Ca' Dolfin (also called Palazzo Secco Dolfin or Palazzo Dolfin) is a civil building located in the Dorsoduro district of Venice near San Pantalon; one of the many palaces scattered around Venice once owned and inhabited by the Dolfin family. It currently houses the Aula Magna Silvio Trentin of the Ca' Foscari University.
From the surveys carried out during the restoration after 1955 we
know that a building already stood on that site in the 9th century. From
the archival documentation it appears that, in the same position, in the
thirteenth century there was a building owned by the Barbos (cited as
then as Barpos) together with other houses around it.
At an
unknown date, the 14th-century building of the Barbos was acquired by
the Seccos, a wealthy family originally from Bergamo. It is conceivable
that it already had the configuration of a palace, given that before the
sale they rented it to Marcella Marcello for 95 ducats a year. The last
heirs, who had lived in Padua for some time where they had been admitted
to the local nobility, decided to sell the house for 12,000 scudi in
1621. The buyer was the important Dolfin family who soon undertook major
modifications.
The direct purchaser of the building was Cardinal
Giovanni Dolfin, Iseppo's son, but he died the following year so it is
almost certainly due to his nephew Nicolò the start of the renovation of
the building. In fact, already in 1663 Giustiniano Martinioni, in his
additions to Sansovino, was keen to point out as remarkable the palace
«of Nicolò Delfino, a very large Senator, built [...] alla Romana [...]»
on the «rio di S. Pantaleone». Surely before the work was completed, a
large temporary but luxurious wooden construction was set up in the
garden to welcome the King of Denmark Frederick IV on 11 February 1709
with a carnival party remembered as memorable. Temanza assigns the
reorganization works to Domenico Rossi, certainly the latter were
limited to the hall and the top floor, while the previous interventions
can be attributed to other architects of Longhena's circle such as
Giuseppe Sardi, Rossi's uncle.
In the following two decades the
brothers Daniele III and Daniele IV Dolfin had a vast iconographic
program undertaken for the decoration of the hall. The purpose was the
glorification of their historic family. First, around 1714, they called
Nicolò Bambini and Antonio Felice Ferrari to fresco the ceiling and then
Giambattista Tiepolo to paint, between 1725 and 1729, ten canvases with
stories of ancient Rome. In both cases they were most likely advised by
another brother, the patriarch of Udine Dionisio Dolfin, who had already
commissioned some works from all these artists. Indeed Tiepolo divided
himself between the two commissions, executing his canvases in the
winters of those years and reserving the warm season to finish the
frescoes in Udine. In honor of his clients Tiepolo also painted
(probably between 1745 and 1755) the posthumous portrait of Daniel IV
(died 1729).
With Andrea (1748-1798) the branch of the Dolfin di
San Pantalon died out and the building ended up as an inheritance to his
sister Cecilia Dolfin married to Francesco Lippomano and from this in
1854 to her nephew Giovanni Querini Stampalia. The house remained
abandoned for over seventy years until 1872 when, in order to pay
inheritance taxes, the newly formed Querini Stampalia Foundation was
forced to sell first the Tiepolos (for 6,000 lire) and then the entire
building with the works contained in the antiquarian Michelangelo
Guggenheim for another 16,520. Only the portrait of the ancestor Daniel
IV (perhaps because it was once thought to be the portrait of a Querini
procurator) reached the Querini Stampalia museum where it still is.
The figures were decidedly small for both sales. However one must
remember the bad luck of the Baroque and Rococo at that time and Tiepolo
himself was considered only a skilled decorator. As for the palace, it
was almost in ruins: the Querinis had used it as a quarry for precious
materials (for example the red marble steps had been completely
dismantled, making the staircase impracticable) and earlier, during the
1848 insurrection, an Austrian bomb had broken through the roof, in
addition to this the broken glass of the windows left the interior at
the mercy of the weather.
