What does predella mean?

Definitions for predella
pre·del·la

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word predella.


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Wiktionary

  1. predellanoun

    A raised step near the base of a Christian altar.

  2. predellanoun

    A series of carvings or paintings on this step, often forming a narrative.

Wikipedia

  1. Predella

    In art a predella (plural predelle) is the lowest part of an altarpiece, sometimes forming a platform or step, and the painting or sculpture along it, at the bottom of an altarpiece, sometimes with a single much larger main scene above, but often (especially in earlier examples), a polyptych or multipanel altarpiece. In late medieval and Renaissance altarpieces, where the main panel consisted of a scene with large figures, it was normal to include a predella below with a number of small-scale narrative paintings depicting events from the life of the dedicatee, whether the Life of Christ, the Life of the Virgin or a saint. Typically there would be three to five small scenes, in a horizontal format. Sometimes a single space shows different scenes in continuous representation. They are significant in art history, as the artist had more freedom from iconographic conventions than in the main panel as they could only be seen from close up. As the main panels themselves became larger and more dramatic, predellas fell from use around 1510-20 in the High Renaissance, although older or more conservative painters continued to use them, for example Luca Signorelli, by then in his 70s, in about 1521. In this case he is thought to have only done the underdrawing for the main scene, leaving the painting to his workshop assistants. But he is thought to have painted the predella scenes himself.They had fallen out of fashion in Italy by the mid 16th century, but continued for a while further north. As altarpieces reached the art market from the 18th century onwards, the predella scenes (and other smaller sections) were often detached and sold separately, in effect as cabinet paintings, and they are now often spread across several museum collections, with their origin often uncertain. Reuniting, at least conceptually, predella panels with the rest of their original settings gave 20th-century art historians a large task, which continues into the 21st century. More generally, and not usually in the English language, a predella is an altar-step, a shelf above and behind an altar, or a piece of furniture with a lower part to kneel on, for prayer, and often a higher part to support the arms. In English the French term prie-dieu is normally used for this. Predel or pretel, was Langobardic for "a low wooden platform that serves as a basis in a piece of furniture". Similar small reliefs are sometimes placed under a larger piece of sculpture. Donatello placed a narrow scene of Saint George Freeing the Princess on the base of his Saint George for Orsanmichele.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Predellanoun

    the step, or raised secondary part, of an altar; a superaltar; hence, in Italian painting, a band or frieze of several pictures running along the front of a superaltar, or forming a border or frame at the foot of an altarpiece

  2. Etymology: [It.]

Wikidata

  1. Predella

    A predella is the platform or step on which an altar stands. In painting, the predella is the painting or sculpture along the frame at the bottom of an altarpiece. In later medieval and Renaissance altarpieces, where the main panel consisted of a scene with large static figures, it was normal to include a predella below with a number of small-scale narrative paintings depicting events from the life of the dedicatee, whether Christ, the Virgin Mary or a saint. Typically there would be three to five small scenes, in a horizontal format. They are significant in art history, as the artist had more freedom from iconographic conventions than in the main panel; they could only be seen from close up. As the main panels themselves became more dramatic, during Mannerism, predellas were no longer painted, and they are rare by the middle of the 16th century. Predella scenes are now often separated from the rest of the altarpiece in museums. Examples of predellas include: ⁕Duccio - the predella of his Maestà - one of the earliest predellas. ⁕Lorenzo Monaco - Incidents in the Life of Saint Benedict ⁕Luca Signorelli - Adoration of the Shepherds

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Predella

    prē-del′a, n. the gradino, the step or ledge sometimes seen at the back of an altar, also the frieze along the bottom of an altar-piece. [It.]

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Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of predella in Chaldean Numerology is: 4

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of predella in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1


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"predella." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/predella>.

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