Painted facades

The impressive façade of the house at numbers 11 and 13 on Via Massari features some distinctive concealed crenellations painted with courtly frescoes most probably in the second half of the 15th century. The sheer number of the frescoes on display, coupled with their good state of preservation, make this house particularly striking. It is almost as if the men and women depicted in these late Gothic-style paintings are looking out proudly from the balconies and windows just to show off their youthful charm and joie de vivre. 

This palace was built at the behest of the wealthy Boldrini family, originally from Sermide, and later came to belong to the Cantoni family. Located at number 42 on Via Chiassi, it is striking for its size and for the gracefulness of its forms. Its crenellations are concealed and were previously dotted with some prominent frescoes, which now appear only partially on the façade overlooking Via Sacchi. The quality of the frescoes is such that scholars have attributed them to Niccolò da Verona. Born in Verona around 1420, Niccolò Solimani was the uncle of the painter Liberale da Verona. He produced other works in the district of Mantua and worked for the Gonzaga family on a regular basis.

Situated at numbers 17 and 23 on Via Fratelli Bandiera, this house is an exceptional example of painted Mantuan façades, given its size and the impact of its colours. Although the exterior of the house features motifs that date back to before the Renaissance, such as the Gothic-outline brick window, at the centre of the decorative elements are multi-coloured interwoven tondos that also appear in Mantegna's Camera degli Sposi and the famous hall at the Castello di San Giorgio. This motif, which can in fact be attributed to Donatello given that it was also used for the Altar of Sant'Antonio in Padua, was extremely common throughout the city. In this case, it is depicted with a particular intensity and grace, in closer proximity to the sublime source from which it is taken.

Among the many painted façades in Mantua, the most important from an artistic and historical perspective is undoubtedly the one at Piazza Marconi 13, a building which is now the surviving half of an original Renaissance house. Scholars have long debated the possibility that the fine hand on display here is that of Andrea Mantegna. There is no doubt that the overall inspiration and the specific details bear the hallmarks of Mantegna. What gives him away is the constant references to antiquity, the decisive and coarse brush strokes for the faces and figures, the supreme quality of the colours, the highly refined use of the playful angels, and the use of Tritons and Nereids that can be traced back to the original prints of the Paduan master. Moreover, many have wished to believe that Mantegna, who we know lived in the area just before the district, resided under this very roof. What we now know for certain is that in the late 15th century the building belonged to the Viani family. In fact, Mantegna's daughter, Taddea, was married to Antonio Viani.

Only a few fresco fragments have survived from what is believed to have once been one of the most striking façades in Mantua. The vivid colours and elegant brush strokes - bearing all the hallmarks of Mantegna's style - can still be admired today. The second floor displays the customary chain pattern of rings. In this instance they are not in the traditional red and green, but in faux bas-reliefs with the outlines of some mythical sea creatures. Running alongside the cornice above is a cupped frieze with plant motifs surrounding the circular openings of the highest windows.

The façade of this house is illustrative of how extensive fresco decoration was, even in the more minor streets of Mantua. The frieze at the top depicts soldiers, possibly fictional ones, on a dark background, punctuated by a female winged creature, probably a chimera or a sphinx. The most substantial part of the fresco features large, dark red leaf lobes on a light background, supplemented by neatly arranged circular adornments reminiscent of stylised yellow flowers. Other patterns adorn the façade at the level of the current entrance doors, reprising elements that are more usually carved onto 15th and 16th century doorways.

A group of houses at numbers 50 and 54 of the present-day Via Broletto, which were once part of the same building: the Merchants Guild and the Ufficio della Stadera, Stadera is the Italian for "lever scales", where one plate was balanced against a weight. This was therefore the Weigh House. These houses line the entrance to Via Leon d'Oro (number 52) and are illustrated by some interesting capitals.                       Following restorations, a 16th century frieze - displaying putti and a figure which has unfortunately now almost perished completely, supposedly Federico Gonzaga on horseback - can now be admired and deciphered on the façade of the house on the right, number 54. The fact that the frescoes were taken down quite recently and then restored, probably incorrectly, makes understanding them even more difficult. A few scholars attribute the paintings to Pordenone (Giovanni Antonio De Sacchis, known as Pordenone, 1484-1539), a leading mannerist master.