DUCCIO, DI BUONINSEGNA, a celebrated old painter of Siena, and one of the earliest of the Italian painters, was born in or near Siena, in the latter half of the 13th century. Ile signed himself Duccius, or Magr. Duccius ; Buoninsegua, or Segue, was the name of his master or father, who was still living in 1303. There are some of his works in the Siena Academy.
Duccio was to the school of Siena what Cimabue was to that of Florence. His active career was probably between 1235 and about 1315; ha is mentioned in the Siena archives of 1235, when he may have been about twenty-five or thirty years of ago; and he is mentioned also as late as 131], when he completed his great work, the celebrated altarpiece of the cathedral, which he commenced in October 1308. This picture was the most extensive production of its class in its time, and cost, including gold and ultramarine, about 3000 florins, an immense sum. Duccio's share however was small, though probably not an illiberal ono : it was only sixteen pence or soldi per day, but at this time ten soldi would buy a picture. The picture was on a panuel made of poplar and chestnut, covered over with canvas which was primed with plaster. It was carried in procession to the cathedral, and placed on the high-altar with great ceremony. As the altar was free on all sides, Duccio painted the altarpieces on both sides: on tho principal side, or that facing the people, are represented in large figures the Madonna nud child, surrounded by saints and angels and the four patrons of Siena; on the other side is a series of small pictures illus trating the history of the passion of Christ, in figures about six inches high, all executed with great skill and suprising care, but in the Byzantine style of design. It was removed from the altar in the
part of the 1Gth century to give place to a tabernacle, and was after wards cut in two : the halves were placed in the choir, where they still remain.
There are other works by Duccio extant, but Rumehr has shown Vasari's statement respecting him and the pavement of the cathedral of Siena to be incorrect. The first mention of the pavement in the archives is in 1445, more than a century after the death of Duccio. Vasari states that Duccio was the artist of some of the decorations of the pavement, and was the inventor of the peculiar style in which the figures are executed, which he terms gray-in-gray. But these figures are in various styles—some in a species of Well°, and others iu is kind of mosaic; and they were executed at differeut periods by various artists, and all apparently subsequently to 1445. (lumolar, Italian Researches,' vol. ii, p. 4, at seq.) Titius, vicar-general of Siena, and Duccio's contemporary, says of him, that as many painters proceeded from his studio as the warriors who of old descended out of the Trojan horse. The year of his death is not known ; Della Vale supposes he died about 1340; Rumohr places his death upwards of twenty years earlier.
(Von Rumobr, Italienische Forschunycn ; Vasari, 1 ate de' Pittori, &c., eel. Schorn; Della Valle, Lettere Sanesi, ii 75, 76; Lanai, Stork Pittorica, &c.)