Venetian Scholl XVI century wpe47.jpg (819 byte)

This room is situated on the First Floor
Amor_Sacro1.jpg (14273 byte) In the 19th century the jewel of the Borghese Collection was Titian’s masterpiece Holy Love, profane love, painted when he was twenty-five years old and exhibited in this room. This painting was so famous that some rich collectors were willing to spend a large amount to have it. Probably the reason why it was so famous must lie in its mysterious subject, a true enigma for historians in the course of ages. The last investigations finally removed any doubt. The painting was made by Titian for the wedding of two rich Venetians, Nicolò Amelio and Laura Bagarotto. lt portrays two women who symbolize wordly happiness. The first one has a casket of jewels, the second one the burning flame of holy love. The scene takes piace in a wonderful, natural landscape filled with some details of everyday life: the pasturing flock, the gentlemen who go hunting,the young shepherds in the meadows, while the ancient world is symbolized by the stone coffin used as a fountain into which a plump putto is plunging his arm. Among the carved reliefs one can see the escutcheon of the rich Venetian family.
On the opposite wall there is another of Titian’s work, Venus blindfolding Love (1565). In this painting the artist portrays Venus who is blindfolding her son, while her brother, seeing Love, is going to check the bow and arrows taken by the nymphs. The style of this painting is Iess well-finished than the Holy Love, profane Love and is characterized by the harmony of colours which is Titian’s peculiarity.

The Madonna with Child and two saints (1508) is a gift by Lorenzo Lotto to the German Albrecht Dùrer who went to Venice .

The bearded face of St. Onofrio the Hermit has the same features of a character in the Jesus Christ among the doctors painted by Dürer and which belongs now to the Thyssen Collection.

 venere1.jpg (14792 byte)Cardinal Scipione had at least a masterpiece of the most remarkable artists because his aim was to show the exceptional variety of Venetian art in the Renaissance. His collection incìudes Madonna with Child (1510) painted by Giovanni Bellini when he was eighty-four years old and considered by the historians as the father of the Venetian painting school. Beside this painting one can see The Woman Portrait (1500), painted by Bellini’s pupil Vittorio Carpaccio, together with the intense Portrait of a Man (1474-75) by the Sicilian Antonello from Messina who probably introduced the Flemish technique of oil-painting to Venice.

The Passionate Singer and The Singer with the Flute were both painted by Giorgione in the beginning of the I 6th century, while St. John the Baptist’ Sermon, which is a celebration of Venice’s magnificence was painted by Paolo Veronese in 1562.

DIDASCALIA: A millionaire Titian

In 1899 the rich Rothschild bankers wanted to buy Villa Borghese and its valuable art collection. In that time Titian’s "‘Holy Love, profane Love" was estimated at much more than the villa itself. The Rothschilds offered to pay Itì. 4,000,000 for the painting only, while they would pay Itì. 3,600,000 for the villa. The sale, however, did not succeed and Titian’s masterpiece remained in the Gallery. Three years later the Italian State obtained Villa Borghese and its art collection for ItI. 3,600,000.