Pulpit
1481 (sculpted), ca. 1884 (cast)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
On the base of the pulpit are carvings of Faith, Hope, Charity, Temperance and Justice. Above are Pope Honorius confirming the Rule of the Franciscan Order; St. Francis undergoing an Ordeal by Fire before the Sultan; St. Francis receiving the stigmate; The Death of St. Francis; and The Martyrdom of the Franciscans at Cueta. This cast was taken from the marble original by Benedetto Da Maiano, situated in the church of S. Croce, Florence.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Plaster cast |
| Brief description | Plaster cast, painted plaster, after original marble pulpit with gilding in the Church of Santa Croce, Florence, by Benedetto da Maiano, Florence, in 1481. Cast by Oronzio Lelli in Florence, around 1884. |
| Physical description | On the base of the pulpit are carvings of Faith, Hope, Charity, Temperance and Justice. Above are Pope Honorius confirming the Rule of the Franciscan Order; St. Francis undergoing an Ordeal by Fire before the Sultan; St. Francis receiving the stigmate; The Death of St. Francis; and The Martyrdom of the Franciscans at Cueta. This cast was taken from the marble original by Benedetto Da Maiano, situated in the church of S. Croce, Florence. |
| Dimensions |
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| Gallery label | This is a cast of a pulpit considered to be Benedetto da Maiano's masterpiece. The pulpit was described as 'a very rare thing and more beautiful than any other that has ever been executed in that manner' by Giorgio Vasari in his Lives of the Artists, published in 1550. The scenes of the life of St Francis of Assisi were admired for their distinctive pictorial style. Three original terracotta models for the pulpit reliefs can be seen in Room 50b (Medieval & Renaissance).(2014) |
| Object history | Purchased from Oronzio Lelli in 1884 for £83 6s 8d |
| Historical context | This pulpit was commissioned by Pietro Mellini, for whom Benedetto da Maiano also executed a marble portrait bust dated 1474, now in the Museo Nazionale (Bargello), Florence, and shown at the V&A in a cast (museum no. 1885-137). The inventory of the contents of Benedetta da Maiano's studio, taken after his death, lists six terracotta models for the S. Croce pulpit. Three of these, representing scenes no. 1, 4 and 5 above, are in the Victoria and Albert Museum. A scene representing the Vision of Pope Innocent III was formerly in the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in Berlin. This scene was omitted from the final design of the pulpit. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | REPRO.1884-639 |
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| Record created | December 7, 1999 |
| Record URL |
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