Vincenzo Foppa of Brescia, founder of the Lombard school, his life ...

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172 VINCENZO FOPPA
of Foppa at Pavia (" Vincentio de Brexia pictore in dicto loco Papie ") certain
goods, not specified, which had been consigned by Bertolino to Vincenzo.
The latter, according to the usual form of such deeds of consignment at that
date, had bound himself to restore the goods when required, either to Bertolino
himself or to his representative, in this case his brother Agostino, who it may
be noted had acted in a similar capacity for him in the summer of 1485,
receiving money on Bertolino's behalf from Vincenzo (Doc. No. 37).
This deed of April 14, 1490, seems to show that relations between
Bertolino and Foppa, which must have been anything but cordial after the
Genoese incident referred to in Document 44, were still strained and the
wording of it makes it probable that Foppa was then at Pavia. But the altarpiece
at Savona required his presence in Liguria, and it is certain that a great
part of the spring and summer of 1490 must have been passed there ;
we
know from the inscription on the picture that it was completed on August 5
of that year.
At what period the commission for this important work was first given we
cannot tell, but it is to be assumed that during one of Foppa's former visits
to Liguria, Giuliano della Rovere, or the authorities at Savona acting on his
behalf, had entered into negotiations with the painter respecting an altarpiece
for the cathedral. We have no clue as to the date when these negotiations were
first opened, or as to when the contract was formally drawn up and upon what
terms ;
the information we at present possess relating to the work is fragmentary
in the highest degree. All that we know is that it was commissioned
for the High Altar of S. Maria di Castello by Giuliano della Rovere, Cardinal
of S. Pietro in Vincoli and later (in 1499) Bishop of Savona, who was a great
benefactor to the city, and up to the year 1490 had spent nearly 18,000 gold
scudi on the embellishment of the cathedral alone. In Ottobono Giordano's
description of the ancient Cathedral of Savona and its contents, written about
1549)' the altarpiece was valued at 400 scudi, and in a MS. at Genoa (Univ.
library) it is stated that this sum was spent upon it by Giuliano.^ Alizeri
of the Com-
states that according to tradition the altarpiece was the joint gift
munity of Savona and of the Cardinal ; this was the case with the choir screen
in the cathedral,' and the fact that it was the authorities of Savona who
appealed to the Duke of Milan to compel Foppa to return and finish the
work might give some colour to this idea, but no chronicler mentions such an
arrangement in connection with the altarpiece, which is always stated to have
been the gift of Giuliano, and on the picture itself we have no indication of
this
co-operation, the arms being those of Giuliano alone, and the inscription
1 Publ. by Alizeri, I, pp. 83-87.
2 ^7-^^^ ^.^^/^ ^^^ Savona, f. 44.
* Alizeri, I, 83 and 395.
»
A^ote varie, ibid.