The Sassetti Chapel, Santa Trinita,
Florence - 6 |
Above the entry arch of the chapel is
this unusual image: the meeting (or vision) of the Emperor Augustus with
the Tiburtine sybil who, according to the Golden Legend, revealed the
coming of Christ. The symbol of Christ shines above them. The sybil is a
portrait of Sassetti’s daughter, Sibilia. The emperor does not look that
impressed.
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The vault of the
chapel has frescoes of four sybils. Helpfully, they carry banners naming
themselves; well, three do, the Cumean, Eritrean and Agrippina sybils.
Ghirlandaio - or more likely, his workshop, did not name one of them,
the one that is upside in the image below. For those that are good at
identifying sybils, I've included it below the correct way up. |
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