The ''Assumption of the Virgin Between St Minias and St Julian'' is a painting by the Italian early Renaissance master

Andrea del Castagno Andrea del Castagno () or Andrea di Bartolo di Bargilla (; – 19 August 1457) was an Italian painter from Florence, influenced chiefly by Masaccio and Giotto di Bondone. His works include frescoes in Sant'Apollonia in Florence and the pain ...

, executed around 1449–1450. It is now housed in the Gemäldegalerie of

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

History

An inscription mentioned by Filippo Baldinucci, dated 20 November 1449, reported that the altarpiece was commissioned by Leonardo di Francesco di Nardo Falladanzi, the rector of San Miniato tra le Torri, a church in Florence. Falladanzi kept a notebook in which he noted that he paid "maestro Andrea, pintore" 104 lire for an altarpiece for the main altar of the church. The church was demolished around 1888 (it was located where the main post office is today), and its heritage was dispersed, after which Andrea del Castagno's ''Assumption'' was acquired by Berlin's Gemäldegalerie.

Description

The painting portrays Mary in a wide blue cloak, while she is lifted up from a sepulchre depicted in perspective. The cloak, as typical in Andrea del Castagno, is painted with a heavy use of

chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...

. The sepulchre contains roses, a flower usually associated with the Virgin. She is carried within a brilliant

mandorla A mandorla is an almond-shaped aureola, i.e. a frame that surrounds the totality of an iconographic figure. It is usually synonymous with '' vesica'', a lens shape. Mandorlas often surround the figures of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary in tr ...

by four angels. At Mary's sides are St. Julian (left, with a sword) and St. Minias of Florence (right, with a stick and a crown). While the Virgin is portrayed in a realistic posture, the two saints have a more static appearance. Both men are elegantly dressed in the most expensive of contemporary costumes. Not only the damask fabrics, but also the saturated red color indicate the costliness of their garments.Carole Collier Frick, ''Dressing Renaissance Florence: Families, Fortunes, and Fine Clothing'', Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2011. The background is in gold leaf.

References

Sources

* {{Authority control 1449 paintings 1450 paintings Paintings by Andrea del Castagno Paintings in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin

Angels in art Paintings of Julian the Hospitaller