Cappella degli Scrovegni
Church
The chapel
Cappella degli Scrovegni
The famous fresco cycle by Giotto
Despite its very inconspicuous location in the Giardini dell'Arene, with its frescoes by Giotto the Scrovegni Chapel contains some of the greatest works of art in Italy. In the year 1300 the businessman Enrico Scrovegni from Padua bought the ruined Roman Arena and built a palace for his family and the Cappella degli Scrovegni. With the chapel he wanted to atone for the sins of his father, Rinaldo Scrovegni, who was characteristically banned to hell because of usury even in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy.
The masterpieces of Giotto
For the interior design, Scrovegni acquired the services of the greatest artists of his time. Giovanni Pisano designed three marble sculptures for the altar (The Virgin Mary with Child and Two Angels). However, the chapel became famous because of the magnificent frescoes by Giotto di Bondone, who painted a total of 38 pictures in two years on the inside walls of the Cappella degli Scrovegni.
The frescoes by Giotto, which are considered to be precursors of the Renaissance, show scenes of the life of Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Last Judgement is depicted above the entrance portal and symbolic representations of virtues and vices adorn the side walls. On the triumphal arch over the altar you can see God, who instructed the archangel Gabriel to announce the birth of Jesus. With his frescos, Giotto broke the prevailing rules of painting and breathed life and a real vitality into his characters.
Scrovegni’s grave
The picture above the altar was unfortunately destroyed, but the grave monument of Enrico Scrovegni is situated directly below it. The vault above the coffin itself is painted with a blue sky and there is a sculpture of the praying Enrico Scrovegni in the sacristy.
Entrance
Admission: € 12,- (free admission with the Padova Card)
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