Exhibition Highlights
Fireplace with the arms of the Boni family of Florence
About 1458 Florence
Pietra serena
The fireplace was a key feature in both the camera and sala of the Renaissance home in Tuscany. This monumental example was once in the Boni palace in Florence. It displays the family arms prominently at its centre. Carved in the workshop of the renowned da Settignano family, the classically inspired decoration transforms this functional object into a remarkable piece of sculpture. The deliberate omission of a hood draws attention to the decorative frieze.
The heads on either side of the frieze may represent deceased family members. Representations of ancestors were common features of domestic interiors and gave the dead family members a lasting, symbolic presence in the house. Ancestral portrait busts were commonly placed above fireplaces. Vasari commented that, ‘You see in every house in Florence, above fireplaces, doorways, windows and cornices, an infinite number of these busts, so well and naturally made that they seem alive.’ Vasari’s description of ancestral busts is supported by written and pictorial records. Many of these portrait busts are designed to be seen from below, a position that showed them to best advantage.
Sociable gatherings often occured around the fireplace and it was the hub of a variety of entertainments. Drawings often show people on low chairs drawn close to the hearth. Other items relating to the fireplace included bellows and firedogs. Bellows, usually operated by servants, were a key piece of fireplace equipment. Firedogs were not just functional objects, designed to support the logs for the fire, but an opportunity for artistry and invention.
Fireplaces were often positioned at right angles to a wall fountain which brought water directly into the sala, where it could be used for washing hands or filling vessels. They were sometimes plumbed with running water, a rare luxury at the time, and fitted with drainage.
