Madonna with Child

On the trail of the Vivarini in Puglia

The panel depicting the Madonna and Child set in a later complex wooden frame, currently preserved in the first left chapel of the church of Sant'Andrea, is a painting signed by Alvise Vivarini who executed it, as reported by the inscription at the base of the throne, in 1483. It is believed that this panel formed the central part of a dismembered polyptych.

Alvise Vivarini was the last member of a family of Venetian painters from Murano, who in the second half of the fifteenth century sent polyptychs and panels with a gold background to southern Italy, in particular Puglia, of which the Barletta painting is one of the best.

It is not yet clear who commissioned it or its origin. Recent studies indicate the De Giraldis family, also known as Salmeggia, from Bergamo, as possible patrons since a commemorative plaque with their name is preserved inside the church which refers to an ancient chapel. This might be  evidence that the possible origin of the work is the destroyed church of Sant'Andrea outside the City Walls.