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Good Government

Good Government is a cycle of frescoes decorating the Sala della Pace (Room of Peace) in the Palazzo Pubblico, the town hall of Siena, Italy. The frescoes were commissioned by the ruling "Council of Nine" of the Republic of Siena in 1338, and were executed by Ambrogio Lorenzetti and his workshop over the course of three years, finishing in 1340. The cycle covers three walls, and comprise contrasting pairs of cityscapes, countryside landscapes and pantheons of allegorical figures intended to convey lessons on the attributes and consequences of "good" and "bad" government.

Iconography

Wisdom flies in the top left, above Justice, who carries in her scales two angels representing the two forms of justice: distributive and commutative (though the labels were reversed in a later restoration). A cord drops from the scales into the hands of Concord, who sits with a level plank in her lap (representing equality). the cords then pass through the hands of 24 isocephalic (heads at the same level) figures representing the early Council of 24, later succeeded by the Council of 9, before being passed up to the largest figure, which is identified as the Government of Siena by the black and white clothing, the shield bearing the Virgin Mary (putative Queen of Siena) and the two children Ascius and Senius suckling from a she wolf. Above the head of Government are representations of the three theological virtues, Faith (bearing a cross) Hope (praying for intercession from Christ) and Charity (Flames). Seated on couches to his right and left are allegorical figures of the four Cardinal Virtues (Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude and Justice) as well as Peace and Magnanimity. From right to left, they are: Peace (resting on unused armour, wearing olive laurel and holding an olive branch), Fortitude (mace and shield, surrounded by knights), Prudence, Magnanimity sharing from her bowl, Temperance with an hourglass (from a false etymology), and the second appearance of Justice, bearing a sword and a severed head.

In the cityscape of Good Governance, Peace appears for a second time as the safeguard of Concord, there being no need for guards in a city empty of enemies. Nine dancing girls in the foreground represent either the Council of Nine or the Nine Muses, or simply act as an expression of happiness (though public dancing was at that time illegal in Siena). To the left is a marriage party, above are craftsmen busy at all the various trades of the city, from goldsmithy to weaving to preaching and selling of goods. Entering the city to the right is a caravan bearing the many goods of the countryside and foreign lands.

Outside this city, the fields are full of grain being harvested by peasants, olive groves and orchards give up their fruit, animals are raised, slaughtered, and hunted; foodstuffs from every season are being gathered simultaneously, guarded over by the flying figure of Security, the watchdog of Concord in lands where safety is guaranteed only through force of arms.

On the opposite side of the hall is the pantheon of Bad Government. Presided over by the fanged and horned figure of Tyranny, who clutches in her hand a golden cup as a symbol of Babylon. At her feet sits a goat, the traditional symbol of Lust. To the left are the figures of Cruelty (strangling a baby), Betrayal (carrying a chimerical lamb-scorpion), and Fraud (whose drapery partially conceals bat wings and clawed feet). To the right are Fury (a bestial dog/bull/man carrying a short dagger and standing over a mound of stones, the weapons of an angered mob), Division (clothed in Sienese colours, sawing herself in half - the saw acting as a counterpoint to the plank of concord) and War (dressed in armour and bearing a shield). Above Tyranny fly three more bat-winged women: Avarice, squeezing bags of gold coins in a press; Pride, carrying a sword and twisted yoke to show the folly of seeking glory at the expense of the greater good; and Vainglory, admiring herself in the mirror. Bound and helpless below the pantheon is the desolate figure of Justice, her scales broken and the lines of concord being severed by a soldier.

The cityscape is home to roving bands of soldiers and thieves, maiming and killing the people and looting the flaming rubble of the homes. The only craftsman still plying his trade is the blacksmith, turning out piles of weapons. A band of rapacious horsemen are exiting through the gates into the countryside. Flying above the gates and acting bizarrely as a protagonist is the demon-like figure of Fear. The ccountryside itself is a barren wasteland dotted by the ruins of villages. No food is available to the few scattered people beset by raiders and bandits.

Legacy

Category:Siena Category:Frescoes Category:1330s Category:Ambrogio Lorenzetti