(b. 1280/85, Siena, d. 1344, Avignon)

Window c. 1312 Stained glass, 570 x 400 cm St Louis Chapel, Lower Church, San Francesco, Assisi

The stained-glass windows of the chapel deserve mention. We know nothing about who actually carried out the work, although it is quite likely that Simone designed them, and they show considerable analogies with the older parts of the Maestà in the Palazzo Pubblico and the stained-glass windows in Assisi, so we can assert that the windows of the chapel of San Martino date from around 1312.

The suggested date is based on the dates of external events. In 1312 Gentile da Montefiore not only commissioned the decoration of the chapel, he also spent a few months in Siena: he probably met Simone and chose him as his "personal" painter. The procedures normally followed in the building and decorating of churches also suggest an early date. In areas which were going to be frescoed the windows were put in first, because the coloured glass changed the colour of the lighting, altering the effect of the frescoes.

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Author: SIMONE MARTINI Title: Window Time-line: 1301-1350 School: Italian Form: stained-glass