, primarily, the reign of Florence that are Egypt during the Mameluke era now part of the and that of the Ottoman Turks, collections of with protagonists like Mehmed II, prestigious mu- the Conqueror of Costantinople seums through- (1453), and Lorenzo il Magnifi- out the world; co who received from the and the aristo- Egyptian sultan Qayt Bay a sin- cratic Englishman gular and unique gift in No- Frederick Stibbert vember 1487: a giraffe. Exoti- whose extraordinary cism, oriental magic, solid com- collection of arms and ar- mercial enterprises. The textiles, mor kept in his beautiful villa on the hill of Montughi, in- Sipar (wheel), Persia, beginning of the Mosque Lamp, Egypt, XIV century, in creased Florentine prestige. He XVII century, steel inlaid with gold, Indian blown glass with polychrome enamel was a full-fledged collector of reed, silk, mother of pearl on black paste, and gilding. Turin, MAO – Museo d’Arte great curiosity whose collections leather, brown velvet. Florence, Museo Orientale. continue to astound for their sur- Nazionale del Bargello.

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Collecting Islamic Art in Florence from the Medici to the Early 20th Century

he exhibit Islamic Art and from another grand collector, the city of Florence is evoked in TFlorence from the Medici to the the Englishman Frederick Stib- the halls of the Bargello. On the 20th century is the fruit of the col- bert, as well the Tuscans Stefano first and second floors are works laboration between the Uffizi Bardini and Giulio Franchetti. from the Bardini Museum, from Galleries and Bargello Muse- In fact, between the end the of Cerreto Gui- ums. Over the last two years, the of the XIX and the beginning di, from the , Uffizi Director Eike Schmidt, of the XX centuries, Florence and naturally, from the precious the curator Giovanni Curatola, was a favorite haunt of impor- collections of the Bargello. In members of the international tant scholars, connoisseurs, many cases, the works are on ex- scientific committee and mu- collectors, curators, and direc- hibit for the first time in many seum staff, art historians, Valen- tors of museums from all over decades and are shown along- tina Conticelli and Matteo Luca the world. Studies of Islamic art side important objects on loan Ceriana – respectively in service enjoyed a flourishing develop- from important international at the Uffizi and the Bargello – ment in the city of flowers until institutions. These include so- worked together to create this the 1860s. This was thanks to phisticated textiles from the monumental exhibit. On dis- the fine scholar of Arabic stud- Musée de Tissus of Lyon and the play in both museums are al- ies and senator, Michele Amari, very refined Capponi carpet, most two hundred works of art and to the scholar of Indian once belonging to Bardini and and for the occasion, there is a studies, Angelo De Gubernatis, now at the Metropolitan Muse- combined entrance fee of € 29 who both organized the IV In- um of Art in New York. (full price), € 14.50 (reduced), ternational Congress of Orien- The exhibit falls during the valid for three days in order to talists, held in Florence in 1878. year celebrating the European facilitate the visit to both muse- It was in this cultural climate Year of Cultural Heritage and is ums and exhibition sites. and thanks to the foresight of an example of the extent to The Bargello National Mu- the great directors of the Bar- which comparison between cul- seum boasts a very important gello, that one of the most im- tures and the circulation of collection of Islamic art, origi- portant collections of decora- works of art from seemingly dis- Fabric (detail of the weave), Istanbul, nally composed of artifacts from tive arts was formed. tant cultures rests at the base of Turkey, Ottoman Dynasty, second half the collections of the Medicean The patient and intelligent European identity. of the XVI century, in lampas kemha Grand Duchy. This was then en- work of study, collecting, and in silk brocade. Florence, riched by art works donated in trading in Islamic artifacts in Paola D’Agostino Museo Nazionale del Bargello. 1888 by the antiquarian from Lyon, Louis Carrand. Shortly thereafter, the collection was enhanced by donations of arms and armor from Costantino Ressman (1899) and textiles from Giulio Franchetti (1906). The exhibit is divided into four sections. The section at the Bargello illustrates a fun- damental stage in research, in the history of collecting, and in museum design dating from the end of the nineteenth to the beginning of the twentieth centuries. Works on display include the above mentioned Carrand donation and works

