Abstract
The groups of religious architectural equipment that are presented here – altarpieces, pulpits and washbasins – are some of the most visible examples of marble omnipresence in the Alentejo, especially from the mid-seventeenth century onwards. Despite being extremely heteroge- neous from a morphology and function perspective, two aspects common to all of these groups must be underlined: on the one hand, the extraor- dinary artistic level they have attained, comparable only to those found in the capital city; on the other, the fact that none of them has merited a systematic or comparative study.
Among the decorative equipment built from polychrome marble that adorned religious architecture, we must necessarily highlight the eigh- teenth-century altarpieces, for the visual impact they still have today. Subsequently we will present various pulpits so as to demonstrate how these evolved in aesthetic terms from the first pieces in Modern Age, with an essentially functional nature, in accordance with the rules of the Council of Trent (1545-1563). Finally, reference should be made to the washbasins, which, due to their close symbolic link with the element of water, played a central role in liturgical rituals and thus accounted for some of the best marble compositions in sacristy spaces.
Without denying the relevance of archival work, considering all unpublished information that may still arise, for the present work we felt it was necessary to adopt a different working methodology. Consid- ering the high quantity of art pieces and their dispersion, we will favour a general analysis of the cases that seem to us most representative of the application of marble in the context of altarpieces, pulpits and washba- sins. By identifying, in each of these categories, similar characteristics, this will allow us to compare different cases, to identify the same artistic models and, hopefully, to trace the activity of the main artists involved in their execution.
Among the decorative equipment built from polychrome marble that adorned religious architecture, we must necessarily highlight the eigh- teenth-century altarpieces, for the visual impact they still have today. Subsequently we will present various pulpits so as to demonstrate how these evolved in aesthetic terms from the first pieces in Modern Age, with an essentially functional nature, in accordance with the rules of the Council of Trent (1545-1563). Finally, reference should be made to the washbasins, which, due to their close symbolic link with the element of water, played a central role in liturgical rituals and thus accounted for some of the best marble compositions in sacristy spaces.
Without denying the relevance of archival work, considering all unpublished information that may still arise, for the present work we felt it was necessary to adopt a different working methodology. Consid- ering the high quantity of art pieces and their dispersion, we will favour a general analysis of the cases that seem to us most representative of the application of marble in the context of altarpieces, pulpits and washba- sins. By identifying, in each of these categories, similar characteristics, this will allow us to compare different cases, to identify the same artistic models and, hopefully, to trace the activity of the main artists involved in their execution.
| Translated title of the contribution | The Rise of Marble in Alto Alentejo: 18th Century Religious Architecture Equipments |
|---|---|
| Original language | Portuguese |
| Title of host publication | Mármore 2000 Anos de História. |
| Subtitle of host publication | Contributo dos mármores do Alentejo para a afirmação das artes |
| Editors | André Carneiro, Clara Moura Soares, Fernando Grilo, Vítor Serrão |
| Place of Publication | Coimbra |
| Publisher | Almedina |
| Pages | 325-382 |
| Number of pages | 68 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-989-53156-3-5 |
| Publication status | Published - Jul 2022 |