The Paduan Historiated Bible – The city and its frescoes.
An illuminated manuscript that originated in the Padua area of Carrara and is now divided between theAccademia dei Concordi in Rovigo and the British Library in London.
The Paduan Historiated Bible finally returns united in the city where it was created, in dialogue with the great fresco cycles of the Urbs picta.
The exhibition “The Paduan Historiated Bible. The City and its Frescoes” interweaves word and image, sacred and everyday, restoring the face of 14th-century Padua.
Originating in late 14th-century Padua, the work was created by a workshop of illuminators who gave visual form to Old Testament stories, probably intended for private contemplation.
Flipping through its pages, the visitor to the exhibition “La Bibbia Istoriata Padovana” enters a figurative universe that dialogues with the city’s great fourteenth-century fresco cycles, now recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The miniatures reflect the language of the masters who made Padua an urbs picta: Giotto in the Scrovegni Chapel, Giusto de’ Menabuoi in the Duomo Baptistery, Altichiero da Zevio and Jacopo Avanzi in the Basilica del Santo, and Jacopo da Verona in the Oratory of San Michele.
In these images, the sacred narrative is interwoven with the daily life and architecture of Padua’s Carrara, returning a living fresco of faith, art and humanity.
A unique testimony that invites us to rediscover the spiritual and artistic power of a city that, in the 14th century, knew how to unite the Bible, beauty and vision.
The exhibition
In the Hall of the Bishops of the Diocesan Museum of Padua, the miniatures of La Bibbia Istoriata Padovana return to dialogue with the great frescoes that have made the city a UNESCO heritage urbs picta.
Between the painted walls of the Salon, visitors can admire the two original codices in a display that combines contemplation and technology. An immersive video introduces visitors to the heart of the images, while an interactive digital workstation allows them to virtually browse through the entire manuscript: 873 miniatures that tell the story of the Bible and 14th-century Padua in a single, extraordinary vision.
Hours
Monday: 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Tuesday through Sunday: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
- Dove si svolgerà: Museo Diocesano, all'interno del Palazzo Vescovile, piazza del Duomo - Padova, 35100