Guggenheim sold Tiepolo's ten canvases
to Baron Eugen Miller von Aichholz for 50,000 lire, plus other works to
various clients for a further 30,000 lire, and in 1876 the palace to the
architect Giovanni Battista Brusa. The works taken over by von Aichholz
took different paths and ended up emigrating to various museums of
international level: today five are at the Hermitage in St. Petersburg,
three at the Metropolitan Museum in New York and two at the
Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. We know that Guggenheim sold other
works in the building for 30,000 lire but in the absence of descriptions
it is not possible to identify them.
In 1955 the University of
Ca' Foscari took the opportunity to purchase the building from the
Ambrosoli family. The proximity to the headquarters saw him eligible to
adapt the prestigious hall to a ceremonial hall and the second and third
floors to a university college in imitation of those of the universities
of Pisa and Pavia. The college remained active until 1972 when the mass
turnout to higher education forced to resort to much more receptive
spaces and to a system of access to housing that was no longer
meritocratic but democratic. For a few more years the lodgings were
managed by the Opera Universitaria but at the beginning of the eighties
it passed again and fully into the availability of the university: the
Aula Magna, already named after Silvio Trentin in 1975, was maintained
and the smaller spaces converted in offices.
Ca' Dolfin externally appears to us today almost as Domenico Rossi
had left it at the end of its renovation. Beyond the uncertainties about
the authors of the two restoration campaigns of the 17th and 18th
centuries, we know from the restoration surveys by the University that
the cladding of the entire facade on the canal dates back to a single
era. This facade, of a classical baroque style, shows on the ground
floor the original internal tripartite structure which survives only on
this floor. The group of openings consisting of the water door
juxtaposed on the sides by two windows intended for lighting the central
atrium and so the two windows placed symmetrically on the side intended
for the smaller side rooms are indicative. The five large windows on the
first floor, on the other hand, conceal the lack of partitions in the
interior which was transformed, with the demolition of the four side
rooms, into a single large room aligned with the canal: the ceremonial
hall.
The façade, defined at the time "alla Romana", although not
considered of great quality, manages to show off, with its total
cladding in white Istrian stone, the great nobility of the residence,
especially in the large openings on the central floor limited by the
continues balustrade. Curious are the supports of the windowsills on the
top floor tapering downwards and decorated with a drapery, a motif
traceable in Venice only in the Palazzo Stazio Gradenigo in Santa Sofia
built a century earlier, as opposed to the volute modillions of the
windowsills on the water level.
Certainly attributed to Rossi is
the extension towards the garden. An "L" shaped body consisting of a
block that extends the building along its entire width and another block
that extends on one side into the garden. From this point of view, the
building appears to have four floors, including the ground floor,
revealing the height of the hall on the canal corresponding to that of
the first and second floors together.
Certainly as far as the
interiors were concerned, the stripping completed by the Guggenheim had
been accurate. In addition to the Roman histories and the portrait of
Daniel IV Gerolamo di Tiepolo, the palace contained many other works now
dispersed. Previously, and for other reasons, the presumed, and now
lost, Portrait of the Family of Thomas More by Hans Holbein had already
been given to Frederick Augustus II of Saxony with the mediation of
Francesco Algarotti. Certainly missing is the bust which, in the will
drawn up before leaving for Constantinople, Daniel III John had so
strongly recommended that he be created so that an image of him would
remain crowning the main portal of the hall. The ten statues that
somehow integrated the iconographic program are missing. The frescoes by
Antonio Felice Ferrari decorating the monumental staircase no longer
exist, perhaps lost in the renovations of 1876. And of all the other
paintings and furnishings listed in an inventory of 1771, no trace
remains.
The frescoes
The large hall with the vault frescoed by Nicolò
Bambini and Antonio Felice Ferrari and where once was the series of
Roman stories painted on canvas by Tiepolo remains of great value. In
the gaps left inside the frescoed frames in fake stucco that housed the
canvases, Brusa, after the purchase of the building in 1876, adapted
some antique-looking mirrors.
