Bartolommeo Berrecci

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bartolommeo Berrecci, Bartolomeo Berecci (born 1480 in Pontassieve by Florence, died 1537 in Kraków), Polish-Italian architect and sculptor of the Renaissance, who worked for the Polish King Zygmunt I Stary.

Bartolommeo Berrecci (1480 Florence, Italy - 1537 Kraków, Poland) was a Polish renaissance architect, who together with Benedykt from Sandomierz rebuilt the Wawel Royal Castle in Kraków under the rule of Sigismund I of Poland after it burnt down in 1499.

His teacher in FLorence was probably Andrea Ferrucci. He came to Poland in 1516 by invitation of the bishop Jan Łaski; he assumed the workshop of Francesco Florentino, who died 1516, in Kraków together with the there working artists (Bernardino di Gianotis, Giovanni Cini from Sieny, Mikołaj Castiglione, five members of the Soli family). He worked in Kraków, Niepołomice, Poznań, Tarnów. He got very rich in Poland. He was the owner of some houses in Kraków and a brickyard. He was murdered by another jealous Italian artist in Kraków and was buried in the Bożego Ciała Church in Kazimierz by Kraków.

The most important work of Berrecci is the chapel of the last Jagiellonians, the Sigismund Chapel for Zygmunt I Stary at the Wawel (1517-1533 in Kraków; It is considered to be the most beautiful piece of Italian Renaissance architecture outside of Italy. Some years later Santi Gucci built the sarcofags of Zygmunt II August - the son of Zygmunt I Stary and Anna Jagiellonka - the daughter of Zygmunt I Stary inside the chapel. Other works:

rebuilding the Wawel
extension of the Niepołomice Castle
baldachim for the sarcofag of Władysław II Jagiełło
sarcofag for the bishops Jan Konarski (died 1525) and Piotr Tomicki (died 1535) in the Wawel Cathedral
sarcofags of Barbary z Tęczyńskich Tarnowskiej and the sarcofag of the three Jans in the Cathedral in Tarnów.