Full title | The Story of Griselda, Part I: Marriage |
---|---|
Artist | Master of the Story of Griselda |
Artist dates | active about 1490 - 1500 |
Series | Spalliera Panels with the Story of Patient Griselda |
Date made | about 1494 |
Medium and support | Oil with some tempera on wood |
Dimensions | 61.6 x 154.3 cm |
Acquisition credit | Bought, 1874 |
Inventory number | NG912 |
Location | Not on display |
Collection | Main Collection |
This panel, the first of a series of three in the National Gallery’s collection, shows part of the story of Griselda, a young peasant woman. We see her meet and then marry the Marquis Gualtieri di Saluzzo, who would go on to put her through a series of tests. Her loyalty throughout the ordeal earned her fame and respect, and she became a model of wifely virtue.
At the left, Griselda, a pot on her head, is on her way to fetch water from the well. The Marquis, riding an elegant white horse, sees her and falls in love instantly. To the right, we see Griselda stripped naked, the Marquis handing her new clothes to wear for their wedding. In the centre, the two are married in front of a structure that looks like a triumphal Roman arch, topped with horses and male figures; Griselda is dressed in expensive gold-woven fabrics that match those of the Marquis.
This panel, the first of a series of three, is based on the story of a young peasant woman called Griselda, as told in The Decameron. Griselda’s rich husband put her through a series of tests, and her loyalty throughout the ordeal earned her fame and respect – she became a model of wifely virtue. The paintings were probably made to celebrate two marriages in the Spanocchi family, which took place in January 1494.
Here we see Griselda meet the Marquis Gualtieri di Saluzzo for the first time, as well as the events leading up to their marriage. The story begins at the left of the panel, with Griselda on her way to fetch water from the well, a pot on her head. She catches the eye of the Marquis, who is out hunting with an entourage of courtiers; the hills above are crowded with horses and dogs following the scent of the prey. Transfixed, the Marquis leans forward on his elegant white horse to take a better look at Griselda, and falls in love immediately.
The craggy hill that formed the backdrop to their first meeting is mirrored on the right by a peach-coloured house, which belongs to Griselda’s father. He hurries down the steps as the Marquis approaches to ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage. The next scene is less conventional: Griselda has been stripped naked. Humiliated, she covers her white skin with her arms, in the pose of classical sculptures of the goddess Venus known as the Venus Pudica or ‘Venus ashamed’. The Marquis hands her new clothes to wear for their wedding. In the centre, the two are married in front of a structure that looks like a triumphal Roman arch, topped with horses and male figures. Griselda is dressed in expensive gold-woven fabrics that match those of the Marquis.
Accounts of the Spanocchi family wedding feast describe a huge temporary arch which was constructed especially for the occasion and, like the one in the picture, it was decorated with statues of famous warriors. The picture contains other details intended to encourage close examination and to entertain the noble patrons. For example, two lean greyhounds pause to watch Griselda’s humiliation as she tries to cover herself up, and some of the horses' harnesses are decorated with patterns in real gold.
The painter has planned every detail of the composition carefully, drawing almost all elements before he began to paint. Infrared reflectography shows that even the horses and dogs on the hillside in the upper left were drawn directly onto the panel, the background painted around them before they were filled in at a later stage.
Download a low-resolution copy of this image for personal use.
License and download a high-resolution image for reproductions up to A3 size from the National Gallery Picture Library.
License imageThis image is licensed for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons agreement.
Examples of non-commercial use are:
- Research, private study, or for internal circulation within an educational organisation (such as a school, college or university)
- Non-profit publications, personal websites, blogs, and social media
The image file is 800 pixels on the longest side.
As a charity, we depend upon the generosity of individuals to ensure the collection continues to engage and inspire. Help keep us free by making a donation today.
You must agree to the Creative Commons terms and conditions to download this image.
The Story of Griselda, Part I: Marriage
Spalliera Panels with the Story of Patient Griselda
These three long panels illustrate the story of a young peasant woman, Griselda, as told in The Decameron, a fourteenth-century collection of novellas by the Italian author Boccaccio. They were likely destined to decorate the chambers (or camera) of a newly-wed couple, since the tale celebrates a woman’s loyalty and marital fidelity, against the odds.
It is very likely that these panels were commissioned at the time of the marriages of two brothers of the noble Sienese Spannocchi family, which took place in January 1494. Their father, Ambrogio, was the papal banker to Pius II Piccolomini, also from Siena.
Our panels have been connected with two others of a similar shape and size at Longleat House, Wiltshire, which depict ancient leaders Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. They are attributed to the workshop of the Florentine painters Domenico and Davide Ghirlandaio. The picture of Alexander the Great included the Spanocchi coat of arms.
These three long panels tell the story of a young peasant women called Griselda, which was taken from The Decameron, a fourteenth-century collection of novellas by Italian author Boccaccio. Her beauty caught the eye of a local nobleman, the Marquis Gualtieri di Saluzzo. After they married he put her through a series of emotional ordeals, but her steadfastness and loyalty to him throughout earned her his renewed affection, as well as the nickname, ‘patient Griselda’.
The three paintings were likely made to decorate the chamber (or camera) of a newly-wed couple, since the tale celebrates a woman’s loyalty and marital fidelity, against the odds. Furthermore, they are the size and shape of panels known as spalliere, which were inset into the walls at about shoulder height (spalliera is Italian for shoulder). Vertical channels carved into the reverse of all three panels provided space for battens (narrow strips of wood) which would have secured them in place on the wall.
It’s very likely that they were commissioned at the time of the marriages of two brothers of the noble Sienese Spannocchi family. Their father, Ambrogio, was the papal banker to Pius II Piccolomini, also from Siena. Antonio married a Sienese woman called Alessandra Placidi, while his brother Giulio married Giovanna Mellini, from Rome. Accounts of the wedding celebrations, which took place in January 1494, record that it was a lavish affair: there was a performance of another of Boccaccio’s stories, and a large temporary structure resembling a Roman triumphal arch was built for the occasion.
Our panels have been connected with two others of a similar shape and size at Longleat House, Wiltshire; like ours, they were also once owned by the nineteenth-century collector, Alexander Barker. They depict ancient heroes Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, and have been attributed to the workshop of the Florentine artists, Domenico and Davide Ghirlandaio. Vasari, the sixteenth-century biographer of many artists, writes that Domenico, along with Bastiano Mainardi, decorated a room at the Spanocchi Palace with lots of stories inhabited by tiny figures. It seems likely that he was referring to the Longleat pictures, to which both Davide and Bastiano definitely contributed. The subjects, Alexander and Julius Caesar, might relate to Alessandra and Giulio, two of the newly-weds.
The picture of Alexander the Great included the Spanocchi coat of arms, and some of the figures in it wear exactly the same livery (uniform) as the servants in our panels, giving another reasons to connect our panels with those at Longleat, and both to the commission mentioned by Vasari. Despite the wealth of the Spanocchi and the obvious importance of the commission, we do not know the identity of their painter – these panels have given him his name.



More paintings by Master of the Story of Griselda

