During his career, Benozzo had engaged various times in the decoration of tabernacle/oratory monuments (in Certaldo and Legoli). However, the two most significant examples, in terms of their situation on main roads used by travellers and pilgrims and their size and commission, were perhaps the ones he frescoed in Castelfiorentino, both commissioned by the prior of Castelnuovo, Messer Grazia di Francesco, one in 1484, dedicated to the Madonna of the Cough, and the other in 1490-1491, created in collaboration with his sons, Francesco and Alesso, usually known as the Madonna of the Visitation.
At the time of the decoration of the Tabernacle of the Visitation, Benozzo and his sons also painted another fresco - the Saint Verdiana - which is still housed in Castelfiorentino Town Hall. This is of lesser solemnity but considerable local importance, being one of the area’s most ancient testimonies to the worship of this figure, depicted, according to traditional iconography, as a nun dressed in a dark habit accompanied by her characteristic attributes, namely the snakes and a little wicker basket.

Benozzo Gozzoli, Tabernacolo della Madonna della Tosse (Castelfiorentino)

Indeed, whooping cough, pertussis or "tosse cattiva" (bad cough), as it was called in Tuscany, was a very common illness until a few years ago, mainly affecting children and causing a violent, barking cough. This was not only bothersome but could become fatal, and it was therefore customary among the faithful to erect shrines dedicated to the Virgin Mary, where mothers would accompany children suffering from the epidemic. Some of the most important examples are the tabernacle built in the early sixteenth century in Florence, near San Gallo Gate, and transformed into an oratory in 1595 by the Grand Duchess Cristina di Lorena following the grace granted to her own children.

The fresco within a clypeus on the cross-vaulted ceiling of the Tabernacle of the Madonna of the Cough depicts a Jesus in the act of blessing, while those on the webs depict the four Apostles with their customary iconographic attributes: Mark with the lion, Luke with the ox, Matthew with the angel and John with the eagle.

Frescoed on the central wall is a sophisticated and effective trompe l'oeil altarpiece, with five angels pulling back the cloth to reveal the Virgin and Child enthroned surrounded by Saints Peter, Catherine of Alexandria, Margaret and Paul. In an asymmetrical position in front of the main scene, there is a small icon with an effigy of the Holy Face which, thanks to the illusionistic effect, appears casually placed on the trompe l'oeil altar-step. A period photo documenting the frescoes before their removal illustrates the stone altar that was placed against the wall, highlighting how this image simulated the fixtures of a real religious altar made ready for Holy Mass.

Despite the high quality of these frescoes, critics believe it to be the fruit of collaboration by Benozzo's studio and particularly his son, Francesco. The contribution of his sons, Alesso and Francesco, was explicitly cited, on the other hand, in a lost inscription on the Tabernacle of the Visitation.

In 1853, the Tabernacle of the Madonna of the Cough was encased in a neo-Gothic chapel, transforming it into an oratory, in order to preserve it. This solution did not, however, prevent the decay of the frescoes caused by the high humidity levels. In 1970, the authorities responsible for their protection therefore deemed it opportune to remove them from the walls and carry out careful restoration.

Indeed, a thick layer of limescale had formed over the frescoes and, particularly in the lower areas, the humidity had resulted in sulphation of the plasterwork, a chemical process which causes a reaction in the calcium carbonate (the main element of which frescoes consist), forming calcium sulphate, commonly known as gypsum. This phenomenon can cause the frescoes to become "dusty", i.e. lose their pigment if touched, or, if the plaster is compact and non-porous, the gypsum can form bubbles which later burst. The restoration work consisted, above all, of making good the raised and dusty areas of colour, after which the frescoes were affixed to a fibreglass backing and carefully cleaned using ammonium carbonate (a salt also contained in baking powder) and distilled water

Of course, the colours that the artist had applied "dry" were entirely lost. In the areas of the frescoes containing gaps, it was decided to carry out pictorial restoration with a "neutral shade".

Since it was impossible to return the work to its original site (as a small stream runs under the chapel causing excessive dampness), it remained in storage in the Florentine Fine Art Superintendence until 1987, when it was decided that the frescoes should be exhibited in the Municipal Library in Castelfiorentino. While this arrangement allowed Benozzo Gozzoli's work, previously hidden from view, to be admired, it also prevented the tabernacle from being reconstructed in its entirety. Indeed, the chosen venue prevented the display of the painted imitation marble skirting which adorned the lower register.

