"lo travo di lo crucifixo". L'esposizione e l'uso della croce negli edifici di culto siciliani fra il Regnum Normanno e il Concilio di Trento (1149-1555)

In 1992 the publication of a book on the crosses painted in Sicily highlighted an aspect of artistic production from that island thirteenth century until the mid-sixteenth century had kept the art workshops engaged in the incessant work to meet the needs of liturgical worship and cathedrals, monasteries and parish, can not exist in fact a Christian church without its icons of the cross. From the text, which begins however previous studies mainly by Maria Grazia Paolini, who already in 1959 had identified the peculiarities of the Sicilian production of painted crosses, it is clear that while the rest of Italy this particular genre of painting had already extinct at the end of the fourteenth century, in Sicily it is perpetuated since well over half of the sixteenth century, with a continuous renewal of figurative language from the artists but remain linked to the medieval tradition of the table-shaped cross, adorned with a rich carved frame that only in rare cases has been preserved, where the figures are often forced to strength within the contours tightened. "The originality of the crosses in Sicily since the fifteenth century is even more to be painted on both sides instead of just in the front, as the specimens were Romanesque and Gothic, except for the processional crosses and processional, to other more manageable and small format "(Maurizio Calvesi). In large crosses stational of Sicily, unlike the crosses of small size often carried out in devotional purposes and which provide a wide variety of different images, iconography has also established a pattern of responding to its liturgical function and that, except in rare cases, remains long unchanged. It provides, in the front, the figure of the Crucified at the center, the Virgin and St. John capicroce mourners in the two sides, the Pantokrator or the Arbor vitae with the Pelican's Nest, emblem Christological, top and Mary Magdalene or the cave with the skull of Adam down; in verse we find the figure of the Risen One in the center and the emblems of the four evangelists in the heads-cross. However on that occasion were left unresolved many issues especially some of the specimens presented that are still open chapters in the history of medieval and modern in Sicily; just mention for all the extraordinary cross of the Cathedral of Piazza Armerina, name-piece for the still anonymous artist who painted it. Nearly twenty years from that pioneering publication it seemed appropriate then return to the subject to try to clarify the points were still in shadow and enlarge the field of investigation to other aspects of the exposure of the cross inside the church buildings and Sicilian its enjoyment by the clergy and the assembly of the faithful. It was thought then to extend the research to both liturgical previous models, ie from when in Sicily we have cognizance of a systematic use of the cross framed with certainty, through written and iconographic sources, and corresponding certificates of the Norman period and extend it up the mid-sixteenth century, when the rules or customs and interpretations resulting from the Council of Trent will interrupt the millennial ecclesial centrality of the cross within the classroom; is to include other forms of exposure of the cross, focusing in turn on the diversity of the medium, in terms of support and material used but also change it causes in the reception of the message you want to convey. The chronological boundaries are marked by two specific dates: in 1149 is drawn up an inventory of the movable property of the Cathedral Cefalu in which it is clear, and it is one of the first times, the use of Norman processional cross, which was then detached from its rod and placed on the altar, or fixed in its vicinity; 1555 is actually the year marked on the back of the complex painted wooden machine in the middle of the nave of the church mother of Collesano, which represents the apogee for the crosses Sicilian well as a unique case in Italy of maintaining such a structure that underpins all liturgical space. In re-reading of the sources, documents and historiography on the subject, among which we note the recent and substantial publication Manufacere et sculpt in Lignamine, curated by Teresa Pugliatti, Salvatore Rizzo and Paul Russo, dedicated to wood carving Sicilian emerged not few discrepancies in the interpretation of the data available to us, that since 1992, thanks to numerous discoveries documentaries, have increased the ability to have a more complete picture, although several are still holes to be filled with reliable data, but that we tried to give an answer, however, albeit hypothetical. The research was started trying to focus on a few key points that make up the skeleton of which has developed the whole architecture of the arguments: ï­ The painted crosses should be seen in the broader context of Calvari stational, of which they are a very special synthetic vision accomplished. The documents and iconographic sources suggest in fact that there is a possibility of varied solutions for the display of the cross: the only painted cross, the cross and the mourners painted detected in the round, the cross painted only in the direction and with the crucifix carved in front, the only carved crucifix, the group of Calvary consisting of three statues in the