Fire in the Borgo

Raphael's Fire in the Borgo, 1514

                Raffaello Sanzio de Urbino, also known by his name Raphael, is credited by many as the best painter of the High Renaissance in Italy. From the beginning of his career in Urbino, Italy, Raphael showed extraordinary talent; after a short time as a “master” of art, Pope Julius II requested Raphael’s presence in Rome in 1508 (Web Gallery of Art). This commenced Raphael’s final period of working, which led to the creation of the “Raphael Room,” a collection of his most famous works of art. These collections feature four sections: the Sala di Costantino, Stanza di Eliodoro, Stanza della Segnatura, and the Stanza dell'incendio del Borgo (Web Gallery of Art). Even though Julius II died before the completion of the rooms, the new pope, Leo X, continued to commission Raphael (Raphael). Thus, the Fire in the Borgo, located within the Stanza dell’incendio del Borgo, was finished in 1514 under Leo X (Web Gallery of Art). The inspiration for the piece was the legend of Pope Leo IV who put out a fire ravaging the Borgo (the Borgo is a Roman district) with a simple sign of the cross in 847 CE (The Fire in the Borgo). 

                The design of the Fire in the Borgo uses several artistic techniques that appear in many of Raphael’s other works. Perspective and the pyramid configuration mechanisms used by Raphael to show two scenes: the first a scene of fire and the frantic citizens in the Borgo, the second Pope Leo IV and a collection of people surrounding his palace. These two worlds are distanced by plaza. However, the distinct contrast between the two scenes illustrate the harmony and serenity felt by the spectators reveling in the presence of his holiness, the Pope, who is the manifestation of God on earth and the disunity and chaos of a world without his guidance and help. Chiaroscuro is also applied to highlight the brightness of the plaza occupied by Leo IV and the fiery depths of the Borgo, thereby enhancing either the tranquility or hopelessness of the scene’s situation. References to Greek antiquity and mythology are apparent in the Fire in the Borgo, ranging from the style of the columns and arches to clothing the figures don. The man carrying the jaundiced older man out of the burning Borgo is allusion to Virgil’s Aeneid where Anchises is rescued by his son, Aeneas from the fires of Troy (Badt 36, The Fire in the Borgo). The integration of classical text demonstrates the social adoption of Greco-Roman culture, which inspired an intellectual movement (Duiker 351).Thus, Raphael’s incorporation of Greco-Roman legends influence the subject matter of the work. 

                Although death is not explicitly present within Raphael’s Fire in the Borgo, death’s friend, destruction, ravages part of Rome through fire. Additionally, the Greek sacking of Troy in the Aeneid, which was inspiration for Raphael’s fresco, resulted in the accumulated deaths of Greek soldiers and Trojan citizens. Thus, the Fire in the Borgo is allegorical for encounters with death.  

Works Cited

“Aeneid.” Wikipedia. 21 Apr 2011. Wikimedia Foundation. 1 May 2011.

Badt, Kurt. “Raphael’s ‘Incendio del Borgo.’” Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 22.1/2 (1959): 35-39. Print.

Duikier William J. and Jackson J. Spielvogel, eds. World History. 5th ed. Belmont, CA: Thomas Wadsworth, 2007.

Krén, Emil and Daniel Marx. Web Gallery of Art. Emil Krén and Daniel Marx, 2011. Web. 19 Apr 2011.

“Raphael.” Wikipedia. 4 Apr 2011. Wikimedia Foundation. 1 May 2011.

“Raphael Rooms.” Wikipedia. 28 Apr 2011. Wikimedia Foundation. 1 May 2011.

“The Fire in the Borgo.” Wikipedia. 12 Jan 2011. Wikimedia Foundation. 1 May 2011.