The Cathedral Builders: The Story of a Great Masonic GuildScott, Leader
History
The Cathedral Builders: The Story of a Great Masonic Guild
Scott, Leader
Cathedrals; Church architecture; Guilds
"1396.--The Magistri Jacopo da Campione, Giovannino de Grassi, and
Marco da Carona, architects, came from Milan to inspect, order, and
build in the aforenamed works" (causa videndi ordinandi et
hedificandi). The two latter must have been the Duke's architects
spoken of before. All through August and September Jacopo da Campione
was backwards and forwards between Milan and Pavia, and Maestro
Bernardo also received his salary monthly as chief architect.
Again, on November 22, 1396, we read--"To Master Jacopo da Campione,
architect of Milan cathedral (inzignerio ecclesiæ majoris Mediolani),
for fourteen days during October and November, in which he remained
working and superintending in the said _laborerium_ (Certosa) at his
own expense, and in payment for some designs made by him at Milan, and
submitted to the Duke's approval here."
On December 4, 1396, the _Provveditore_ notes the purchase of twenty
sheets of parchment, most of which were consigned to the Magistri
Jacopo da Campione and Cristoforo da Lonigo for the designs of the
church. From these entries, it would seem that Jacopo was the
architect who drew the designs, and Bernardo da Venezia the master
builder who executed them. As a farther proof, there is the
deliberation of the Administration of Milan, on March 4, 1397, to
which we have already referred, in which it says that Jacopo was in
command of the works at Certosa (qui acceptatus est super laboreria
Carthusiæ).
Other Campionese names also appear in the registers; such as Domenico
Bossi da Campione, who was paid "for four marble slabs, with certain
inscriptions, which were placed under the foundations when the
Visconti laid the first stone on August 27, 1396;" and "Giovanni da
Campione, called Bosio, for three sculptured marble slabs for three
reliquaries."
In 1397, Gian Galeazzo, being taken up with affairs of state, ceded
the presidency of the Administration of the Certosa Lodge to the Prior
of the Carthusians, adding more donations and an endowment. The
Prior's first actions were to dismiss Bernardo da Venezia as master
builder, and to call Antonio di Marco from Crema. He was son of Marco
da Campione, one of the chief architects of Milan cathedral, and
brother of Guglielmo di Marco, whom we have also found at Milan in
1387, where he was called as an expert to give judgment on some moot
point.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account