round. ï­ The placement of the cross within the building of the Church. Previous studies have focused only on the vertical, disputing whether originally crosses and crucifixes were hung under the arch of the presbytery, planted on the ground or, more likely, placed above the partition and most frequently named in the documents of the entablature precisely "the trabo" or "the trabe" of the crucifix. Misunderstandings in this regard arise mainly from a misinterpretation on the arrangement of the cross in the Cathedral of Cefalu. In the temple the Ruggero is in fact still present a monumental cross opistografa, the largest of Sicily with over five feet tall, attributed by Genevieve Bresc Bautier before, and Maria Andaloro, then, to William of Pesaro, that he had to perform before 1468, the year in which he was commissioned another cross painted for the cathedral of Monreale that the painter had to make in accordance with that already accomplished for Cefalu. The bishop Preconio probably transfers the monumental cross painted under the keystone of the great arch that separates the nave from the transept of the assembly reserved for the clergy, the fact here is hanging a chronicler of 1592, Bartholomew Carandino, and said this as he created many misunderstandings about the placement of the cross originally cefaludese and other in Sicily; In fact, the crosses Sicilian are also distinguished by not having a base of support of its own, however, are still recognizable in many pin that allowed to fix the partition or to the beam and the rings for the attachment of tie rods which allowed to stabilize it. But it will be only with the internal changes made in the areas celebratory atmosphere of Trent, during which he emphasized the centrality of eucharistic compared to the cross, it is moved or the apex of the arch of the presbytery, not to "annoy" the vision of the liturgical rites, or is placed on a side altar, equated to other images that multiply on the walls of the churches. The same documents tell us, however, the placement of the cross "in mezo of the ecclesia" accentuating the appearance of more horizontal than vertical. The main function of the cross was in fact to divide the church into two zones, one reserved for the clergy and the celebration of the rites and adapted to accommodate the congregation, reflecting what Venantius Fortunatus, hymn writer of the sixth century, expressed in his Vexilla Regis, the most famous liturgical text dedicated to the cross, that at some point, the turns with these words: "his body made six scales." ï­ The liturgical function of the verse painted with the image of the Risen Christ. It has been hypothesized that the bi-frontal crosses Sicilian serve to expose in Easter time the effigy of the resurrection, turning the table on itself. This ritual is not, however, no trace in the sources and in any case, if true, it appears more devotional custom post-Tridentine that a practice of medieval spirituality. To this is added that for some specimens of the cross, of considerable size and with predispositions logistical which did not allow the mobility of the work, even partial, such an operation is very unlikely. ï­ Problems related to stylistic issues and attributive. Many powers, both painted crosses that of the sculptures, are not universally shared by critics as well as in some cases, among which the most interesting is that of conventionally called Master of the Cross of Piazza Armerina, has debated the cultural formation of the artists and about where they came from foreign or local origin. Part of the research has sought to clarify purely liturgical - worship, primarily with the analysis of the sources of the liturgical and patristic texts founding and prescriptive use of the cross in the Roman liturgy and its presence stational and monumental inside buildings of worship. The Latin sources are given in the original language, while those of Greece or in other ancient language in translation; also some times when you are recognized problems of interpretation, we opted for the translation notes in the current language. You are covered both by the general sources of Latin Patrology both local liturgical sources, such as the so-called Missal Gallicano (late twelfth-early thirteenth century.) Kept in the Historical Diocesan Palermo, the liturgical texts of the Seminary Library of Messina (XII sec.) and the most recent of the Central Library of the Region of Sicily and the Benedictine Abbey of San Martino delle Scale, noting that from the regulatory point of view did not exist in Sicily requirements peculiar than the rest of the Christian West. The order of the chapters should not be seen then only as a sequence of events and the works presented, but this is associated typological and functional diversification of the whole substance of the works remained and digressions diachronic general about the different uses of the cross in time. Great attention was also given to the issues related to the iconography and iconology of the images, because I believe that the read-only form and style returns only partial sense the context of this particular category of liturgical furniture. The reading of the various systems of images and the research of their semantic language did not stop the lectio faciliori simplistic, but we tried to go back to the original sources that underlie each of them, which probably over the course of time were not longer perceived as such, but they are