A room of the exhibit in the Uffizi with Mameluke carpets from the XV and XVI century. Direttore Musei del Bargello IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI 5 Riding through the Time

On exhibit in the a symbol of political power of- Boboli Limonaia are a ten linked to the divine. Myths series of artifacts dating dealing with horses are nu- from prehistory to the merous in all cultures and tes- 15th century that trace the tify to the privileged relations and attraction that man has evolution of “technology” always felt for this animal, an in man’s use of the noble emblem of strength, elegance animal, companion in and power. work and play, but also a To illustrate the impor- sign of social status and a tance and the multifaceted symbol of political power complexity of this relationship, a wide variety of objects dat- ing from the IX century b.c.e. to the XV century c.e. are on display. They illustrate over a he exhibit entitled “Rid- broad chronological spectrum Ting through the Time. the evolution of “technology” The Art of Horse Riding. From in the utilization of horses by Detail of the exhibit: in the foreground, the of the Roman Horseman from the Santarelli collection and the funerary altar of a race horse veterinarian from the same Antiquity to the ”, man that underwent a veri- private collection. curated by Lorenza Camin and table revolution during the Fabrizio Paolucci is on exhibit early Middle Ages. The exhibit in the eighteenth century Li- mainly focuses on the Italian many on exhibit for the first most probably offered up in monaia of the Boboli Gardens peninsula and is divided into time, like the cart from the sacrifice during the funerary and proposes to illustrate for five sections, each dedicated to so-called ditch of the Char- ceremony of the proprietor, the public the multifaceted re- a particular historical moment: iot of Populonia, a Biga or after having transported the lationship between horse and prehistory, the Greeks and the two-horse chariot in bronze, body to the tomb. man from prehistoric times. Greek colonies of Southern iron, and wood dating to the The indisputable star of From prehistoric cave Italy, the world of the Etrus- beginning of the V century the show, however, is the fa- paintings to the invention of cans and ancient Veneti, the b.c.e., used for the transport mous bronze horse head from the stirrup in the early Middle Romans, and the Middle Ages. of important dignitaries. This the Medici Riccardi collection Ages, horses have been man’s The visitor will travel very rare exemplar was found that for centuries served as a friend and companion in work through history in the compa- together with the two horses fountainhead in the court- and play, a sign of prestige and ny of extremely rare artifacts, still harnessed to it. They were yard of the Medici palace in via Cavour. Recent analyses of this exceptional master- work, today a prize possession of the National Archeologi- cal Museum of Florence, re- veals that the bronze alloy of which it is made is similar to that in use in the late IV cen- tury b.c.e.. Moreover, the res- toration has brought to light some inscribed lettering that can be graphically related to the Doric culture. In brief, the Florentine head can now be added to that very rare group- ing of large bronze works from the Classical age that have sur- vived to the present. It most

Cart from the so-called ditch of the Chariot of Populonia in bronze, iron, and wood, dating from the beginning of the V century b.c.e..

