Bernardo Rossellino, Baptismal Font, 1447

Bernardo Rossellino(Settignano 1409 – Firenze 1464)
Baptismal Font
made in 1447 – white marble;  cm h 118 x 95 (vessel diameter) and cm 140 (basement diameter)
provenance:baptistery of San Giovanni nearby church Collegiata ofS.Andrew (originallocation)

The baptismal fontis located in itsoriginal place, that is thebaptistery of San Giovanni, now becomed a partofMuseumof St Andrew’schurchinEmpoli.

Origins and history
The sculpture isattributed toBernardo Gamberelli, son’s Matteo, well-known asBernardo Rossellino [1](1409–1464).
Itwascommissioned in1447byfamily Giachini,probablyby priest AntonioGiachinison of Giovanni [2],butit should not bemistaken about Giovanni Giachini son of Andrea also nicknamed asMalepa,as erroneouslywritten bymany authors;
Hewas appointedchaplainof baptisteryof San Giovanni, so transformed intothis new featurein1464, whilepreviously it was the church ofSan Giovanni Evangelista.

Description
The wholesculpture has beencreated so very refined, and it deserves to beranked in the decorative plasticofFlorentine Renaissance.
Shaped like a large two-handled amphora, entirely madeof white marble, and it’s resting on a  circle shaped white marble platform.
The bodyof the vessel is carved byelegantlybeans pattern turning roundly its surface.
The top edgeis a circularring embossed by a lot of ovules and arrowsinterspersedbetweenthem; it terminates to the sideson two minutely carved handles as if they had been manufactured by a goldsmith. These handles have beencarvedabove by manyoverlappingscales,retired from nodesarrangedseriallyasa humanspine.
Thehandles culminateintwospirals evolvinginfestoonscovered by fruits and lobedleaves, till wrapping around twocupids,respectivelyarrangedonekneelingandonesitting on the spirals.

Theringinscription
The platformhasamarbletop surface and it made up ofthree distinctcircularcrowns: the outsideis made up elevenwhitemarble slabsshaped ofconcentriccircularsectorsandonone of them there’s a greenmarblecarvedrepresentingthecoat of armsofGiachini, the inner crown is made by white marble lozenges flanked and placed on a green marble background; inthe middle crown there’san inscription: it’s carvedon a white marble backgroundandoverthere’s a written thatreadsclockwisestarting from Giachini’s coat of arms:

Strict transliteration

DNS · ANTONIUS · IOHIS · DEEMPVLO · BTE · MARIE  MAIORIS · PRIOR · ETCA · NONICVS FLORENTINVMCCCCXLVII ·

correct reading 

DNS · ANTONIUS · IOHIS · DEEMPVLO · BTE · MARIE  MAIORIS · PRIOR · ET CANONICVS FLORENTINVM MCCCCXLVII ·

Theattribution
Many experts haveattributedthe sculpture todifferent authors,norI will listsomein chronological order:
Eugene Müntz[3] wouldn’toverreach, but he admiredthe great beauty;
Jacob Burckhardt[4] in1904attributedtoPasquino from Montepulciano;
Odoardo H. Giglioli [5] in1906excludedtheattribution toDonatellobuthefeltcertaintheattributionto hisfollower;
Antonio Paolucci[6] in1985formulatedtheattribution toBernardo Rossellinorecognizinghis stylemarked bya «eloquent classicism»; he alsoconsideredthe existence ofa documentdatedAugust 2, 1447 [7], by whomtheSS.Annuziata’s Company of nearbySanto Stefano’s churchordered toRossellinotwo white marblesculptures(Virginand the Angel), nowlocatedin the samechurch.
The sameattributionis givenbyRosanna Caterina Proto Pisani [8].

Coat of armsofGiachini
It’smade up green marblecarved on thewhite marbleplatform outer ring.
The family came from Empoli, and became florentine citizenshipin1591; sometimestheir surnameis rememberedormentionedas«Giacchini» or «del Becco»[9]. This lastsurnameshould have beenaddedas an extensionto«Giachini»between1604and1609 through somespecialdeliberations.
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Notes andreferences:
[1] Il museo della Collegiata di Sant’Andrea in Empoli, A. Paolucci, Firenze 1985, pag. 101;
[2]Sant’Andrea a Empoli, AA.VV., Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze 1994, pag 78;
[3] Il museo della Collegiata di Sant’Andrea in Empoli, Antonio Paolucci, Firenze 1985, pag. 100;
[4] Der Cicerone, Architektur – Skulptur – Malerei, Jacob Burckhardt , Verlag von E.A. Seemann, Leipzig 1904, pag 187;
[5] Empoli Artistica, Odoardo Hillyer Giglioli, Lumachi Editore, Firenze 1906, pag. 42;
[6] Il museo della Collegiata di Sant’Andrea in Empoli, A. Paolucci, Firenze 1985, pag. 101;
[7] Ibidem, pag. 98;
[8] Museo della Collegiata di Sant’Andrea a Empoli, R. C. Proto Pisani, collana “Piccoli Grandi Musei”, Firenze, Edizioni Polistampa, 2006, pag. 34;
[9] Archivio di Stato di Firenze, Fondo Ceramelli Papiani, Giachini, fascicolo 2329;

Referencebibliography
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Museo della Collegiata di Sant’Andrea a Empoli, R. C. Proto Pisani, collana “Piccoli Grandi Musei”, Firenze, Edizioni Polistampa, 2006;
Empoli, il Valdarno inferiore e la Valdelsa fiorentina, R. C. Proto Pisani, collana “I Luoghi della Fede”, Milano, Mondadori, 1999;
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La Collegiata di Sant’Andrea a Empoli, la cultura romanica, la facciata, il restauro– Galletti, Moretti, Naldi, Edizioni dell’Erba, Fucecchio, 1991;
Chiese, cappelle, e oratori del territorio empolese, W.Siemoni, Editori dell’Acero, S. Croce sull’Arno, 1997;
Il museo della Collegiata di Sant’Andrea in Empoli, A. Paolucci, Firenze 1985;
Empoli, una città e il suo territorio, W. Siemoni e M. Frati, Editori dell’Acero, Santa Croce sull’Arno, 1997;
Empoli: città e territorio. Vedute e mappe dal ‘500 al ‘900, AA.VV., Editori dell’Acero, Santa Croce sull’Arno 1998;
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Guida d’Empoli illustrata,Gennaro Bucchi, Tipografia domenicana, Firenze 1916;
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