Gothic Sculpture

Nichola Pisano was a Gothic period sculptor but could likely have been categorized as an Early Renaissance artist, since Nichola Pisano’s work demonstrated an interest in naturalism and classical studies. As Giotto may be considered the father of Renaissance painting, Nichola Pisano is his sculptural equivalent. Nichola Pisano may have come from southern Italy since records have him documented as Nichola of Apulia. His interest in classical art may have started working in the court of Frederick II where there was an emphasis on classical studies. Pisa also contained or imported many classical sculptures, so there was an abundance of inspiration surrounding the artist. Pisano was both fascinated and inspired by these ancient sculptures, he studied them, and included copies in his work. It would be this classical roman sculpture infused with a new naturalism that would blaze a trail for the sculptors who followed him, including his son, Giovanni.

Nichola Pisano’s first attributed work was his pulpit in Pisa. This work garnered Nichola’s fame, and he received a commission to create another pulpit for Siena’s Duomo, pictured as the large image of this web page. Like the pulpit in Siena, the Pisa pulpit is considered a masterpiece. The pulpit is designed as a hexagon and features five relief panels concerning the life of Christ. The scenes are chronological, with the right side of the pulpit’s staircase as the starting point. The narrative panels feature The Nativity (and Annunciation), The Adoration of the Magi, The Presentation in the Temple, The Crucifixion, and finally, The Last Judgment. The chronological order of the sculptures might imply that the theme of this pulpit is simply the life of Christ but there is a deeper interpretation presented below.

The Nativity is the first scene in the series. In this panel, the Virgin Mary is in a reclined position, a pose that is likely based on classical figures. Below on a smaller scale, two women wash Jesus while Joseph looks on. Above and behind the Virgin’s right, is a scene of the Annunciation. To her left, the shepherds visit Jesus. Three scenes are unfolding around Mary. The infant Jesus, as well as Mary, appear twice in these scenes. Multiple narratives within one panel is a crucial detail to remember for interpreting some of the other panels.

The Adoration of the Magi is the next panel and features the three kings presenting a gift to Christ, who is held by an enthroned Virgin Mary. Joseph and an Angel observe from the background.  In this composition, Pisano shows his interest in, and talent towards carving animals, this is demonstrated by the interesting pose and delicate treatment of the horses. 

The Presentation in the Temple, third in the series, is convincingly argued to be the most important by Creighton E. Gilbert in Artibus et Historiae. The Presentation as a significant narrative sculptural element only exists in one other place at this point in art history, over the door of the West Portal at Chartres. This scene features Christ presented in the temple for Mary’s ritual cleansing ceremony. The central scene features Mary with Christ being held by Simeon, who prophesized Christ’s future, while Anna cries out in the background, part of a gallery of onlookers. Joseph is to the far left holding two pigeons, which were necessary for the ceremony. To the right, the bearded figure was assumed to be the high priest of the ceremony, but Gilbert argues it could be Simeon later in life. A small child is holding his arm; a Dionysiac vase influenced the figure of the older man.  The same figure appears in Giotto’s Arena Fresco Cycle. This scene is likely an interpretation of “the old man carried the boy, and thus too, the boy guided the old man.” Like the Nativity, this may be a separate narrative, featuring an older Simeon. Gilbert argues this panel the focal center of the pulpit.

The Crucifixion follows the Presentation. There are many Gothic visual and symbolic features to note in this piece. The crucifix is an old wooden tree, roughly carved into a cross shape, not the squared, modeled, version that develops in Renaissance art. There are angels in the background who are separating the church and the synagogue. The Christian church moved forward, and the Synagogue pushed off-frame. This symbolism is less popular after this era. We also find a swooning Virgin Mary in the foreground, another popular medieval narrative that was used less frequently in later periods. Pisano, while innovating with his renewed interest in naturalism and classical art, still includes traditional and contemporary Gothic themes in his work.

The Last Judgement panel finishes the series. Unfortunately, it is very damaged, with many parts broken off over time. One of the interesting aspects of this piece is the asymmetry of the composition. Christ typically is centered in most Last Judgments; Pisano positioned Christ enthroned slightly to the right. To Christ’s right the apostles sit to one side like a jury. Saved souls are helped into heaven by angels or pushed down toward Satan enthroned on a lion. Interestingly, lions devouring animals serve as the base of many of the columns of this pulpit. They could represent evil devouring the soul. There is more room given to the protected souls in this narrative, rather than the damned. Probably the most compelling aspects are the numerous classical nude figures, notably the torsos of the group found at the bottom of the composition. Pisano studied and emulated Roman art, and it is especially evident in this piece.

The remaining sculptural forms on the spandrels, feature the four Evangelists, Prophets, and King Solomon and David. There are also figures on each corner of the pulpit; the identity of the characters is speculative, and multiple theories exist as to what they represent. One popular opinion is that the figures represent the virtues, but this theory requires having to stretch the interpretation for a few sculptures to make the theory fit. The argument presented by Gilbert is that the figures represent Hannah and Samuel, Judah, Poverty, Prudence, John the Baptist, and the Angel of the Testament. The figure of Judah (or Fortitude depending on the interpretation) features a muscular, nude male in a contrapposto pose, likely modeled after classical sculptures such as the Diadoumenos, or images of Hercules. Unfortunately, this document is not going to present Gilbert’s entire well-researched theory. But, according to Gilbert, the corner sculptures all relate to the spandrels, which likewise refer to the narrative panels. The Pulpit as the whole is one narrative, and the figures and spandrels are the precursors of the New Testament panels above. They relate most directly to the story of the Presentation which was intended as the central panel (it faces the Baptistry portal).  Nichola likely developed this narrative through reading two very popular commentaries of his time, The Golden Legend, a handbook of divine offices and Biblia Pauperum.

Barasch, Moshe. “A Silenus Surviving in Nicola Pisano.” The Art Bulletin, vol. 58, no. 1, 1976, pp. 13–18. JSTOR,
www.jstor.org/stable/3049460

Gilbert, Creighton E. “The Pisa Baptistery Pulpit Addresses Its Public.” Artibus Et Historiae, vol. 21, no. 41, 2000, pp. 9–30. JSTOR,
www.jstor.org/stable/1483633

“Nicola Pisano, Pulpit, Pisa Baptistery; and Giovanni Pisano, Slaughter of the Innocents, Pulpit, Sant'Andrea Church, Pistoia (Video).” Khan Academy, Khan Academy,
Kahn Academy Nichola Pisano

Stokstad, Marilyn, “Medieval Art” Second Edition, Routledge, 2018, Print

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