6 IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI

the presence of Hispanic horse and man: in everyday la- mercenaries among the bor (represented by a very rare Carthaginians, as piece, a wooden yoke found “Riding through Herodotus claimed amongst the shipwrecks of (VII, 165). Thus, Pisa); in play (testified by a rich the Time. the two horse selection of monuments relat- skulls on ex- ing to the games in the Roman The Art of Horse hibit, recently hippodromes); in war (illus- found during trated by exceptional examples Riding. From excavations of equestrian armor of the Ro- at the western man limes); in death (alluded Antiquity to the necropolis of to by the elaborate harnessing Himera and gear found in tombs). Middle Ages” today housed Horses have always been a in the Museo Pir- constant presence alongside ro Marconi in the man: this last animal to be do- Curators Lorenza Camin Archeologic Park of mesticated managed to earn it- Himera, are of particu- self a prime role in the arts, in and Fabrizio Paolucci lar interest. Seen for the first society and in the literature of Sabouroff Painter, Attic red-figure cup time outside Sicily, their excava- the ancient world thanks to its Limonaia of the Boboli depicting Athena and the Trojan horse, tion is of extraordinary signifi- innate beauty and nobility that Gardens, Florence dating from 460 b.c.e.. Florence, National cance: evidence of horse burials inevitably radiated from horse Archeological Museum. is quite rare in the Greek and to rider. Until October 14, 2018 Magna Graecia world of the V probably was created in a century b.c.e.; the resonance of Fabrizio Paolucci highly skilled workshop active the battle made it such that the perhaps in Syracuse. soldiers and the horses were af- Alongside absolute master- forded particularly honorable pieces like the Medici Riccardi burial. bronze, the Florentine exhibit Also on display is an At- tic red-figure kylix depicting Athena and the Trojan horse, from the collection of the Na- tional Archeological Museum of Florence, that truly synthesizes and trans- poses in figurative terms the rela- tionship between horse and man. The roundel on Alabaster Urn representing the Voyage to the Underworld, I century b.c.e. the interior of Florence, National Archeological Museum. Particular the cup painted by of the Chariot of Populonia. the Sabouroff Painter, active The famed “Medici Riccardi” horse between 470-460 and 440-430 head 340-330 b.c.e.. Fused bronze, also includes the most common b.c.e., represents the goddess once laminated in gold foil and equestrian gear used to control Athena seated on a throne, gold leaf. Florence, National the animal (bits, snaffles, spurs, intently caressing a horse of Archeological Museum. stirrups, etc.). In fact, bits were enormous size. The animal is found still tightly squeezed be- adorned with tainiai niketeriai, tween the teeth of horses in a bands of red wool symbolizing mass burial following the battle victory. The general consensus of Himera, where the armies of among scholars is an identifi- Syracuse defeated the Carthag- cation with Athena and the inians in 480 b.c.e. in a violent Trojan Horse, emblem of clash that caused the death of the strategy devised by the hundreds of foot soldiers and goddess herself that led horsemen. Near the battle- to the end of the Trojan field, mass graves and tombs of War with the victory of the fallen soldiers have come the Achaeans. to light alongside the fallen These works to- horses’ burial ground. The gether with many exemplars on exhibit include other artifacts nar- bronze ring bits, typical of the rate the multifac- harnesses in use prevalently in eted aspects of the Iberia, which tends to confirm relationship between

IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI 7

Life at the Uffizi ASSOCIAZIONE President Countess Maria Vittoria Colonna Rimbotti , President Elijah in the Desert. Countess Maria Vittoria Colonna Rimbotti Vice-Presidents - Michael J. Bracci, Emanuele Guerra Vice-President - Emanuele Guerra Leaf Motif and on the Executive Director - Lisa Marie Browne verso Two Male Figures Executive Directors - Patrizia Asproni, Legal Counsel - Howard J. Freedman Embracing and a Study Ginevra Cerrina Feroni, Andrea Del Re, for a Hand. As Marzia Fabrizio Guidi Bruscoli, Treasurer - Bruce Crawford Mario Marinesi (Treasurer), Faietti, Coordinator of Elisabetta Puccioni (Secretary), Oliva Scaramuzzi, Eike D. Schmidt, Secretary - Barbara Chamberlain Education, Research and Development at Catterina Seia Directors - Diana M. Bell, Susan D. McGregor, the Uffizi, emphasizes: n  Auditors- Francesco Corsi, Madeleine Parker, Diann G. Scaravilli Precious Acquisitions “Rare draftsmen or those little Enrico Fazzini, Corrado Galli known and scarcely documented Alternate Auditors - Alberto Conti, Honorary Member The Uffizi has recently ac- today have always fascinated col- Eike D. Schmidt, Uffizi Galleries Director Valerio Pandolfi quired a true masterpiece of six- lectors of the past and continue teenth century painting, Elijah in Advisory Board to do so also today for museums. Secretariat - Tania Dyer, Bruna Robbiani the Desert by Daniele Ricciarelli da Rarity, as is the case for the recto c/o UnipolSai, Chairman - Diann G. Scaravilli Volterra, created between 1543 via L.Magnifico 1, 50129 Firenze. and verso of the folio by Giovan Tel. +39 055 4794422 - Fax +39 055 4792005 and 1547 during the papacy of Vice Chairman - Daniela Di Lorenzo Francesco Rustici, and unique- [email protected] Paul III Farnese. The work was ness, as in the folio, also drawn on Advisors - Linda Civerchia Balent, mentioned by Benedetto Falcon- both sides, attributed to Giovanni Welcome Desk - Luminita Cristescu Francine Birbragher-Rozencwaig, cini in his Elogio (Praise) of the Galleria delle Statue e delle Pitture degli Marianne Caponnetto, Catesi, are two terms that in syn- painter in 1772 as among the pos- Uffizi,Entrance 2 - Tel. +39 055 285610 Scott Diament, thesis describe the reasons for [email protected] Gordon A. Lewis Jr., sessions of his descendants, the Irvin M. Lippman, Ellen Stirn Mavec, our interest”. Ricciarelli da Volterra. By inheri- triannual publication Meredith A. Townsend, tance, it then entered the Sienese of the Amici degli Uffizi Linda J. Tufo n A Lesson on Islam collection of the Counts Pannoc- Editor-in-chief Honorary Members chieschi d’Elci, who subsequently The Uffizi Galleries, together Maria Vittoria Colonna Rimbotti H.R.H Princess Maria Pia di Savoia have now sold it to the Uffizi Gal- with a group of Florentine Islam- de Bourbon-Parma, leries. Elijah in the Desert reveals Editorial board H.R.H. Prince Michel ic cultural associations, has pro- the importance of Michelangelo’s de Bourbon-Parma, moted a series of didactic activi- President Countess Chiara Miari Fulcis Ferragamo art in the painting of Ricciarelli ties and intercultural laboratories Eike D. Schmidt – a collaborator and very close Friends of the Uffizi Gallery friend of Buonarroti – who was connected to the exhibit “Islamic Uffizi Coordinator 205 Worth Avenue Suite 201 Art and Florence from the Medici to Salvatore La Spina Palm Beach, Florida 33480 clearly inspired by the master’s the 20th century”. A series of tours Tel.: 561.289.4090 inventions on the Managing Editor Fax: 561.391.1597 ceiling and Last Judgment. The guided by members of the Islamic Maria Novella Batini [email protected] rare iconography of the prophet community, residents of Flor- ence, are designed for those who Contributors for this issue meditating on the pitcher of wine Giovanni Curatola, Paola D’Agostino HOW TO JOIN and the bread brought to him by wish to explore the history and Antonio Godoli, Antonio Paolucci, THE FRIENDS OF THE the raven – Eucharistic prefigu- art of the Islamic culture. The Fabrizio Paolucci, Alexander Rudigier UFFIZI GALLERY exposition offers an alternative rations – qualifies the work as a Translator pioneering precedent of Counter narrative to a strictly art histori- Josephine Rogers Mariotti Membership dues are integral Reformation painting. cal interpretation, providing new to the mission of Friends Two important drawings were meaning to the objects on display Graphic design and layout of the Uffizi Gallery and Edizioni Polistampa - Firenze also purchased by the Uffizi at related to their own life experi- because the organization Via Livorno 8/32 - 50142 Firenze, Italy. a Christie’s New York auction. ence. The visits will be conducted Tel. +39 055 737871 is a 501(c)(3) they are tax The first is a rare pen drawing by in Italian and in Arabic with the Fax +39 055 7378760 deductible. Giovan Francesco Rustici (1475- intent of favoring a dialogue be- For any questions about 1554), a personal friend of Leon- tween the two cultures. memberships, donations, ardo da Vinci and the master of Along with the program of corporate sponsorships, Sponsor of the Association Baccio Bandinelli; it represents visits, laboratory sessions deal- planned giving or in-kind Amici degli Uffizi with their on the recto a Female Figure with ing with Arab script will focus contribution: donations, please call at a Child and on the verso a Beggar. in particular on the connection 561-289-4090 The other drawing is practically between Arab writing and deco- UnipolSai or email the only known drawing by the ration. The laboratories are de- Assicurazioni S.p.a. Bologna [email protected] Pisan goldsmith and sculptor, signed for families with children or visit Giovanni Catesi, (active between and for adults. To participate in https://www.friendsoftheuffizi 1590 and 1600). It shows on the the activities free of cost, reserva- gallery.org/memberships/ recto a Male Figure with a Book and tions can be made by emailing: a Partial Study for an Ornamental [email protected]

8 IL GIORNALE degli UFFIZI

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