still evidence of a figurative tradition unbroken. A significant part of the research has been devoted to the investigation of documents, putting together and rereading uniquely the large amount of documents from Gioacchino Di Marzo (second half of the nineteenth century) onwards have come to light, not having left out when possible integration with new data from unpublished documents or little known. Chapter I is focused on the use of the cross in Sicily during the Norman-Swabian, when there is no documented presence of monumental crosses but only of those small and precious that were used at the same time in processions and then placed at the altar; has analyzed the origin of the cross placed in the context of the altar and its link with the Eucharistic sacrifice and the development of the function to the so-called cross stational, that which preceded the liturgical rituals and paraliturgical the pope and the bishops who were been authorized; they browse the surviving works produced by the workshops of the Royal Palace in Palermo, none of which is now preserved in Sicily, and then the other types ranging from crosses in metal foils to those in enamel production alms. Chapter II deals with the theme of the monumental cross in the center of the church, it analyzes the origin and spread, and then focuses on the few specimens and two fourteenth century who escaped to the degradation of the time, from the Italian import center to those recognized as indigenous production. Also presented is the only specimen of thirteenth-century wooden crucifix to be come down to us, that of the monastery of Rifesi, today in the mother church of Burgio (Agrigento). In Chapter III develops the theme of the Gothic crucifix in relief, which spread during the fourteenth century and is regarded as the birth of devotional crucifix before which pour intentions and hopes of the faithful repented of his sins. Specimens most famous in Sicily, two of the "painful", Palermo and Trapani, and one of the "polite", in Monreale, will be the subject of numerous replicas, that even in the case of the most devoted crucified Palermo will come up in the early twentieth century. Chapter IV deals with the recovery in the fifteenth century the production of painted crosses and characterization of its most distinctive in the original crosses opistografe, presenting the crucifix on the one hand and the Risen other. Here we have tried to give answers, which obviously reflect the views of the writer, on many issues still unresolved about the functions of some of the works or their cultural connotation, trying to argomentarle based on reliable data. Finally, the fifth and final chapter is devoted to the various alternatives to cross painted, ranging from simple solutions, such as the carved crucifix or cross hybrid, with some parts painted and other relief, to more complex ones involving the use of crosses or crucified flanked by images of the two mourners, who have their apex in the great machine of wooden Collesano, 1555. The second part of the text is devoted to the classification of the existing works, starting with the good repertoire of painted crosses and crucifixes published in 1992, integrating them with the works then do not enter, especially in eastern Sicily, and adding the works belonging to the other types analyzed. The results of this investigation were included in a catalog raisonné of any work where there was placement, materials and support measures, provenance, iconography, any markings, date, author. Regarding Section V. of the catalog, namely the one concerning the crucifixes and sculptures of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the classification is to be understood as merely illustrative and not exhaustive absolutely, because, in the absence of a preliminary cataloging, too many are works and too vast territory to be able to assume a reconnaissance sweep.Nel 1992 la pubblicazione di un libro sulle croci dipinte in Sicilia (M. C. Di Natale, Le croci dipinte in Sicilia. L'area Occidentale dal XIV al XVI secolo, Flaccovio editore, Palermo 1992) metteva in evidenza un aspetto della produzione artistica isolana che dal Duecento fino alla metà del Cinquecento aveva tenuto impegnate le botteghe artistiche nell'incessante lavoro di soddisfare le esigenze cultuali e liturgiche di cattedrali, monasteri e parrocchiali, non potendo esistere infatti una chiesa cristiana senza la sua icone della croce (Concilio Niceno II). Dal testo, che prende le mosse comunque dagli studi precedenti soprattutto di Maria Grazia Paolini, che già nel 1959 aveva individuato le peculiarità della produzione siciliana di croci dipinte, si evince chiaramente che mentre nel resto d'Italia questo particolare genere pittorico si era estinto già sul finire del Trecento, in Sicilia esso si perpetua fin ben oltre la metà del XVI secolo, con un continuo rinnovamento del linguaggio figurativo da parte degli artisti ma restando legati alla tradizione medievale della tavola sagomata a croce, ornata da una ricca cornice intagliata che solo in rari casi si è conservata, dove spesso le figure sono costrette a forza entro i contorni serrati. "L'originalità delle croci siciliane a partire dal XV secolo è per altro anche quella di essere dipinte su entrambe le facce invece che soltanto nel recto, come erano gli esemplari romanici e gotici, ad eccezione delle croci astili e processionali, per altro più maneggevoli e di formato ridotto (dalla introduzione