Ceiling decoration

Some of the Roman paintings found in the Domus Aurea and elsewhere correspond quite precisely what Vasari and others determined to be the typical features of grotesques. These paintings inspired several ceiling designs ‘all’antica’, such as the ceiling of the Sala dei Pontefici designed by Perino del Vaga and Giovanni da Udine. The desire to revive not only the forms of ancient Roman architecture but also their decoration may help to explain the success of these paintings. In particular, Raphael and the specialists in his workshop, who mastered the genre completely, helped the grotesque style to spread quickly in Rome.