The Basilica of St Bernardino all'Osservanza
Works by Andrea della Robbia
In addition to the roundels with Saint Bonaventure and Saint Louis, the Basilica dell’Osservanza is house to another two marvellous masterpieces by Andrea della Robbia (1435 – 1525). He came from a famous family of sculptures, specialised in the manufacture of glazed polychrome terracotta creations, a technique invented around 1440 by Luca della Robbia. This process, which entails the layering of glass enamel on the terracotta surface, confers the works a high resistance to atmospheric agents and bright colours, enhancing the plasticity of the milky white figures against the light blue background.
An excellent example is given by the retrotabula representing the Coronation of the Blessed Virgin and Saints in the second chapel on the left; dating back to the 1480s, even this work of art was shattered by bombings during World War 2, just like the roundels, and was restored after a painstaking repair. The central part portrays, facing each other, Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin, who bows her head in receiving the crown from her Son: In this way Mary, the humble maid, is part of her Son’s Glory and elevated above the angels, where she reigns in glory and intercedes for all humanity. The Holy Spirit in the form of a dove is between them, while cherubs and beautiful angels playing trumpets in sign of joy surround them. Below, some saints watch the event: on the left there is St. Jerome, clad like a penitent hermit, and Anthony of Padua, another great Franciscan saint, with a flaming heart, symbolising the divine love burning within him; on the right is Saint Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscan Order, with his hand on a kneeling woman, maybe representing Agnese Ugurgieri, the person who possibly commissioned the retrotabula; with her hands joined in prayer and rapt in contemplation of the Blessed Virgin and her Son, she seems to epitomise the correct attitude that every believer should have in the presence of divinity. Behind her is a saint whose only iconographic attribute is the palm of martyrdom. It may be Saint Agnes, eponymous with the lady who commissioned this creation. The predella, at the bottom, contains three small scenes representing the Annunciation, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Nativity of Christ, separated by small pillars embellished with classical-styled plant motifs and stems of the Ugurgieri family.
The other masterpiece by Andrea are the two statues of the Announcing Angel and of the Virgin Annunciate, inside the niches in the presbytery’s triumphal arch, but which initially stood at the sides of the high altar. The original position was justified by the fact that the Mystery of Incarnation takes place on the altar, through the celebration of the Holy Mass, during which bread and wine are consecrated as the Body and Blood of Christ. This enables the birth and growth of Christ within every Christian.