Smarthistory – At the Scrovegni Chapel, Padua

Virtually explore the Scrovegni Chapel with Smarthistory as your guide

videos + essays

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Take a tour of the Arena Chapel in virtual reality—it's almost as good as being there in person!

Like a comic without words, these frescoes tell the story of Christ and his parents—and give their patron a cameo.

Christ sits as Judge, separating the blessed from the damned. In Hell, money lenders—like Scrovegni—appear hanged.

In this powerful scene, Mary cradles the dead Christ. A simple landscape and mourning crowd direct us to her grief.

With their emotion, gestures, mass, and volume, Giotto’s people seem real—and time moves with them.

Painting covers every inch of this chapel, from the spiraling narrative cycle to the star-studded blue sky.