THE PUTTINI - TELAMONS IN THE TROGIR CHAPEL

Autor analizira 16 putta u trogirskoj kapeli (u ugovoru "putini") što stoje na polustupovima između niša sa skulpturama, a podržavaju u funkciji telamona arhitektonski vijenac. Budući da su reljefi putta integralni dio arhitektonskog člana s kojim su zajedno klesani i ugrađeni, morali su biti dovršeni iznzeđu 1468. kada je sklopljen ugovor i 1482. kada je kapela građevinski dovršena. Uz općenito visoku kvalitetu oblikovanja, nakon temeljite analize autor konstatira da se po tipologiji i kvaliteti mogu podijeliti u dvjie grupe. Kvalitetnije putte - telamone pripisuje Firentincu (1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15), a slabije Alešiju (3, 6, 9, 10, 11, 12, 16), dok je br. 4 "dvojan" kao da ga je postavio Firentinac a dovršio Aleši.This paper is a part of a larger project aiming at a comprehensive interpretation of the Renaissance Chapel in Trogir, a work by Nikola Firentinac (Nicholas from Florence) and Andreas Aleši. In his synthetic presentation of Croatian art, The Art Treasures of Croatia (1986, 1993) the author elaborates the thesis that the Trogir Chapel (built 1468-1482 as the mausoleum of Bishop Ivan Ursini who lived in the twelfth century) is one of the masterpieces of Early Renaissance European architecture and sculpture. During the intervening ten years he published a series of papers - chapters of a large structural analysis and interpretation to be collected in a monograph and dealing with several related subjects, e.g. a stratigraphic analysis of the iconology of 150 carved human figures in the Chapel (1987); the process of architectural transformation from classical family mausoleum to Renaissance chapel (1992); its \u27assembling" method of pre-carved stone construction (1990) ; the problem of its barrel vaulting with an even number of cassettes (1992) ; the funerary character of the chapel according to the iconographic programme of the reliefs with an analysis of the "most luscious flora in fifteenth century art" found on the garlands of its seventeen circular openings (oculi), the pilasters of its triumphal arch and the garlands decorating the vault (1989); an analysis of 96 cassettes of the vault decorated with seraph\u27s heads seen as "an Early Renaissance children\u27s paradise" (1990); the role played by Antun Mačkušić, the first patron (donor) of the chapel (1995), and the problem of its restoration after Baroque intervention (1986 & 1989). In this paper the author analyzes sixteen figures of putti-telamons (in the contract they are called in the diminutive, puttini), placed on half-columns between the niches and supporting (in telamon fashion) a cornice running under the oculi of the Chapel. The author points out that these figures of small nude boys,"leaning" lightly against the wall only with their backs and wings, are fully three-dimensional sculptures rather than reliefs. They all share some basic compositional elements: they are all standing (the contract stipulated they should sit!) on the capital plinths of the halfcolumns (using them as a base), supporting the cornice with their arms and shoulders, their heads and tips of their wings entering the cornice zone, leaning forward, stressing the effect of sculptural volume in space. Breaking out of their architectural frame -limited by the arches of the niches on the sides and defined by the cornice above - the figures of the putti stand apart from the remaining 130 reliefs and sculptures of the Chapel which all remain strictly circumscribed by the architectural elements (wall niches and altar lunette, vault cassettes, backs of stalls). All the putti are integrated into the architectural whole, functioning "tectonically" as connecting links between the three architectural elements, transferring the supporting power from the vertical half-columns to the horizontal cornice which runs along the chapel walls. At the same time, it is essential to note that these putti are modelled individually, each with his own somewhat different attitudes and gestures, (one with his back turned), in various movements of support (behind the head or sideways, with one or both arms), each of them with a different face, hair and wings, and some even wearing garments (2), socks on their feet (1) or garlands in their hair (3). The author also finds that their attitudes are generally natural and convincing, with well-proportioned and modelled bodies of excellent execution, as well as features and hair. After the analysis the author divides them into two groups according to quality and typology: proposing to attribute those of better quality to Niccolo di Giovanni from Florence and the inferior work to Aleši. The same division of labour, creating two parts approximately equal in quantity, can be noticed in all their joint ventures in Trogir: the retable of Justice in the Trogir City Loggia (the left part by Nicholas, the right by Aleši), the tomb of Sobotić (two lions) and the portal of the Cippico Palace (two genii with ribbons). The author has numbered the putti, starting from the west, proceeding along the north altar wall towards the east (just as, to facilitate orientation, he previously numbered the oculus garlands and the vault cassettes with seraphs). He thus attributes to Nicholas from Florence the putti no 1,2,5,7,8,13,14,15 and to Aleši no 3,6,9,10,11,12,16 (the no. 4 coming close to Nicholas\u27 quality of body and quite ambiguous in haed). As integral parts of the architectural elements (carved from the same block of stone with the capital plinth and part of the cornice), the putti must have been completed in the period between 2nd January 1468, the date of the contract, and the year 1482, when the chapel construction was completed (assembled exclusively from pre-carved stone elements) and when the placing of the sculptures in the niches is known to have begun