The ''Last Supper'' is a fresco by the Italian Renaissance painters

Cosimo Rosselli Cosimo Rosselli (; 1439–1507) was an Italian painter of the Quattrocento, active mainly in his birthplace of Florence, but also in Pisa earlier in his career and in 1481–82 in the Sistine Chapel in Rome, where he painted some of the large ...

and

Biagio d'Antonio Biagio d’Antonio Tucci (1446 – 1 June 1516) was an Italian Renaissance painter active in Florence, Faenza and Rome. Biography Biagio was born in Florence. It is not known with whom he trained, but his early style reflects the influence of ...

. Created during the years 1481–1482, it is located in the

Sistine Chapel The Sistine Chapel (; la, Sacellum Sixtinum; it, Cappella Sistina ) is a chapel in the Apostolic Palace, the official residence of the pope in Vatican City. Originally known as the ''Cappella Magna'' ('Great Chapel'), the chapel takes its nam ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

History

On 27 October 1480 Rosselli, together with other Florentine painters, left for Rome, where he had been called as part of the reconciliation project between

Lorenzo de' Medici Lorenzo di Piero de' Medici (; 1 January 1449 – 8 April 1492) was an Italian statesman, banker, ''de facto'' ruler of the Florentine Republic and the most powerful and enthusiastic patron of Renaissance culture in Italy. Also known as Lorenzo ...

, the ''de facto'' ruler of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

, and Pope Sixtus IV. The Florentines started to work in the

as early as the Spring of 1481, along with

Pietro Perugino Pietro Perugino (, ; – 1523), born Pietro Vannucci, was an Italian Renaissance painter of the Umbrian school, who developed some of the qualities that found classic expression in the High Renaissance. Raphael was his most famous pupil. Ea ...

, who was already there. The theme of the decoration was a parallel between the stories of Moses and those of Christ, as a sign of continuity between the Old and the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

, as well as between the divine law of the Tables and the message of Jesus, who had chosen Peter (the first alleged bishop of Rome) as his successor: This would finally result in a legitimation of the latter's successors, the popes of Rome. Due to the commission's size, the artists brought with them numerous assistants. Rosselli brought his son-in-law

Piero di Cosimo Piero di Cosimo (2 January 1462 – 12 April 1522), also known as Piero di Lorenzo, was an Italian painter of the Renaissance. He is most famous for the mythological and allegorical subjects he painted in the late Quattrocento; he is said to ...

. According to the Renaissance art historian

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 ...

, Rosselli was considered one of the less gifted among the painters at the Sistine Chapel, and his paintings in the chapel were the subject of the other artists' irony. However, his sheer adoption of brilliant colors granted him the appreciation of the pope, who apparently, was not considered an art expert.

Description

The scene is part of the ''Stories of Jesus'' cycle and, like the others, shows more than one episode at the same time. The frieze has the inscription ''REPLICATIO LEGIS EVANGELICAE A CHRISTO'' ('Repetition of the Evangelical Law by Christ'). The

supper Supper was originally a secondary lighter evening meal. The main meal of the day, called dinner, used to be served closer to what is known as lunchtime, around the middle of the day, but crept later over the centuries, mostly over the course of ...

is set in a semi-circular

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

, with a horseshoe-shaped table at whose center sits Jesus, the apostles at his side. Judas, as usual, is depicted on the side, from behind; the fighting cat and dog are elements which further stress his negative connotation. The scene shows the moment immediately after Jesus' annunciation that one apostle would betray him. His hearers' reactions include touching their own chests, or muttering to each other. Cosimo rosselli, ultima cena 01

The table has no meals, but a single chalice in front of Jesus; some gilded or silvered kitchenware is shown in the foreground, an example of still life inspired by contemporary

Flemish painting Flemish painting flourished from the early 15th century until the 17th century, gradually becoming distinct from the painting of the rest of the Low Countries, especially the modern Netherlands. In the early period, up to about 1520, the painting ...

and widespread in Florentine art at the time. At the sides, are two couples of figures dressing rich garments. Another dog is jumping on the left. Within the three windows behind the table are three scenes of the Passion: the '' Prayer at Gethsemane'', the ''

Arrest of Jesus The arrest of Jesus was a pivotal event in Christianity recorded in the canonical gospels Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set ...

'' and the ''Crucifixion''. These are attributed by some authorities to

. Perugino used the same panel-within-a-panel effect in his later ''

Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, Depictions of the Last Supper in Christian art have been undertaken by artistic masters for centuries, ...

''.

References

Sources

* {{Last Supper in art 1480s paintings Paintings by Cosimo Rosselli Sistine Chapel wall frescoes Rosselli Cats in art Dogs in art