Resumen de The patronage and date of the legend of St Francis in the Upper Church of S. Francesco at Assisi
The writer presents internal evidence of date and patronage of the frescoes depicting the legend of St. Francis in the Upper Church of S. Francesco in Assisi, Italy. John White's conclusion that the Assisi image must have been painted “by 1307 at the latest” is widely accepted. However, something else may have been overlooked. The final scene of the cycle, which shows a miracle being witnessed by Jacopo Antonio Colonna, Bishop of Tivoli, also recognizes the Colonna family in another, as yet insufficiently noted way: the inclusion of a spiral triumphal column. If the scene includes not only a miracle witnessed by a Colonna but also a witty colophonic reference to the Colonna as actual patrons, its is highly unlikely that it was produced after May 1297, when the Colonna family were brought down by Pope Boniface VIII. Moreover, it may permit a broader hypothesis, including that the frescoes are by Giotto and represent the first example of that artist's legendary wit.
