Shrine in Or San Michele, Florence. Designed by "Orcagna" (Andrea Cione).
Orcagna first studied painting under his elder brother Nardo (short for Bernardo), who was enrolled in the "company of St. Luke." But this was only one branch of Andrea's art-education. He matriculated in the Masonic Guild (Arte dei maestri di pietra e legname), in the books of which it is written—"Andrea Cioni, called Archangel, a painter of the parish of S. Michele Visdomini, took his oath and promises in the said guild, Magister Neri Fioravanti being his sponsor, in 1352, sixth indication, October 29."[258]
It was Orcagna's way to emphasize his varied qualifications by signing his paintings, "Andrea di Cione, scultore," and his sculptures, "Andrea di Cione, pittore." On his masterpiece, the shrine in Or San Michele, he has inscribed, "Andreas Cionis, pictor Florentinus, oratorii arch magister extitit hujus MCCCLIX." The expression "Archmagister of the Oratory" (or shrine) explains many things. It tells us that the whole of that complicated piece of sculpture, though it may have been designed entirely by Orcagna, was not entirely executed by him, but that, like other Magistri, he had a band of brethren working under him; for how could he have been chief Master where there were no lesser ones under his command?
It is interesting in studying the working of the Masonic Guild, of which Orcagna signs himself Archmagister, to see how they are occupied in building several grand edifices at once. The immense number of Masters congregated in the Florentine Lodge rendered this possible, and wealth was not lacking in the city to employ them.
The books at the Opera reveal how the Council of Administration dominates the laborerium. We shall see how the busy Provveditore has to change the Magistri about from Santa Croce to Or San Michele; or from the Duomo to San Michele Visdomini, just as need presses. He has to order marbles for all and any of these edifices; to call councils to consider designs for all kinds of different buildings and parts of buildings, such as windows, chapels, doors, etc. Sometimes we find him commissioning a certain architect to make a plan for a chapel, or a door, or a window. When Talenti and Giovanni Ghino had both made designs for the tribune in October 1367, the usual councils were not enough to decide the momentous question which to choose. The whole city had to be called into council, together with the monks (frati colleganti), the Magistri of the guild, etc. Hundreds and thousands of people came to the Opera, looked at the designs, signed their names on the list of approval, for one or the other.
After the joint reign as capi maestri of Giovanni di Lapo Ghino and Francesco Talenti, came a varied line of master builders lasting for a hundred years, so that it is impossible to say that any one man was the architect of the Duomo. Between Arnolfo's first plan and the final Italian Gothic development of the fifteenth century lies the whole history of the development of art.
The next great capo maestro after Talenti was Ambrogio of Lenzo or Lanzo, near Como, one of the Campione school. His name is given in a deed of February 3, 1363, as "Ambroxius filius magistri Guglielmi de Champiglione." It is remarkable that an ancestor and namesake of this "Ambroxius" was also written down as "filius Magistri Guglielmi" in 1130, two centuries earlier, when they were leading members of the Campione school at Modena, and sculptured the façades of Modena and Ferrara cathedrals; so our Ambrogio of Florence was one of the distinguished aristocracy of the lodge, his family dating from its cradle in Lombardy. From the deed which we quote we find that Ambrogio graduated under his father, and made his first contract with Barna Batis, then Provveditore of the Opera of the Duomo, to provide and prepare the black marble necessary to the work, for every braccio of which he was to be paid six soldi eight denari. This is the original—
"Archivio dell' Opera dell Duomo, February 3, 1362.—Ambroxius filius magistri Guglielmi de Champiglione, comitatus Mediolani, emancipatus a Domino magistro Guillielmo patre suo, ut continere dixit publice manu ser Joannis Arriglionis notarii de Champiglione, conduxit a Barna olim Batis provisore Operis Sancte Reparate de Florentia, locante vice et nomine operariorum ... ad faciendum et digrossandum totum marmum nigrum quod erit necessarium dicto operi, hinc ad unum annum proxime venturum, illarum mensurarum prout dicetur eidem per capomagistros dicti operis. Et dictus Barna locavit eidem die dictum marmum ad fovendum et digrossandum, et promisit pro dicto opere eidem Ambroxio de quolibet brachio dicti marmi dare eidem Ambroxio soldos sex et denarios octo f. p., etc. Que omnia, etc."
Ambrogio or Ambrose remained many years in Florence. His name often appears in council. In 1356 he was elected head architect of the Duomo, and also of the restorations at the Baptistery. On April 4, 1384, when as an old man he attended a meeting to decide whether the pilasters of the tribune were strong enough to support the dome, his name is given as Ambrogio de Renzo. A marked instance of the effect of twenty years among Florentine dialect, which has an inveterate habit of mixing up l's and r's. His son, Giovanni d'Ambrogio di Lenzo, who afterwards became capo maestro, was also in council, and Orcagna was chosen umpire.