Lupo di Francesco, who executed the entire pulpit, was a sculptor and architect from Pisa active between the first and second third of the fourteenth century, and is known for having commenced his artistic career by collaborating with Giovanni Pisano and Tino di Camaino. In 1315 the artist replaced Tino di Camaino as supervisor of the work to build the Pisa Cathedral, and ten years later, in 1325, he was mentioned in a document as the city’s leading architect.

 

The paternity of the pulpit of San Michele in Borgo long remained unknown and its author was referred to generically as an “anonymous master of the first half of the fourteenth century”. The attribution of the sculptural ensemble to Lupo di Francesco was first proposed in 1933 by Mario Salmi, who noted that the “trite, deep and angular folds” of the reliefs showed stylistic and formal parallels with the tomb of St Eulalia, executed by the pisan sculptor in 1327 for the Cathedral in Barcelona.

 

Column-bearing lions are common in romanesque architecture, not only in pulpits but also the prothyra at church entrances. In fact, in medieval iconography the lion holding a lamb between its paws, a sign of supremacy yet also of protection, held an array of symbolic meanings. In particular, the animal was a symbol of Fortitude and thus as a guardian and protector of sacred space, with an apotropaic function. Another symbolic meaning frequently ascribed to the lion, based also on several passages from the Holy Scripture, was that of an allegory of Christ the Judge and defender of the faithfuls. Moreover, the figure of the lion was considered the symbol of the dual nature of Christ, human and divine, that seems to be alluded to by the coexistence of strength and fragility expressed by the animal’s physical appearance: fearsome because of its majestic mane but tame in its hindquarters, with their perfectly smooth fur.

 

Lupo di Francesco’s column-bearing lions have famous precedents in the pulpits executed by Nicola Pisano for the Siena Cathedral and Pisa Baptistery, and those of Giovanni Pisano for the Church of Sant’Andrea in Pistoia and the Pisa Cathedral.

 

 

 

Bibliography:

 

M. G. Chiappori,  Leone, in Enciclopedia dell’Arte Medievale, Treccani, Roma, 1995.

 

N. de Dalmases, Lupo di Francesco, in Enciclopedia dell’Arte Medievale, Treccani, Roma, 1995.

 

M. Salmi, Un monumento della scultura pisana a Barcellona, in Miscellanea di storia dell’arte in onore di Igino Benvenuto Supino,  Leo S. Olschki, Firenze, 1933, pp. 125–139.

 

 

 

 

Why a 3D reconstruction?

 

The 3D reconstruction of this sculpture could offer the Museum new opportunities, not only on a strictly scientific and research level, but also in terms of communication for greater enjoyment of its assets among various groups of visitors.

 

The 3D model, which provides a digital copy of the original sculpture, could be used as a tool to help monitor conservation of the work in the museum or to plan restoration. For future restoration, the model could also be used to document the condition of the sculpture before commencing work on it.

 

Above all, however, the 3D reconstruction could be part of the communication strategy that the Museo di San Matteo has recently undertaken for a new approach to present parts of its collection to the public. In recent years, the Museum has enhanced its means of communication, juxtaposing traditional panels and printed matter with multimedia instruments (such as a touchscreen on Simone Martini’s famous polyptych), with the aim of making its collection of medieval art more accessible to visitors, as it is highly significant but difficult to understand.

For example, the digital model of this sculpture could be uploaded online to offer “remote audiences” a virtual view of the sculpture on the Internet, but it could also be presented at the museum on touchscreens available to visitors for interactive navigation. Since the work is a fragment from a dismembered sculptural complex, it would be interesting to set up the 3D acquisition of all the parts of the pulpit of San Michele in Borgo now at the Museum, in order to offer a virtual reconstruction of the entire original work.