The tabernacle dell’Ugolino is located along the Via Chiantigiana, not far from Grassina, on the corner of the road leading to the ancient church of San Martino ai Cipressi.
Inside the recess we see the fresco of the Madonna and Child who sleeps inside the hood of the cloak. Maria has a moment’s rest after having laid down her flask of water, the stick and the humble clothing, as if to symbolize and recall the old hospitals that were close to the church.
The work was made on the occasion of the Marian Year 1954 by Pietro Annigoni, who – being also a good walker – intended to give his best wishes to those who began their travels towards the Chianti, naming the work Madonna del Buon Viaggio (Lady of Good Voyage), but also wanted to offer a tribute to a dear friend: the parish priest of the church of San Martino, Don Alcibiades Bartolucci, a “devout and intelligent lover of art.”
The fresco was carried out on mortar on top of Impruneta shingles tied together with copper wire. For the golden color of the halos the master used an ancient technique: macerated garlic mixed with urine and bolus. The work was done in the Master’s study in the village of Albizi in Florence and was then transported to the aedicule escorted by several motorcyclists.
After more than thirty years a complete renovation was needed. The consolidation of the wall and the arrangement of the surrounding environment, characterized by dry stone walls with natural vegetation and designed by Fabrizio Porcinai, were performed masterfully by local artisans. The restoration of the painting was done by Romano Stefanelli, a student of master Annigoni, under the control of the Superintendence. The renovated fresco in the splendor of its colors was inaugurated on April 25, 1992.
We recall an anecdote which happened precisely in San Martino. Don Alcibiade told his friend Annigoni that, on August 22, 1944, at the end of World War II, Winston Churchill and the General Alexander stood in the churchyard to stretch their legs. After, they departed for Florence but, having reached the bridge Niccheri, turned their jeep towards Antella on the road for Rome. During a reception in London in front of Queen Elizabeth, Annigoni, mindful of what his priest friend had confided in him, refuted a statement by Churchill that he was forced to confess: “Well, it’s true. That time I didn’t go to Florence. ”
Massimo Casprini
