spinner-caricamento
Share

Museo delle Arti Decorative verified

Milan, Lombardy, Italy open Visit museumarrow_right_alt

fullscreen
Bartolomeo Suardi, detto Bramantino - Tapestry Representing December
fullscreen
Bartolomeo Suardi, detto Bramantino - Tapestry Representing January
fullscreen
Bartolomeo Suardi, detto Bramantino - Tapestry Representing February
fullscreen
 Galileo Galilei’s Geometric and military compass
fullscreen
Jesus Crucified between the two thieves
fullscreen
Gonzaga platter on stand
fullscreen
Gio Ponti; Libero Andreotti - Blue Urn
fullscreen
Otto Imperator
fullscreen
Reliquary of Saints Cyprian and Justina
fullscreen
Jug
fullscreen
Monstrance of Voghera
fullscreen
Scipione Delfinone; Camillo da Posterla - The Standard of Milan
fullscreen
Marys at the Sepulchre
Bartolomeo Suardi, detto Bramantino - Tapestry Representing December
Bartolomeo Suardi, detto Bramantino - Tapestry Representing January
Bartolomeo Suardi, detto Bramantino - Tapestry Representing February
 Galileo Galilei’s Geometric and military compass
Jesus Crucified between the two thieves
Gonzaga platter on stand
Gio Ponti; Libero Andreotti - Blue Urn
Otto Imperator
Reliquary of Saints Cyprian and Justina
Jug
Monstrance of Voghera
Scipione Delfinone; Camillo da Posterla - The Standard of Milan
Marys at the Sepulchre

Other works on display

Description

The Month of December represents one of the most interesting of a cycle of twelve tapestries commissioned by Gian Giacomo Trivulzio, executed by Benedetto da Milano and designed by the painter Bramantino. Dominated by the sign of Capricorn, the scene is set in a large room; in the background is a winter landscape overlooked by a majestic castle. At the centre of the composition is a cauldron in which salami and sausages are being stirred by a woman whilst a man is attempting to embrace her. In the foreground, to the left, a man is inflating a pig’s intestine, making a balloon in which a child seems very interested. The scene in the background focuses instead on an old man who is holding a sickle and whose feet are bound by a woollen thread. The old man, representing the deity Saturn, is being worshipped by a group of farmers. In his design, Bramantino skilfully exploits and reinterprets ancient literary and iconographic sources. December is the month in which pigs are slaughtered; however the tapestry refers to the practice while avoiding bloody images. The central theme of this series of masterpieces is the continuous and cyclical flow of the seasons, described by an activity specific to each month. The Tapestries, each of which leads into the next, focus on the close relationship between man and nature. The inscription on each tapestry also describes the characteristics of the month. When translated, December’s reads: "December allows us to revel at home, for the birth of the lambs and trapping of fowl, it allows us to salt the pork and also gives idle children things to do."

Discounts and prices’ reductions with the Artsupp Card

With the Artsupp Card you can get, for the first time, discounts and reduced entrance tickets for Italian museums .

Discover more

Other artworks in Milano

Related searches

What you can find on Artsupp

Artsupp is the museums’ portal through which it’s easy to discover art, exhibitions and artworks. Now museums in France, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany and Spain can also share their activities with users

About us