| Giorgio da Sebenico | |
|---|---|
A modern sculpture of the artist created by Ivan Meštrović, placed in front of Cathedral of St. James in Šibenik |
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| Born | circa 1410 Zara, Republic of Venice (now Zadar, Croatia) |
| Died | 10 November 1475 Sebenico, Republic of Venice (now Šibenik, Croatia) |
| Field | stone carving |
Giorgio da Sebenico (Croatian: Juraj Dalmatinac; c. 1410–1475) was a medieval sculptor and architect from Dalmatia, who worked mainly in Sebenico (Šibenik), at the time part of the Republic of Venice, and in the city of Ancona, then part of the Papal States.
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Giorgio da Sebenico was probably born in the Dalmatian city of Zara (modern Zadar, Croatia), which was part of the Republic of Venice.[1]
He was educated as sculptor in Venice,[2][3] in the workshop of Giovanni and Bartolomeo Buon. He helped them creating the decorations on the Porta della Carta of the Doge's Palace.[3] He married Elisabetta Da Monte, who brought him as her dowry some houses in Venice.
After his engagement at Šibenik in 1441 he made that city his home, and invested his savings with two partners in a grocery business and in a shop there. He built himself a house close to the cathedral on which his fame as an architect principally rests.
He probably died in Šibenik the 10th of November 1475.[4]
His work represents the golden age of Dalmatian medieval art.[2] He was one of main interpreter of the Adriatic Renaissance, a tendency widespread during the late 15th century in Venice, Dalmatia and in some locations of the Italian Adriatic Coast, such as Ancona. This tendency of Renaissance was characterised by the rediscovery of the Classical art but in continuity with Gothic. Particularly Giorgio da Sebenico's carvings belong to the Late Gothic style, but the style of his architecture and sculptures is early Renaissance.[3]
His most beautiful achievement is the the Cathedral of St. James in Šibenik (probably the best example of Renaissance architecture in Dalmatia), for which he was a chief architect from 1441 to 1473.[3] The entire building was built solely of limestone from Istria, with no wood or bricks used in the structure. The building presents all along the perimeter an hedge composed of 72 stone-carved heads. On top of this hedge, and precisely on the North side, Giorgio added two angels; at the base of this work the artist engraved his signature. The task before him making the construction known worldwide was to build the choir, of which foundations had not been laid, to raise and roof the nave which was only completed to the top of the aisle vaults, and to covering the crossing by a lantern or cupola. Unfortuately lack of funding and a fire delayed the achievement of the construction.[5] From July 1, 1477 the work on the Cathedral of St. James was continued by an architect from Tuscany, Niccolò di Giovanni Fiorentino.
In Split he built several palaces and in 1448 he carved a stone altar in the Cathedral of St. Duje in Split.[3] In Dubrovnik he helped repairing the Duke's palace and helped building the Minčeta fortress. He also made an urban plan for Pag.[3] He was at the same time sculptor, architect and urban planner, showing in this his belonging to the cultural climate and orientation of Renaissance.
In Italy, he worked in Ancona where he built the Loggia dei Mercanti, the portal of San Francesco alle Scale and the portal of Sant'Agostino[3]
Comparative analysis of Giorgio's works show that during his career Renaissance style gradually replaced the Gothic, in line with the European tendency during the 15th century for Gothic to become more elaborate sophisticated, giving birth to the Late Gothic style known in Venice as Gotico Fiorito and Flamboyant in France.
His name and origin has been the source of some controversy. On the relief by the north apse of Cathedral of St.James the artist signed in Latin: "hoc opus cuvarum fecit magister Georgius Mathaei Dalmaticus",[6][7] and on a contract from 1441 he signed: "Georgius lapicida quondam Mathei de Jadra Civis Sibenicenis" (trans. "Georgius sculptor son of Matheus from Zadar citizen of Šibenik").[7] Those are only known signatures of the artist.
References to the artist are most common under the name Giorgio da Sebenico,[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][2][16] and as Giorgio Orsini,[8][14][2][16][17][18][19][20][21] particularly in Italian sources.[22][23][24] There are also references to him as Giorgio Dalmatico,[22] or as George the Dalmatian.[25] He is sometimes listed among Croatian sculptors in English-language sources.[25] In Croatia, he is known under the Croatian name Juraj Matejev Dalmatinac (lit. "George of Matthias Dalmatian"). [26][15]
The family name "Orsini" was never used by the artist and it was adopted by his son, after the death of his father.[6][7][27][28]
Giorgio seems to have been born at Zara. His father, Matteo, was a scion of the ancient and princely Roman house of Orsini; but the branch to which he belonged had sunk in the world, and been reduced to support itself by manual arts inconsistent with the idea of nobility as then understood, and the family name had been allowed to fall into disuse [...] His family descent from the Orsini was formally recognized in 1540 in the person of his grandson Giacomo, an advocate [...] that Giorgio was not a native of Sebenico is proved by the description of him in several 'Atti' of 1441-1450; e.g. Magister Giorgius lapicida quondam Matthaei di Jadra, habitator Venetiarum ad praesens existens Sibenic