di Maurizio Calvesi). Nelle grandi croci stazionali della Sicilia, a differenza delle croci di piccolo formato spesso realizzate a fini devozionali e che prevedono una grande varietà di immagini diverse, l'iconografia si è inoltre consolidata su uno schema rispondente alla sua funzione liturgica e che, tranne in rari casi, rimane a lungo invariato. Esso prevede, nel recto, la figura del Crocifisso al centro, la Vergine e San Giovanni dolenti nei due capicroce ai lati, il Pantokrator ovvero l'Arbor vitae con il nido del Pellicano, emblema cristologico, in alto e la Maddalena ovvero la grotta con il teschio di Adamo in basso; nel verso troviamo invece la figura del Risorto al centro e gli emblemi dei quattro evangelisti nei capi-croce. Tuttavia in quella occasione venivano lasciate irrisolte numerose questioni inerenti soprattutto alcuni degli esemplari presentati che costituiscono ancora capitoli aperti della storia dell'arte medievale e moderna in Sicilia; basta citare per tutti la straordinaria croce della cattedrale di Piazza Armerina, name-piece per l'ancora anonimo maestro che l'ha dipinta. A quasi vent'anni da quella pionieristica pubblicazione è sembrato opportuno allora ritornare sull'argomento per cercare di chiarire i punti rimasti ancora in ombra e allargare il campo di indagine agli altri aspetti inerenti l'esposizione della croce all'interno degli edifici ecclesiastici siciliani e la sua fruizione da parte del clero e dell'assemblea dei fedeli. Si è pensato allora di estendere la ricerca sia ai modelli liturgici precedenti, ossia a partire da quando in Sicilia abbiamo contezza di un uso della croce sistematicamente inquadrabile con certezza, attraverso fonti scritte e iconografiche, e che corrisponde alle attestazioni di epoca normanna e protrarla fino alla metà del XVI secolo, quando le norme, ovvero le consuetudini e le interpretazioni, scaturite dal Concilio di Trento interromperanno la millenaria centralità della croce all'interno dell'aula ecclesiale; sia di includere le altre forme di esposizione della croce, focalizzando l'attenzione di volta in volta sulla diversità del medium, in termini di supporto e di materia utilizzati ma anche del cambiamento che esso provoca nella recezione del messaggio che si vuole trasmettere. I confini cronologici sono segnati da due date precise: nel 1149 viene redatto l'inventario dei beni mobili della Cattedrale Cefalù in cui si evince chiaramente, ed è una delle prime volte, l'uso normanno della croce processionale, che poi veniva staccata dalla sua asta e posta sull'altare, ovvero fissata nei pressi di esso; il 1555 è invece l'anno segnato sul verso dipinto della complessa macchina lignea al centro della navata della chiesa madre di Collesano, che rappresenta l'apogeo per le croci siciliane oltre che un caso unico in Italia di mantenimento di una simile struttura che focalizza tutto lo spazio liturgico. Nella rilettura delle fonti, dei documenti e della storiografia sull'argomento, fra cui si segnala la recente e corposa pubblicazione Manufacere et scolpire in lignamine, curata da Teresa Pugliatti, Salvatore Rizzo e Paolo Russo, dedicata alla scultura in legno siciliana, sono emerse non poche discordanze nell'interpretazione dei dati a nostra disposizione, che dal 1992 ad oggi, grazie a numerosi rinvenimenti documentari, hanno accresciuto la possibilità di avere un quadro più completo, anche se ancora parecchi rimangono i buchi da colmare con dati certi, ma a cui si tentato di dare comunque una risposta, seppure ipotetica. La ricerca si è avviata cercando di mettere a fuoco alcuni punti cardine che costituiscono lo scheletro su cui si è sviluppata tutta l'architettura delle argomentazioni: Le croci dipinte vanno inserite nel più ampio contesto dei Calvari stazionali, di cui esse rappresentano una particolarissima visione sintetica compiuta. I documenti e le fonti iconografiche suggeriscono infatti l'esistenza di una variegata possibilità di soluzioni per l'esposizione della croce: la sola croce dipinta, la croce dipinta e i dolenti rilevati a tutto tondo, la croce dipinta soltanto nel verso e con il Crocifisso scolpito nel recto, il solo Crocifisso scolpito, il gruppo del Calvario composto da tre statue a tutto tondo. ­La collocazione della croce all'interno dell'edificio ecclesiale. Gli studi precedenti si sono soffermati soltanto sull'aspetto verticale, disputando se in origine croci e crocifissi erano appesi sotto l'arco del presbiterio, piantate a terra o, più verosimilmente, poste al di sopra del tramezzo e più frequentemente della trabeazione chiamata nei documenti per l'appunto 'lo trabo' o 'la trabe' del crocifisso. Gli equivoci in questo senso nascono principalmente da una errata interpretazione sulla sistemazione della croce nella Cattedrale normanna di Cefalù. Nel tempio ruggeriano è infatti ancora presente una monumentale croce opistografa, la più grande della Sicilia con i suoi oltre cinque metri di altezza, attribuita da Genevieve Bresc Bautier, prima, e da Maria Andaloro, poi, a Guglielmo da Pesaro, che la dovette eseguire prima del 1468, anno in cui gli viene commissionata un'altra croce dipinta per il duomo di Monreale che il pittore doveva realizzare in conformità a quella già compiuta per Cefalù. Il vescovo Preconio, probabilmente, trasferisce la monumentale croce dipinta sotto la chiave di volta del grande arco che separa la navata dell'assemblea dal transetto riservato al clero, qui infatti la trova appesa un cronist