Date
1839
Object Type
Painting
Subject
The Arrival of the First Crusaders in Jerusalem
Holding institution
Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera. On long-term loan to the Camera dei Deputati, Rome, since 1927
About The Work
After serving in the Napoleonic army and working in the chancellery of Viceroy Eugenio di Beauharnais in Milan, Giuseppe Bisi became a calligraphy teacher at the Reale Collegio delle Fanciulle. From 1818, he exhibited his work, which portrayed views of Lake Como, the Engadine and the Roman countryside, at the annual exhibitions of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera. These works marked a new direction in landscape painting, moving towards a more modern Romantic sensibility.
Painted in 1839 for Filippo Ala Ponzone, L’Arrivo dei primi Crociati a Gerusalemme represents the high point of his career. The previous year, Bisi had been appointed Professor of Landscape at Brera; the chair had been created specifically for him, confirming the full recognition of a genre that had long been considered secondary and was now firmly established in critical esteem.
The subject, drawn from the poem I Lombardi alla prima Crociata by Tommaso Grossi, had already been treated in 1837 in Paesaggio storico con macchiette, an early and ambitious attempt to develop a pictorial language in which landscape, history, and legend are closely interwoven. First introduced by Massimo d’Azeglio, this approach is reinterpreted here by Bisi with a more contemporary sensibility and stronger commitment to natural observation. Contemporary critics particularly highlighted the monumental, almost theatrical composition of the scene, with the mass of Crusaders gathering on the hill overlooking Jerusalem. This is set within a wide, open landscape which ultimately becomes the true protagonist of the painting.
Painted in 1839 for Filippo Ala Ponzone, L’Arrivo dei primi Crociati a Gerusalemme represents the high point of his career. The previous year, Bisi had been appointed Professor of Landscape at Brera; the chair had been created specifically for him, confirming the full recognition of a genre that had long been considered secondary and was now firmly established in critical esteem.
The subject, drawn from the poem I Lombardi alla prima Crociata by Tommaso Grossi, had already been treated in 1837 in Paesaggio storico con macchiette, an early and ambitious attempt to develop a pictorial language in which landscape, history, and legend are closely interwoven. First introduced by Massimo d’Azeglio, this approach is reinterpreted here by Bisi with a more contemporary sensibility and stronger commitment to natural observation. Contemporary critics particularly highlighted the monumental, almost theatrical composition of the scene, with the mass of Crusaders gathering on the hill overlooking Jerusalem. This is set within a wide, open landscape which ultimately becomes the true protagonist of the painting.
Title
L'arrivo dei primi Crociati a Gerusalemme
Creator
Giuseppe Bisi
Subject
The Arrival of the First Crusaders in Jerusalem
Object Type
Painting
Original Function
Collection
Date
1839
Technique / Support
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
cm 160 x 210
Acquisition
Bequest Filippo Ala Ponzone, 1885
Holding institution
Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera. On long-term loan to the Camera dei Deputati, Rome, since 1927
Inventory number
Reg. 1943, 6
Bibliography
Ginex, Giovanna. Entry no. 115. In Pinacoteca di Brera. Dipinti dell’Ottocento e del Novecento. Collezioni dell’Accademia e della Pinacoteca, vol. 1, Musei e Gallerie di Milano. Milano: Mondadori Electa, 1993. 116–117, ill. (with previous bibliography).
Segramora Rivolta, Paola. Entry no. III.14. In Romantici e Macchiaioli. Giuseppe Mazzini e la grande pittura europea, exhibition catalogue (Genova, Palazzo Ducale, 21 October 2005 – 12 February 2006), edited by Fernando Mazzocca. Milano: Skira, 2005. 246–247, ill. p. 99.
Lissoni, Elena. Entry no. VIII.1. In Tutta in voi la luce mia, exhibition catalogue (Bergamo, Accademia Carrara, 29 September 2023 - 14 January 2024), edited by Fernando Mazzocca, Cristina Rodeschini, and Elena Lissoni. Milano: Skira, 2023. 162–163, ill.
Ritratto di famiglia, I Bisi, una dinastia di artisti nella Lombardia romantica tra Manzoni, Hayez e la principessa Belgiojoso, exhibition catalogue (Tremezzina, Villa Carlotta 20 September - 8 December 2025), edited by Maria Cristina Brunati, Maria Angela Previtera, Sergio Rebora. Milano: Nexo 2025. 58 ill.
Segramora Rivolta, Paola. Entry no. III.14. In Romantici e Macchiaioli. Giuseppe Mazzini e la grande pittura europea, exhibition catalogue (Genova, Palazzo Ducale, 21 October 2005 – 12 February 2006), edited by Fernando Mazzocca. Milano: Skira, 2005. 246–247, ill. p. 99.
Lissoni, Elena. Entry no. VIII.1. In Tutta in voi la luce mia, exhibition catalogue (Bergamo, Accademia Carrara, 29 September 2023 - 14 January 2024), edited by Fernando Mazzocca, Cristina Rodeschini, and Elena Lissoni. Milano: Skira, 2023. 162–163, ill.
Ritratto di famiglia, I Bisi, una dinastia di artisti nella Lombardia romantica tra Manzoni, Hayez e la principessa Belgiojoso, exhibition catalogue (Tremezzina, Villa Carlotta 20 September - 8 December 2025), edited by Maria Cristina Brunati, Maria Angela Previtera, Sergio Rebora. Milano: Nexo 2025. 58 ill.
Conservation status
Fair
Restoration history
Conservation work carried out in 2000 by L'Officina Consorzio -
Restauro Conservazione Opere d'Arte, Roma
Supervisory Authority: Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Metropolitan City of Milan
Internal scientific director: Brera Academy of Fine Arts, Chiara Nenci
Technical director / Qualified restorer: Carlotta Beccaria
Restauro Conservazione Opere d'Arte, Roma
Supervisory Authority: Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Metropolitan City of Milan
Internal scientific director: Brera Academy of Fine Arts, Chiara Nenci
Technical director / Qualified restorer: Carlotta Beccaria
Unique identifier
0300663531