spalliere (paintings)

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Scope note
Painted wall panels of a distinctive type produced in Tuscany in the 15th and early 16th centuries. Today, they have typically been removed from their original setting and are characterized by their size and shape: Their length is two to three times longer than their height, and they are larger than cassone panels and proportionally higher. The term originally meant "backrest [for a piece of furniture]," and referred to decorative panels positioned in wall panelling at head or shoulder height, above the backrest of a piece of furniture such as a cassone, bed, or or a high-backed bench with a chest below the seat that doubled as a narrow bed (a "lettuccio"). It may also refer to any panel paintings that were set into the wall as an integral part of the wainscoting. They are often distinguished from "cornice pictures," which were installed higher on the wall in a frieze above the wooden cornice molding, forming a separate register between the wooden paneling and the bare wall just below the ceiling. Since this distinction may be lost once the panel has been removed from the wall, the term "spalliere" is often applied to both.
spalliere
Accepted term: 29-Apr-2024