with orchards, farms, castles, or villages. In the distance are heavily forested
areas with sharper mountain ridges beyond. The lady À oating in the air by
the city gate is the personi¿ cation of Security. In her right hand, a scroll
announces the tranquility and peace that the Commune of Siena provides;
in her left hand, a miniature gallows shows the corpse of someone who
threatened that peace and paid the price.
Overall, the Allegories of Good and Bad Government constitute a glorious
decorative scheme for the proud city-commune. This was just before the
plague of 1348, an overwhelming crisis in Europe. The Black Death left
Siena city development frozen in its age of glory. Its artists were among the
victims; both Ambrogio Lorenzetti and his brother Pietro are presumed to
have died in the plague, but this mural leaves a record of the prosperous
calm before the calamitous storm. Ŷ
Palazzo Pubblico, 1297–1342, Siena, Italy.
Ambrogio Lorenzetti:
Allegory of Good Government, 1338–39, fresco, 25’ 3” W (7.7 m W),
Sala della Pace, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, Italy.
Effects of Good Government in the City and the Country, 1338–39,
fresco, 46’ W (14 m W), Sala della Pace, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, Italy.
Presentation in the Temple, 1342, tempera on panel, 8’ 5 ¼” x 5’ 6 ¼”
(257 x 168 cm), Galleria degli Uf¿ zi, Florence, Italy.Pietro Lorenzetti:
The Entry into Jerusalem, 1320–30, fresco, Lorenzetti Chapel, Basilica
of S. Francesco, Assisi, Italy.Simone Martini:
Annunciation (St. Ansano Altarpiece), 1333, tempera on panel,
10’ x 8’ 9” (184 x 210 cm), Galleria degli Uf¿ zi, Florence, Italy.Works Discussed