Circumcision (Armadio degli Argenti)

Here Fra Angelico captures an important Christian procedure for an artwork which would feature within a larger series that decorated the Armadio degli Argenti, or Silver Chest. The chapel can be found in Florence, Italy, and the Armadio was a cupboard which stored various silver items.

The artist kept most of these frescoes relatively simple for a number of reasons. Firstly, they were all on small panels of around 30cm in width and height, making it harder to incorporate a highly level of detail. The artist also needed to complete a large number of paintings for this commmission and so did not want to get bogged down for too long on each individual piece. He eventually complted the pieces, working between the years of 1450-1452 and the designs were well received at the time. Thankfully, most have survived to the present day allowing us to continue to enjoy them today. Currently there are around 35 items which have been attributed to the project and the chapel itself also went under other restoration projects during this period elsewhere in the same building. Piero di Cosimo de' Medici organised each commission and allowed many of the artists to make use of expensive materials in order to achieve the finest results possible.

Within Circumcision we find six figures in the foreground carrying out the order of the day. The baby sports a bright halo, just as does his mother. Several other religious figures look on as the process is completed. In the background we find details of the inside of a church in which they have congregated for this event. This panel features on the left hand side of the second row of a group of nine artworks. The overall theme which runs throughout is the life of Christ, capturing important moments of it in each piece. The higher row of three features Mystic Vision, Annunciation and Nativity. There are several other highly memorable series of artworks from the Renaissance which also take on the life of Christ, with many powerful scenes to be used as inspiration from religious scripture. One of the best examples was by Lorenzo Ghiberti in his North Doors, also in Florence.

The decision to decorate a cupboard with so much work might seem strange but this piece of furniture held an important symbolic value to the church. The Silver Chest held a large amount of silver which had been gifted by visitors who were overwhelmed by the beauty of this building, as well as some of the artworks inside it. This generosity, it was deemed, deserved a respectful gesture in return and so it was decided that the array of silver should have its own custom location. Fra Angelico was brought in alongside a number of other artists who tackled other areas of the church so that a full renovation could be completed throughout the 1440s, with the work finally completed in December, 1452.