Roman Courtyards
Text by Linda Nolan (extracts from Il Libro article)
Photographs by Nicola Brandt
Glimpsed through monumental doorways, the courtyards of Renaissance and Baroque noble palaces in Rome are surprisingly open, light-filled spaces nestled behind imposing facades.
On the ground level, the palace courtyard served a practical function by providing access to stables, storage for heating supplies, and kitchens. It was the hub of the household for day-to-day activities. When guests arrived, depending on their social status, they could be made to wait on one of the built-in benches near the entrance […]
If the doorway and courtyard of the palace were both large enough, carriages could be left in the courtyard and horses attended to by the staff. Nestled inside niches and on the walls of the courtyard, ancient sculptures, inscriptions, and frescoes set the scene for the more formal encounters between guests and hosts. As patrons realised the potential for using art as a means to display social connections and family origins, the collecting and display of ancient sculpture in the courtyards moved from evocative reference to the loss of the grandeur of ancient Rome, to aesthetically pleasing ensembles, to highly conscious placement of objects to evoke the Renaissance topos of discussing art in terms of the paragone (the comparison).
When noble families in Rome collected ancient sculptures during the 14th and 15th centuries, the courtyards of their intimate medieval palaces served as the showplace for their esteemed ancient possessions […]
The 16th-century Palazzo Altemps, one of the seats of the present day Museo Nazionale Romano, evokes early modern displays of ancient sculpture with the colossal sculptures set inside the arches of the ground level portico and the portraits of ancient Roman emperors lining the frescoed upper loggia. Much like the interiors of the palaces, the courtyards were in a constant flux during the early modern period. Depending on the moment, a courtyard could be transformed from an austere entry and parking for carriages, into a striking showplace for fleeting festivities […]
The courtyards of Renaissance and Baroque Roman palaces were functional as well as symbolic spaces. An entry way to accommodate carriages, to greet arriving guests, and to impress or get to know them by means of discussing ancient sculptures. The material culture of ancient Rome, especially fragments and restored ancient sculptures and recycled Egyptian granite columns, figured prominently in the noble palace courtyards. As temporary displays became more fashionable, the courtyards were treated to mobile decorations, dramatically transforming the space. The early modern Roman palaces changed throughout the day and year. The static appearance today of some palace courtyards only hint at the once splendorous, sometimes even verdant appearance, and temporary decorations displayed together with ancient and early modern sculptures and ornament that once filled the spaces.
Roman Courtyards
Text by Linda Nolan (extracts from Il Libro article)
Photographs by Nicola Brandt
Glimpsed through monumental doorways, the courtyards of Renaissance and Baroque noble palaces in Rome are surprisingly open, light-filled spaces nestled behind imposing facades.
On the ground level, the palace courtyard served a practical function by providing access to stables, storage for heating supplies, and kitchens. It was the hub of the household for day-to-day activities. When guests arrived, depending on their social status, they could be made to wait on one of the built-in benches near the entrance […]
If the doorway and courtyard of the palace were both large enough, carriages could be left in the courtyard and horses attended to by the staff. Nestled inside niches and on the walls of the courtyard, ancient sculptures, inscriptions, and frescoes set the scene for the more formal encounters between guests and hosts. As patrons realised the potential for using art as a means to display social connections and family origins, the collecting and display of ancient sculpture in the courtyards moved from evocative reference to the loss of the grandeur of ancient Rome, to aesthetically pleasing ensembles, to highly conscious placement of objects to evoke the Renaissance topos of discussing art in terms of the paragone (the comparison).
When noble families in Rome collected ancient sculptures during the 14th and 15th centuries, the courtyards of their intimate medieval palaces served as the showplace for their esteemed ancient possessions […]
The 16th-century Palazzo Altemps, one of the seats of the present day Museo Nazionale Romano, evokes early modern displays of ancient sculpture with the colossal sculptures set inside the arches of the ground level portico and the portraits of ancient Roman emperors lining the frescoed upper loggia. Much like the interiors of the palaces, the courtyards were in a constant flux during the early modern period. Depending on the moment, a courtyard could be transformed from an austere entry and parking for carriages, into a striking showplace for fleeting festivities […]
The courtyards of Renaissance and Baroque Roman palaces were functional as well as symbolic spaces. An entry way to accommodate carriages, to greet arriving guests, and to impress or get to know them by means of discussing ancient sculptures. The material culture of ancient Rome, especially fragments and restored ancient sculptures and recycled Egyptian granite columns, figured prominently in the noble palace courtyards. As temporary displays became more fashionable, the courtyards were treated to mobile decorations, dramatically transforming the space. The early modern Roman palaces changed throughout the day and year. The static appearance today of some palace courtyards only hint at the once splendorous, sometimes even verdant appearance, and temporary decorations displayed together with ancient and early modern sculptures and ornament that once filled the spaces.