To understand the spirit of the
iconographic program commissioned, it must be remembered that between
the end of the seventeenth century and the first half of the eighteenth
century the taste of the Venetian aristocracy for private residences had
shifted from accumulative collecting towards the commission of large
complexes of celebratory wall decoration, also introducing the
imperishable fresco decoration of the ceilings. Technique until then
used for mainland villas rather than in Venice where canvases were still
preferred. The oldest families, to flaunt an alleged and imaginative
original 'romanità', loved references to stories and characters from
ancient Rome (or ancient Greece). And the Dolfin family was precisely
among the twenty-five old houses and among these one of the twelve
defined Apostolic.
Once the new large space of the hall was
completed, the large ceiling was first painted with frescoes by Nicolò
Bambini and framed by the quadratures of Antonio Felice Ferrari.
Historians have proposed a rather wide range of dates for this,
ultimately restricted to the period 1710-1715. Ferrari's death in 1720
is undoubtedly largely the ante quem limit, because we also know from
his biographers that in his last years he was no longer able to work due
to failing eyesight and trembling hands, in addition to the fact that
thanks following the success of the Ca' Dolfin work, he also worked on
the Morosini, Nani and Gradenigo palaces. A further decisive fact is the
stay in the same building of his then pupil and assistant Girolamo
Mengozzi Colonna, documented between 1711 and 1715.
As for the
Children, renowned fapresto, we know that he had the opportunity to
boast to the English visitor Edward Wright that he had done the part of
him in just fifteen days. And in fact from Luca Giordano, the first
fapresto, he takes up the soft and luminous composition of the
divinities, clouds, drapes and decorative inventions although cooled in
search of an academic precision; however, it is to Liberi that Bambini
owes the construction of the opulent female figures.
The central
oval area frescoed by Bambini represents, with considerable discretion,
a glorification of the Dolfin through an Apotheosis of Venice: the only
indirect reference to the family is the smiling dolphin which emerges
from a cloud and supports Amphitrite. However in the composition, which
develops upwards starting from the side with windows overlooking the
canal, the various themes on display are significant of the virtues of
the family. Emblematic are the figures of the angel of Fame, the one on
the right, and of the allegory of Abundance, which emerges from the
bottom left to cover the quadrature, which in this diagonal enclose the
concept of the consequences of good governance. Almost in the center is
the personification of Venice, a woman dressed in gold, this time
without the lion and with exactly the same attributes present in
Veronese's painting the Triumph of Venice in the Doge's Palace. On the
left the rules that the government must follow: Justice with the sword,
Peace with the olive tree and further on Prudence with the mirror and
the snake. Immediately below, the marine divinities could not be missing
for the Maritime Republic: Neptune and his wife Amphitrite. Moving to
the right, to recall the protection of the arts as a duty, next to the
Graces follow the allegorical personifications of Poetry, Architecture,
Sculpture and Painting, followed by the inexorable Time with scythe and
hourglass. To finish on the right with the agile figure of the messenger
Mercury dominated by Hercules who keeps the vices crushed under a cloud.
The squares of Ferrari descend from the vault to surround the scene,
first in full backlight then opened by the Bibienesque terraces of
luminous niches. And in this descent we pass from the
allegorical-conceptual level of the top to the narrative level of the
walls. In the niches the glimpses of statues of heroes stand out and one
can glimpse monochrome ovals with the effigies of soldiers in various
uniforms. One of these effigies is the typical hat of the general
captains of the sea, rank held by Daniel IV Jerome, which suggests that
they are at least ideal portraits of the Dolfin. As a final connection
between the false architecture and the frames of the teleri, a
monochrome allegory is placed at the top of each of these (all probably
repainted) and all precisely referable to Cesare Ripa's Iconologia. In
the most recent studies it has been possible to demonstrate the precise
semantic link between these allegories and the stories painted by
Tiepolo.
The series of paintings of Roman Stories by Tiepolo was intended to
narrate the military and political virtues of the Dolfin. The attention
to events limited to the republican period of Rome and the particular
attention to the conflicts against Carthage are evidently evocative, on
the one hand, of the spirit of service towards the Republic of Venice,
and on the other, of the honorable participation in the war events
against the Turks who had informed the entire house.
