Glorification of Este Patronage
by COLONNA, Angelo Michele, Fresco
The picture shows the ceiling decoration in the Salone delle Guardie in the Palazzo Ducale in Sassuolo
The Salone was transformed into a bombastic, theatrical glorification of the house of Este by the quadratura painters Angelo Michele Colonna and Agostino Mitelli. Coats of arms, painted fabrics, trophies, and simulated statues against the walls serve as a prelude to the ceiling painting in which Apollo and the nine Muses celebrate the Este as patrons of the various arts, documented in inscriptions accompanying the goddesses.