BRONZE & GOLD. Rome, Pope Innocent III: immersive tale of a masterpiece

From June 1, Sala Zanardelli

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The VIVE Institute, directed by Edith Gabrielli, opens “BRONZE & GOLD. Rome. Pope Innocent III: immersive tale of a masterpiece" from June 1 to October 1.
The exhibition, in the Sala Zanardelli of the Vittoriano, features the Lunette of the Niche of the Pallia, an extraordinary gilded bronze artefact of medieval goldsmithery and the most important work of art to be associated with the figure of Pope Innocent III (1198-1216).
The lunette was created by craftsmen from Limoges who were residing in Rome at the time. Originally, it was very likely destined for the Costantinian Basilica of St. Peter in the Vatican.
Having survived the demolition of the medieval basilica, which led to the building of St. Peter’s that we know today, the lunette has come to be part of collections of VIVE – Vittoriano e Palazzo Venezia, where it is still today.

Around this masterpiece, the “Bronze & Gold” exhibition reconstructs and tells the story of Innocent III, a pope who was able to condition the entire Middle Ages, as it demonstrated, for instance, by his relationship with St. Francis and his contribution to the decoration of the Basilica of St. Peter. In order to better understand the layout of the basilica, the ancient St. Peter’s is re-evoked in the exhibition design through immersive reality.

The exhibition is curated by Alessandro Tomei, former professor of Medieval Art History at the University of Chieti and an eminent scholar of central Italian paintings of 13th- and 14th-century, miniature and suntuary arts.