General view

1572 · Sala del Mappamondo, Palazzo Farnese, Caprarola

mythological

The art-historical importance of the Palazzo Farnese in Caprarola, near Viterbo, is the famous pentagonal ground plan and round interior courtyard, and the interior frescoes. The Palazzo was built for Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (1520-1589) who was made cardinal by his grandfather Pope Paul III (1468-1549), and named vice chancellor of the Holy Roman Church a year later, according him the highest position after that of the pope in the ecclesiastical hierarchy. The architect of the construction of the palace was Giacomo da Vignola.

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About the Artist

Giovanni de' Vecchi

1536 – 1614

Italian painter. After training with Raffaello dal Colle in his native Borgo Sansepolcro, then with Taddeo Zuccaro, Giovanni de'Vecchi enjoyed a career spanning over fifty years, spent mostly in Rome. He assisted Taddeo Zuccari in the interior decoration of the Villa Farnese at Caprarola, a major work in the Mannerist style. He also has paintings in many Roman churches: the Life of St Jerome in Santa Maria in Aracoeli; the four Doctors of the Church (Gregory, Ambrose, Jerome, and Augustine) in the cupola of Il Gesù, St Sebastian in Sant'Andrea della Valle; frescoes with the stories of St Catherine in Cappella Capranica of the Santa Maria sopra Minerva; Deposition in the sacristy of Santa Prassede, decoration of a chapel in San Pietro in Montorio, etc. The mosaics for the tribune of St Peter's basilica with St John and St Luke are based on his cartoons.

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