Purification of the Virgin
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Authors
Bartolomeo Termine with modifications by Pietro Giuseppe Auregio
Date
Type
Image
Language
Keyword
Purification , Presentation , Virgin Mary , Jesus , High Priest , Temple
Alternative Title
Abstract
The sculptures inside this chapel were made by Bartolomeo Termine (dates unknown) in 1666. They were also modified, or restored, by his nephew or grandson Pietro Giuseppe Auregio (1667 - 1740) in 1725. It is possible that the terracotta sculptures had already suffered a great deal of damage by the time of Auregio's intervention, since this chapel is known to be particularly humid. The chapel continues to suffer from the dampness of its environment. The thick layer of overpaint applied to the sculptures in the restoration of 1969 - 1970 is beginning to flake off in places. One of the altar boys had lost his hands, but most of the figures remain whole. The terracotta tiles on the floor inside the chapel absorb water from the damp ground outside, which causes them to crack and crumble. The figure of the seated man begging on the steps has more direct contact with the floor than the other sculptures and is also beginning to show signs of serious damage. Stylistic comparisons to figures in the other chapels Auregio decorated at Oropa, such as The Presentation of the Virgin (Chapel 3) and The Nativity (Chapel 8), suggests that Auregio replaced the central figures of Mary, Jesus, and the High Priest. He may also have added some of the unidentified figures arranged on the steps. It is possible that the only sculptures by Termine that remain are the bust of God the Father and the host of angels that are attached to the wall above the altar. In the foreground, a young page boy with contemporary-style clothing and a young woman wearing a roman-style tunic and palla are depicted as racial caricatures with stereotypically dark skin. It is possible that this characterization is not original, since the sculptural treatment of these figures is consistent with the rest of the group, who are shown with light skin and hair. The chapel was planned to illustrate The Flight into Egypt, but by the time Termine became involved in the mid 1660s the theme had already been changed to The Purification of the Virgin. The composition here is similar to chapels of Jesus's Presentation at the Temple at many other Sacri Monti, especially Varese and Ossuccio, because they represent the same narrative. Forty days after Jesus' birth the Holy Family travelled to Jerusalem to dedicate him at the Temple and make the animal sacrifices required by Jewish Law. This story is recorded in only one gospel (Luke 2: 22 - 38), but that text refers to specific commandments from the Torah that the family was fulfilling (e.g. Exodus 13: 2 & Leviticus 12: 1 - 8). The frescoes were finished in 1664 and are attributed to Giuliano Genta Vimercato (c. 1635 - 1705). Construction work continued from sometime before 1659 until 1664. It was commissioned by the communities of Vigliano (Biellese) and Valdengo, which are both a short distance east of Biella. / The Sacro Monte at Oropa is part of a larger devotional complex dedicated to an image of the Black Madonna that has been venerated on this site since 1295. This sculpture is believed to be one of three dark-skinned and miraculous images of the Virgin Mary that Saint Eusebius brought back from the Holy Land in the Fourth Century. The other two figures are located in the Sanctuary at Crea, another Sacro Monte, and the Cathedral of Cagliari in Sardinia, where Eusebius was born. Black Madonnas were common throughout western Europe during the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period. Modern Art Historians generally agree that the images darkened over time due to the soot released by nearby candles. Many of the sculptures have been repainted with light skin in recent years, including the examples at Crea and Varese. Unlike any of the other Sacri Monti Oropa was cared for by secular clergy throughout its entire history. The plans for a Sacro Monte to accompany the sanctuary date to 1620, the year that the new church building was finished, the statue of the Virgin was ceremonially crowned for the first time, and Duke Charles Emanuel I of Savoy declared himself the official protector of Oropa. The house of Savoy continued to fund and visit the elaborate sanctuary complex until the early twentieth century, even as they served as the Kings of Italy. The Sacro Monte, however, was built by local citizens, initiatives, and parishes. Only twelve of the twenty-eight chapels that were planned to illustrate the life of the Virgin Mary were ever completed. Primary documents detailing the Sacro Monte's construction are somewhat scarce compared to the records available at the other sites.
Description
Sacro Monte, Oropa
Citation
Franco Caresio, I Sacri Monti del Piemonte (Turin: Editurist, 1989), 200 - 219; Federico Fontana and Paolo Sorrenti, Oropa Sacro Monte (Biella: Valsesia Editrice, 1984), 161; Guido Gentile, Sacri Monti (Torino: Einaudi, 2019), 327 - 338; Santino Langé, Sacri Monti Piemontsi e Lombardi (Milano: Tamburini Editore, 1967), 37 - 40; Paolo Strobino, Guida alle Cappelle del Sacro Monte di Oropa (Biella, ATL Biella, 2000), 40 - 41; Geoffrey Symcox, Jerusalem in the Alps: The Sacro Monte of Varallo and the Sanctuaries of North-Western Italy (Turnhout: Brepolis, 2019), 222 - 229; Mario Trompetto, Storia del Santuario di Oropa (Milan: Arti Grafiche Ricordi, 1967), 81; Luigi Zanzi and Paolo Zanzi Eds., Atlante dei Sacri Monti prealpini (Milan: Skira, 2002), 91 - 93.