The bridge of Soldino (1869)

Signed lower right: “Cav. Prof. Ann. Angelini 1868 “and” C.P. Ann. Angelini fe ‘: 1869 “

Provenance: Serra of Genoa aristocratic family

Bibliography: Art in Umbria in the nineteenth century, catalog of the exhibition (Umbria, 23 September 2006-7 January 2007), Milan, Silvana Editoriale, p.158.

The Soldino Bridge is a curious and unusual view of Rome, since it represents the Ponte dei Fiorentini, which was destroyed in July 1941. It stood near the church of San Giovanni dei Fiorentini, as can be seen from the painting. In fact, the majestic dome, built by Carlo Maderno in 1614, forms the backdrop to the metal structure of the bridge. Also popularly called ‘ponte de fero’ by the Romans, it was commissioned by the Papal Administration, to join Via Giulia to Via della Lungara, and was built in 1863 by a French firm that used steel cables and rods for the suspended structure and latticework sides. To cross it, pedestrians had to pay a toll of five cents, i.e. one penny. Hence, the name ‘Ponte del soldino’ (bridge of the penny), by which it is known to Romans, who today cross the Ponte Principe Amedeo that replaced it.

Annibale Angelini’s picturesque view, dating from six years after the bridge was built, is not only evidence of a ‘vanished’ Rome, but is also an invaluable narrative of the daily life that took place around the banks of the Tiber in the late 1860s, just before the breach of Porta Pia on 20 September 1870. Shortly afterwards, Pius IX, a pope very close to the painter from Perugia, would be deposed, the Papal States abolished and Rome would become the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, under Victor Emmanuel II. This date is at least important today, given the imminent celebrations, in 2020, of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of Rome as capital city.

The Soldino Bridge certainly reflects Annibale Angelini’s debt to Lorrain’s classical views, especially given the diffuse luminosity and lenticular attention to detail. From a perspective point of view, the Umbrian painter gives us a perfect and exact construction through the juxtaposition of Roman architecture, including San Giovanni dei Fiorentini and the Castel Sant’Angelo in the background.

The small figures, like characters within a theatrical setting, represent a range of types from Papal Rome of the time: a group of Zuavi soldiers, volunteers who had come from France in 1861 to defend the Papal States from the seizure of Rome by the Kingdom of Italy, the small group of men playing cards a little further on, the women carrying laundry, the boats plying the waters. All permeated by a solid balance that is effectively matched by the almost Flemish meticulousness also found in the perfect reflection of the Church in the placid waters of the Tiber.

Elena Lago