GIOVAN BATTISTA GAULLI NAMED “BACICCIA”: THE GLORY OF THE MYSTIC LAMB
After having a quick look inside the Jesus churchit is worthwhile to return more calmly to enjoy Baciccia’s masterpieces.
First of all we must acknowledge the Jesuits who had the courage and the intuition of entrusting to a single artist moreover very young, like our beloved Giovan Battista, the impressive pictorial cycle formed by the apsidal basin, the triumphal arch, the spandrels, the dome, the vault of the nave and finally also the vault of the chapel of Sant'Ignazio.
Let's begin our visit from the Glory of the Mystical Lamb, frescoed by Baciccia in the apsidal basin, which from below appears like that.
The Opus, let us use the capital O, is inspired by the Book of the Apocalypse, but in place of God Almighty (Omnipotent) Baciccia focuses his narration on Christ, represented as the sacrificial Lamb:
“I saw standing in the midst of the throne surrounded by the four living beings and the old men a Lamb, as immolated”.
“I saw in the right hand of Him who was seated on the throne a scroll-shaped book, written on the inside and on the outside, sealed with seven seals”.
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“When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, silence fell in the sky for about half an hour. I saw seven trumpets given to the seven angels standing before God”.
“Then came another angel and stood at the altar, holding a gold censer. He was given many perfumes to offer them together with the prayers of all the saints burning them on the golden altar, placed before the throne. From the hand of the angel the smoke of the perfumes ascended before God, together with the prayers of the saints”.
“The twenty-four old men prostrated themselves before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden cups full of perfumes, which are the prayers of the saints”.
“After this, there appeared an immense multitude, which no one could count, of every nation, race, people and language”.
PHOTO: LAURA LERARIO
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