From January 2009, however, this tabernacle, together with the Tabernacle of the Visitation, will be more suitably placed in the new venue, the Benozzo Gozzoli Museum, especially designed to house these magnificent pieces of architecture. The frescoes of both tabernacles have been restored for the occasion.

In the small oratory on the road from Castelfiorentino to Castelnuovo, the original site of the frescoes of the Madonna of the Cough, the sinopia (preparatory drawing) of the scene depicting the Virgin and Child enthroned was discovered, traces of which were also visible in the photographs taken during the removal of the frescoes.

This discovery once again confirms Benozzo's regular use of the sinopia technique for the preparatory drawings of his works, and disproves what scholars had conjectured, namely that Gozzoli would prepare the drawings on cardboard and then entrust them to his close collaborators to copy out using the "spolvero" (dusting) technique for the painting of the frescoes.

Serena Nocentini

By 1463 Benozzo Gozzoli was working at San Gimignano on a cycle of 17 scenes from the life of St Augustine in the choir of Sant'Agostino (last scene signed and dated 1465) and on a fresco of St Sebastian (1464).

By 1463 at the latest, Benozzo had left his native city and moved to San Gimignano for four years, until 1467. He had left Florence because of the plague, for towns at higher altitudes such as San Gimignano were thought to be less at risk. Here, in collaboration with several assistants, he produced his main work, the decorations of the apsidal chapel of the church of Sant'Agostino (1464-65). The single-aisled hall church with three apsidal chapels and an open roof truss, built by the Augustinian canons between 1280 and 1298, is a typical example of the Gothic architecture of the mendicant orders in central Italy.

Benozzo was given the commission by Fra Domenico Strambi, a learned Augustinian monk belonging to the monastery who in 1449 had been given a grant by the town to study theology at the Sorbonne in Paris. The paintings were produced within the contemporary context of the reformation of the monastery of Sant'Agostino. The intention was to merge it with the Augustinian order of San Salvatore in Lecceto near Siena. The choir, being the place where the community of monks assembled, was decorated with a didactic program of the life and work of St Augustine. The cycle of St Augustine is one of the main works of Tuscan narrative art dating from the middle of the century. It can take its place alongside the fresco cycle of the Legend of the True Cross (1453/54) by Piero della Francesca in Arezzo and Donatello's Passion Pulpit and Resurrection Pulpit (1460-62) in San Lorenzo in Florence.

As in the cycle of St Francis in Montefalco, the cycle of St Augustine does not depict any miracles or posthumous events, but portrays the saint as a student, teacher and scholar. This corresponded to the new humanist opinion of the Father of the Church, who combined classical learning, a high regard for Plato and the art of rhetoric with the religious zeal of Christianity. St Augustine was born in 354 in Tagaste (Numidia, now Algeria), the son of Patricius, a pagan, and the Christian Monica. The father did not have any decisive influence on him, though that of the mother was to prove to be a lasting one.

Benozzo Gozzoli | Fresco cycle in the apsidal chapel of Sant'Agostino, San Gimignano Sant'Agostino

Art in Tuscany | Benozzo Gozzoli | Saint Sebastian

This is one of those predella panels. And here Gozzoli had the freedom to exercise his particular skill as a storyteller. In this one small painting he has packed three episodes related in Matthew 14:6–8. At the center of the painting, we see the twirling figure of Salome, dancing to entertain Herod and his guests, all of whom wear fifteenth-century finery. Herod was so enchanted that he promised Salome whatever she might ask, and prompted by her mother, who sought revenge against John, Salome's request was bloody: "Give me the head of John the Baptist." There inside an archway at left, the saint kneels to be beheaded. And at the rear Salome presents the severed head to her mother.

Castelfiorentino | www.museobenozzogozzoli.it

Narrative fresco cycles by Benozzo Gozzoli | This tour presents three narrative fresco cycles executed by Benozzo Gozzoli in Montefalco (Scenes from the Life of St Francis, 1450-52), in Florence (Procession of the Magi, 1459-60) and in San Gimignano (Scenes from the Life of St Augustine, 1464-65). Detailed biography of the artist is given and the subjects of the cycles are discussed.

Art in Tuscany | Giorgio Vasari | Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects | Benozzo Gozzoli

Giorgio Vasari | Le vite de' più eccellenti architetti, pittori, et scultori italiani, da Cimabue insino a' tempi nostri | BENOZZO, Pittore Fiorentino


Benozzo Gozzoli in San Gimignano | Exhibition in the Pinacoteca San Gimignano

Holiday accomodation in Toscany | Podere Santa Pia