Arnolfo di Cambio (c. 1240 – 1300/1310) was an
Italian architect
Following is a list of Italian architects.
Early architects
*Marcus Agrippa
*Vitruvius
Medieval architects
* Arnolfo di Cambio
* Pietro Baseggio
*Giotto di Bondone
* Arnolfo di Cambio
*Jacopo Celega
* Andrea Orcagna
*Andrea Pisano
*Gio ...
and sculptor. He designed
Florence Cathedral and the sixth city wall around Florence (1284–1333), while his most important surviving work as a sculptor is the tomb of Cardinal de Braye in S. Domenico,
Orvieto.
Biography
Arnolfo was born in
Colle Val d'Elsa, Tuscany.
He was
Nicola Pisano
Nicola Pisano (also called ''Niccolò Pisano'', ''Nicola de Apulia'' or ''Nicola Pisanus''; c. 1220/1225 – c. 1284) was an Italian sculptor whose work is noted for its classical Roman sculptural style. Pisano is sometimes considered to be the ...
’s chief assistant on the marble
Siena Cathedral Pulpit
The Siena Cathedral Pulpit is an octagonal structure in Siena Cathedral sculpted by Nicola Pisano and his assistants Arnolfo di Cambio, Lapo di Ricevuto, and Nicolas' son Giovanni Pisano between the fall of 1265 and the fall of 1268. The pulpit, wi ...
for the Duomo in Siena Cathedral (1265–1268), but he soon began to work independently on an important tomb sculpture. In 1266–1267 he worked in Rome for King
Charles I of Anjou, portraying him in the famous statue housed in the
Campidoglio
The Capitolium or Capitoline Hill ( ; it, Campidoglio ; la, Mons Capitolinus ), between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome.
The hill was earlier known as ''Mons Saturnius'', dedicated to the god Saturn. ...
. Around 1282 he finished the monument to Cardinal
Guillaume de Braye in the church of
San Domenico in Orvieto, including an enthroned Madonna (a ''
Maestà
Maestà , the Italian word for "majesty", designates a classification of images of the enthroned Madonna with the child Jesus, the designation generally implying accompaniment by angels, saints, or both. The ''Maestà'' is an extension of the "Se ...
'') for which he took as a model an ancient Roman statue of the goddess
Abundantia
In ancient Roman religion, Abundantia (), also called Abundita or Copia, was a divine personification of abundance and prosperity. The name Abundantia means plenty or riches. This name is fitting as Abundantia was a goddess of abundance, money-flo ...
; the Madonna's
tiara
A tiara (from la, tiara, from grc, τιάρα) is a jeweled head ornament. Its origins date back to ancient Greece and Rome. In the late 18th century, the tiara came into fashion in Europe as a prestigious piece of jewelry to be worn by women ...
and jewels reproduce antique models. In Rome Arnolfo had seen the
Cosmatesque
Cosmatesque, or Cosmati, is a style of geometric decorative inlay stonework typical of the architecture of Medieval Italy, and especially of Rome and its surroundings. It was used most extensively for the decoration of church floors, but was also u ...
art, and its influence can be seen in the
intarsia
Intarsia is a form of wood inlaying that is similar to marquetry. The start of the practice dates from before the seventh century AD. The technique of intarsia inlays sections of wood (at times with contrasting ivory or bone, or mother-of-pear ...
and polychrome glass decorations in the
Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls and the church
Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, where he worked in 1285 and 1293 respectively. In this period he also worked on the
presepio
In the Christianity, Christian tradition, a nativity scene (also known as a manger scene, crib, crèche ( or ), or in Italian language, Italian ''presepio'' or ''presepe'', or Bethlehem) is the special exhibition, particularly during the Christ ...
of
Santa Maria Maggiore, on
Santa Maria in Aracoeli
The Basilica of St. Mary of the Altar of Heaven ( la, Basilica Sanctae Mariae de Ara coeli in Capitolio, it, Basilica di Santa Maria in Ara coeli al Campidoglio) is a titular basilica in Rome, located on the highest summit of the Campidoglio. ...
, on the monument of
Pope Boniface VIII (1300) and on the bronze statue of
St. Peter in
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...
.
In 1294–1295 he worked in Florence, mainly as an architect. According to his biographer
Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work '' The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculp ...
, he was in charge of construction of the
cathedral
A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...
of the city, for which he provided the statues once decorating the lower part of the façade destroyed in 1589. The surviving statues are now in the Museum of the Cathedral. While the design of the Church of
Santa Croce has been attributed to Arnolfo, this is highly disputed. Vasari also attributed to him the urban plan of the new city of
San Giovanni Valdarno
San Giovanni Valdarno is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Arezzo, Tuscany, central Italy, located in the valley of the Arno River.
History
According to the Italian medieval historian Giovanni Villani, the town was founded in 1296, by th ...
.
The monumental character of Arnolfo's work has left its mark on the appearance of Florence. His funerary monuments became the model for Gothic
funerary art
Funerary art is any work of art forming, or placed in, a repository for the remains of the dead. The term encompasses a wide variety of forms, including cenotaphs ("empty tombs"), tomb-like monuments which do not contain human remains, and comm ...
.
Giorgio Vasari included a biography of Arnolfo in his ''
Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects''.
Selected works
Architecture
*
Santa Maria del Fiore
Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnigh ...
,
Florence Cathedral, 1296. Arnolfo's design was extended and completed by other architects in the 14th and 15th centuries.
*
Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, 1299.
Sculpture
*St. Peter Enthroned inside
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...
, is often attributed to Arnolfo.
*Monument to
Pope Adrian V
Pope Adrian V (Latin: ''Adrianus V''; c. 1210/1220 – 18 August 1276), born Ottobuono de' Fieschi, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 July 1276 to his death on 18 August 1276. He was an envoy of Pope Cl ...
(1276, attributed) –
San Francesco,
Viterbo
Viterbo (; Viterbese: ; lat-med, Viterbium) is a city and ''comune'' in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo.
It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in its early history ...
*Monument to Riccardo Cardinal Annibaldi (1276) –
San Giovanni in Laterano
The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran ( it, Arcibasilica del Santissimo Salvatore e dei Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano), also known as the Papa ...
, Rome
*Statue of Charles I of Anjou (1277) –
Campidoglio
The Capitolium or Capitoline Hill ( ; it, Campidoglio ; la, Mons Capitolinus ), between the Forum and the Campus Martius, is one of the Seven Hills of Rome.
The hill was earlier known as ''Mons Saturnius'', dedicated to the god Saturn. ...
, Rome
*Fountain of the Thirsty People (Fontana Minore) –
Perugia
Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia.
The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and pa ...
*Tomb of Cardinal Guillaume de Braye (c. 1282) – San Domenico,
Orvieto
*Monument of Pope Boniface VIII – the
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo – Florence
Footnotes
Sources
*
External links
Arnolfo di Cambio in the "History of Art"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cambio, Arnolfo Di
1240 births
14th-century deaths
People from Colle di Val d'Elsa
Architects of cathedrals
Gothic architects
Gothic sculptors
13th-century people of the Republic of Florence
13th-century Italian architects
13th-century Italian sculptors
Italian male sculptors