The Victory of Constantine over Massentius

c. 1458 - Fresco, 322 x 764 cm - San Francesco, Arezzo

There is no doubt that this episode hides a very important message and tells us about the events of the time, when Pio II was planning a crusade against the Turks. All the previous attempts to reconcile the two churches had failed, and so, after the Turks had conquered Constantinople, it was clear that the only solution was the reunion of all Christians in the fight against the unfaithful.
In Piero's fresco, Constantine has the face of John VIII the Palaeologist, Emperor of the East. As Constantine lead his soldiers in the battle under the symbol of the Cross, the modern Emperor will defeat the Unfaithful joining all the Christian armies in the battle. Behind this symbolism, however, the battle between Constantine and Massentius is illustrated in a splendid parade from which the noise of the battle has disappeared. The absence of movements immortalises the horses when they are just about to jump, with the warriors shouting with their mouth open, all of them stopped in the stiff structure imposed by the linear perspective. Compared to the battle of San Romano, painted by Paolo Uccello about twenty years earlier which expressed the highest level of the Florentine perspective paintings - inspiring young Piero - in the Arezzo fresco we perceive a new sense of depth between the various figures. The shining light creates a realistic atmosphere and defines the different spatial levels. In this composition Piero succeeded at reproducing, thanks to his sophisticated use of bright colours, all the visual aspects of reality, even the most incorporeal and subtle ones. From the reflections on the armours to the shadows of the horse hooves on the ground and to the immense sky with the spring clouds blown by the wind, the reality of nature is represented faithfully in all its details.