Stories from the Old Testament

The very first phase of the construction of the majestic stained-glass window V21 of Milan Duomo (1417-1422) - dedicated to stories from the Old Testament - involved artists such as Zavattari and Maffiolo da Cremona. The panels made by Maffiolo for window V21, in particular, appear to have been placed at the end of 1422. In 1452, new news about the Old Testament window appears: Stefano da Pandino was working on the episodes from the Stories of Samson. Between 1460 and 1461, Niccolò da Varallo carried out some restoration work. Instead, in 1476, the Jesuit friars who worked on the stained-glass window of John the Apostle (large window V01) were ordered to use the inscriptions found on the panels of the Old Testament window as a model. Other news about the stained-glass window dates back to the mid-16th century, when several artists worked on it. In those years, Corrado de Mochis as well as Biagio and Giuseppe Arcimboldi were active. The Arcimboldi were paid for a series of unspecified panels, that could be connected to stained-glass window V21, a fact that can be seen in the "Arcimboldesque" style of many doors. In the 1830s, Giovanni Battista Bertini and his sons Pompeo and Giuseppe began a huge campaign to restore and create new stained-glass windows. On this occasion, Stained-glass window V21's old panels from the 15th and 16th century were entirely removed and placed in different windows on the southern side. The stained-glass window was then completely remade, maintaining nonetheless the same subject, namely the Stories of the Old Testament.