In this
series Tiepolo's pictorial quality suddenly becomes more mature. The
colors lighten but at the same time they liven up in the complementary
relationship of chromatic contrasts. Thus the understanding of Veronese
color of the first rococo artists such as Ricci and Pellegrini evolved
further.
The artist's demonstrated close adherence to the texts
of Publio Anneo Floro (an annotated edition of which had been published
in Leyden in 1722) and Tito Livio and the careful attention to the
antiquarian repertoire known at the time had the purpose of conferring
authority and truthfulness historical to the events narrated.
The
adherence to the texts is also present in the use of tituli inserted in
cartouches at the top of each canvas (mostly erased and sometimes
recovered with misspellings after the sale), which was rather peculiar
at that time. Titles which, once the textual reference has been
dissolved, and the canvases associated with the overlying allegories,
allow us to hypothesize a more precise definition of the subjects, which
until recently were approximate. Finally, the shape and size of the
frames that still remain, the connection of the fresco allegories with
the representations and their own titles and the direction of the light
in the scenes, harmonized with the position of the real windows, allow
us to recreate the exact arrangement of the canvases.
Entering
from the main portal, and turning counterclockwise, we should find on
the right in the same part of the entrance the large battle canvas The
taking of New Carthage (surmounted by the allegory of Experience). In
the narrowest wall on the right (west) there were three paintings of
which the central one is the largest which should be in the order Fabius
Maximus in front of the Senate of Carthage (surmounted by the
Intelligence), the Triumph of Marius (the Council) and The dictatorship
offered in Cincinnato (to which a now illegible allegory corresponds).
On the wall with windows to the south were the two smaller canvases:
Hannibal contemplating the head of Asdrubale (cognition) and Brutus and
Arrunte (nobility). The east wall repeats the pattern of the opposite
wall and the sequence should be: Muzio Scevola (Perfection), the largest
canvas of the Triumph of Manio Curio Dentato (Decor) and Veturia stops
Coriolano (Good Fame). Returning to the entrance we would find another
large canvas The Battle of Zama surmounted by Immortality.
For
the celebrations of the 150th anniversary of its foundation, the
University has created a virtual representation of the room with
Tiepolo's teleri arranged according to the aforementioned criteria.
In the parish of San Pantalon there was another and previous branch
of Dolfin di San Pantalon started at least in 1259 by a certain Giacomo,
coming from the branch of San Canzian, but already extinct at the end of
the fifteenth century.
It is not known whether the new, and more
well-known, branch reached San Pantalon receiving the properties
inherited from the first, nor what was the site, or sites, where the two
branches resided; it is only known that the most recent branch was
started by Benedetto di Daniele quondam Giovanni (1479?-1527) massaro
della Zecca and his son Iseppo (Giuseppe), administrator, senator and
member of the Council of X. Definitely from 1621 to 1798 the history of
the building remained linked to that of the dynasty of which many
members held relevant positions.
Progenitors
Benedetto Dolfin,
of Daniele quondam Giovanni (1479?-1527), appointed massaro at the Mint
for 1526.
Giuseppe Dolfin, son of Benedetto (1521-1585), reached the
rank of Governator de nave, then held various positions as
administrator, and was also a senator and member of the Council of Ten.
Joseph's children
Giovanni Dolfin (1545-1622), in the first part
of his life you served the Republic as ambassador to France, Poland,
Spain, Vienna and procurator of San Marco; from 1603, having taken his
vows, he was bishop of Vicenza and from 1604 cardinal. It was he who
bought the Secco palace.
Dionisio Dolfin (1556-1626), bishop of
Vicenza.
Pietro Dolfin (1561-1593), in his short life could only
cover the position of administrator sora i Officii.
Peter's
children
Nicolò Dolfin (1591-1669) probably the only son was bailo
(ambassador) in Constantinople in 1645, general commander of the land
forces in Candia in 1646 then wise man of the Council. We probably owe
him the start of the restoration work on the building.
Sons of
Nicholas
Giovanni Dolfin (1617-1699), after being a senator he became
an ecclesiastic and was nominated patriarch of Aquileia in 1657 and then
cardinal, starting the series of patriarchs of the Dolfin family; he was
also a man of letters.
