Domenico Beccafumi, 'The Story of Papirius', mid 1520s

Aulus Gellius’s second-century AD Noctes Atticae (Attic Nights) recounts how the young boy Papirius was sworn to secrecy by his father when he accompanied him to the Roman Senate. Asked by his mother about the subject discussed, Papirius lied and claimed they had debated whether it was better for a man to have two wives or a woman two husbands. Panic-stricken, Papirius’s mother rallied the matrons of Rome to petition the Senate that women might have two husbands. Their appeal was met by outrage. Papirius came forward to explain the confusion. Impressed by the boy’s wit and loyalty, the Senate honoured him with the surname Praetextatus, after the toga praetexta worn by young boys.

Beccafumi has represented the two episodes of the tale in a continuous narrative. In the middle ground at the far left, Papirius, wearing a short purple toga praetexta, is questioned by his mother. Crossing his hands over his chest, he refuses to betray the senators. To the right, the matrons of Rome flock to the Senate, while at the centre of the hall Papirius is shown again explaining the misunderstanding. The panel is painted in Beccafumi’s very distinctive style, with sharp colours, angular forms, elegant, swaying figures and expressive faces. The delicate curved foliage on the tree is particularly unusual and striking.

The city of Rome is identified not only by the Colosseum and Triumphal Arch, but also by several other ancient and contemporary structures. The Senate hall is part Renaissance loggia, part ancient temple, and recalls representations of the Temple of Solomon, the archetypal site of wise judgement. Anachronistically included, to the right of the hall, is the medieval tower known as the Torre de’ Conti with its upper storey in ruins, the remains of the Basilica of Constantine or Maxentius, and the three surviving columns of the Temple of Vespasian and Titus. In the distance are the crumbling remains of buildings on the Palatine hill. Anachronistically, the scene is meant to have taken place before these ruins were even built. Flanking the bridge leading to the Castel Sant’Angelo at the far right of the panel are two fifteenth-century chapels as they appeared until 1534. Beyond the castle, the Borgia tower is crowned with the cupola completed by Bramante in 1511 but destroyed by fire in 1521. The inclusion of these monuments strongly suggests the painting was made before 1521.

The aqueduct in ruins at the far left is perhaps intended as the Aqua Anio Vetus. One of the oldest aqueducts in Rome, the Anio Vetus was built by Papirius Praetextatus. Beyond the aqueduct is a medieval church reminiscent of Santa Maria in Cosmedin and a circular building probably intended for the Theatre of Marcellus, with the projecting top of Trajan’s triumphal column just visible in the far distance.

This probably once formed part of a series of decorative panels for the bedchamber of a patrician palace. Beccafumi had already designed such a scheme in 1519 for the bedchamber of Francesco Petrucci, a wealthy merchant and nephew of the ruler of Siena, Pandolfo Petrucci. Beccafumi’s near-exclusive work for the ruling Petrucci family in Siena and their supporters in this period narrows the number of likely patrons for this panel. During this period, the Sienese were particularly keen on emphasising their Roman origins through written histories and decorative schemes which referred to Siena’s mythological foundation by the nephews of Romulus, the founder of Rome.