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Pinturas astrológicas en el Palacio Schifanoia

Translation: Jon Alkorta Martiartu, PhD (EHU/UPV)

Astrological paintings at Palazzo Schifanoia

Divination in the heart of Ferrara

One of the proofs of the importance of the Tarot of Mantegna in its time is the influence of this series of engravings in the creation of the pictorial cycle of the Palazzo Schifanoia in Ferrara. Aby Warburg, the originator of the iconological method, who was able to see, beyond the formal similarities, the presence of the Olympian gods depicted in the deck of Mantegna and which appear in the so-called ‘Room of the Months’, of strong astrological component, puts us on this clue.

Let’s take a look at history first. At the court of the d’Este family, governors of Ferrara, magic and divination were very present. Borso d’Este, who had this room painted, had a whole team of advisors who helped him make his decisions. Thus, we have Petro Bono Avogaro, court astrologer, who was engaged in drawing up annual omens; Carlo da Sangiorgio, geomancer, for consultation in decision-making; and lastly, Pelligrini Prisciano, librarian and historian. The latter, Warburg points out, was the real ideologist behind the astrological room. The decorations were made by the painter Francesco del Cossa.

This room originally consisted of twelve vertical panels, each of which was associated with the gods and the signs of the Zodiac. Unfortunately, only seven of them have survived. The structure is similar on each wall, as they are each divided horizontally into three equal parts. The upper part depicts the lives and wanderings of the classical gods, with a dominant god and its corresponding sign of the Zodiac: we have Pallas and Aries in March, Venus and Taurus in April, Apollo and Gemini in May, Mercury and Cancer in June, Jupiter-Cybele and Leo in July, Ceres and Virgo in August and finally Vulcan and Libra in September.

In the middle section the corresponding zodiacal sign is represented and, below it, the three deans into which the astrological tradition divides each of them. Here we enter a territory that has given rise to many doubts. There is no clear source that tells us about the deans as they are represented in the Palazzo Schifanoia. There are various theories that tell us that these deans could follow a reverse direction to that of the signs of the horoscope, which would have made their interpretation difficult. Of course, this element speaks of great erudition on the part of the mind behind the room’s design, for not only must he have had an in-depth knowledge of classical mythology and astrology, but he must have equally had access to as yet unidentified sources in order to draw up the programme of the three deans of each sign.

Finally, in the lower part, Prince Borso d’Este had the triumphs and deeds of his reign at the head of Ferrara represented.

In addition to this connection with the Tarot of Mantegna proposed by Aby Warburg, the bibliographical notes tell us of the existence of other tarot decks in Ferrara, even before the Visconti tarots, which are the oldest preserved. The surviving ones from Ferrara are more recent, but they are also an example of the tarot of the origins.

Dr. Pedro Ortega

Ingeniero Industrial, Historiador del Arte, Máster en Edición Digital y Doctor en Estética. Es Gestor Cultural de Patrimonio Mundial del Ayuntamiento de Madrid. Edita la revista académica Herejía y Belleza y dirige el sello académico Ediciones Aulós. Es autor en Penguin Random House y ha escrito artículos para El Imparcial, Jot Down e Historia National Geographic, entre otros medios. Pedro Ortega PhD Industrial Engineer, Art Historian, with a M.A. in Digital Publishing and a PhD in Aesthetics. He is the cultural manager at the World Heritage Service of the Madrid City Council. He is a published author at Penguin Random House and has written articles for El Imparcial, Jot Down and Historia National Geographic, among others. Pedro Ortega doktorea Industria Ingeniaria, Artearen Historialaria, Edizio Digitaleko Master-duna eta Estetikan Doktorea. Kultur kudeatzailea da Madrilgo Udaleko Munduko Ondare Zerbitzuan. Penguin Random House-ko idazlea da eta artikuluak idatzi ditu El Imparcial, Jot Down eta Historia National Geographic-entzat, besteak beste.

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OpenEdition le sugiere que cite este post de la siguiente manera:
Dr. Pedro Ortega (5 de abril de 2024). Pinturas astrológicas en el Palacio Schifanoia. El blog de Tartalo. Recuperado 19 de marzo de 2025 de https://doi.org/10.58079/w66z


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