The Chiarito Tabernacle

Pacino di Buonaguida's Chiarito Tabernacle, painted around 1340 and now in the J. Paul Getty Museum, is a rare surviving example of a portable devotional tabernacle designed for domestic or private worship in Trecento Florence. Named for the Chiarito monastery with which it was associated, the tabernacle combines a central devotional image with flanking narrative scenes in a compact hinged format that could be opened for prayer and closed for transport. Such intimate devotional objects served the growing demand among Florence's prosperous mercantile class for private religious images.

Executed in tempera and gold on panel in a small tabernacle format with hinged wings, the work showcases Pacino's miniaturist skill with densely detailed scenes rendered at an intimate scale. The rich gold grounds, vibrant colors, and precisely drawn figures demonstrate the refined craftsmanship characteristic of Florentine devotional painting for private patrons.