Vergilius Publius Maro, Bucolicon, Georgicon, Aeneis, c. 72r: Didone a Cartagine |
- The author:
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A Florentine painter and illuminator, Apollonio di Giovanni (Florence 1415/17-1465) proves, from 1446 on, to be working in association with Marco del Buono Giamberti in a workshop specialised in paintings for chests. Following the early influence of Beato Angelico, Apollonio subsequently revealed an inclination to the flowery and ornate trends of the late Gothic.
- The work:
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The codex containing the works of Virgil conserved in the Biblioteca Riccardiana comprises 88 illuminated scenes, 19 of them unfinished, which are generally attributed to Apollonio di Giovanni. These delightful illuminations transpose the classical stories into the contemporary urban scenario of the painter, where several Florentine buildings, including Palazzo Medici, are clearly recognisable. Alongside such indications are other references to mediaeval Tuscan architecture (for example the Baptistery of Florence) or to classical and imperial Rome. This stately context, the sumptuous and elegant garments of the figures which reflect the fashions of the time, and the courtly imprint of the scenes lead to the supposition that the commissioner of the work was someone very close to the Medici.
- The iconography of the Palazzo:
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The artist appears to have taken inspiration from Palazzo Medici on more than one occasion in representing the seat of power. For example, echoing the residence of Via Larga is the palace of Dido in Carthage, first shown in construction, and later with a suggestive view of the courtyard and the garden behind, in the scene showing the encounter between Dido and Ascanius-Cupid (cc. 72r, 74v, 75r), and finally in the view of the magnificent table laid out for the banquet. Palazzo Medici also becomes the palace of Priam in Troy in the scenes depicting the fall of the city, the assault on the palace itself and the slaughter of the King and his sons (cc. 82 and following). More specifically, some of these latter illuminations (cc. 85v, 86r, 86v) are set within the garden of the palace, enclosed by a high wall, which again appears to echo that of the Medici residence.
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Vergilius Publius Maro, Bucolicon, Georgicon, Aeneis, c. 72r: Didone a Cartagine 