Marcantonio Dolfin (1625-1668), still a young
man following his father in Candia, was soon captured by the Turks. He
was never released again despite repeated prisoner exchange attempts.
Daniele II Andrea Dolfin (1631-?) had the opportunity to be among the
electors of four Doges, in 1694 the Council of Ten nominated him among
the three magistrates in charge of the Mines.
Giuseppe Dolfin
(1622-1657), soldier participated in the defense of Candia and, captain
general, in 1654 he clashed with the Turks in the Strait of the
Dardanelles. Various sources, chronicles and even a sonnet celebrated
his valor, although the battle had not had a clear winner in the face of
numerous losses on both sides.
Sons of Daniel II Andrew
Daniele I Nicolò Dolfin (1652-1723), was Podestà in Brescia in 1698,
then senator, ambassador in Vienna in 1701, general administrator in
Palma in 1702, procurator of San Marco de Supra in 1705.
Daniele II
Marco Dolfin (1653-1704) was apostolic nuncio to France in 1695, bishop
of Brescia in 1698 (with the already acquired personal title of
archbishop) and raised to cardinal the following year; he was also
commendatory abbot of some abbeys.
Daniel III Giovanni Dolfin
(1654-1729) was repeatedly elected wise man of the Mainland and wise man
of the Council and health provider in 1692, in the same year he was
awarded the title of knight of the Golden Stole, he was also ambassador
in Vienna from 1702 to 1708 and in Poland from 1715 to 1716, he was then
appointed podestà of Padua from 1718 to 1720 and general administrator
of Palma from 1720 to 1722, in 1726 he was sent as bailo to
Constantinople where he remained until his death.
Daniele IV Gerolamo
Dolfin (1656-1729) was a soldier and a politician, he clashed numerous
times and victoriously against the Turks but then appointed Provveditore
Generale da Mar (1714-1716) was replaced by Andrea Pisani after the loss
of the Morea, therefore became superintendent of fortresses and finally
in 1717 he was sent as ambassador to Poland.
Dionisio Dolfin
(1663-1734), succeeded his uncle Giovanni as Patriarch of Aquileia, we
owe him the renovations of the patriarchal palace in Udine, with the new
Library, the Galleria degli Ospiti and the Scalone d'Onore commissioning
the same artists who then advised his brother Daniele Giovanni for the
works of Ca' Dolfin.
Sons of Daniel III John
Daniele I
Giovanni Dolfin (1676-1752), banned for a long time from Venice for
having wounded another nobleman with a pistol on his return from long
journeys through Europe, was appointed podestà of Verona in 1722 and
captain of Padua in 1748.
Daniel III Daniél Dolfin (1685-1762),
succeeded his uncle Dionisio as patriarch of Aquileia, a title he
retained even after the abolition of the patriarchate (1751) and its
division into the two archdioceses of Udine and Gorizia; in 1747 he had
been proclaimed cardinal.
Daniel IV Andrea Dolfin (1689-?) was
governor of ships in 1729 and then captain of ships, then general
administrator in Dalmatia from 1735 to 1738.
End of the Dolfin
dynasty of San Pantalon
Daniele I Giovanni (1725-1752) son of Daniele
IV Andrea was one of the wise men of the Orders.
Daniele I Andrea
Dolfin (1748-1798 son of Daniele I Giovanni, was ambassador in Paris
from 1780 to 1785, senator in 1786, ambassador in Vienna from 1786 to
1792., on his return to Venice he was in the Council of Ten and
repeatedly (1793, 1795, 1796) savio di Consiglio, after the fall of
Venice he participated in the Municipality as a member of the Health
Committee, after the treaty of Campoformio he was provisional president
of the Municipality.He was the last of the branch of San Pantalon,
married but now childless, due to their early death, his possessions
passed to his sister Cecilia married to Francesco Lippomano.
Through Cecilia's children, Gasparo and Maria, the patrimony came to
Giovanni Querini Stampalia who had married Maria.