Frontespizio del Commento di Servio a Virgilio

The Frontispiece of Servius' Commentary on Virgil is a page illuminated by Simone Martini for Francesco Petrarca in 1340. It is part of the Ms. A 79 inf. (formerly S.P. 10/27) preserved in the Ambrosiana Library in Milan.

The work testifies to the friendship born between the two artists at the court of Benedict XII in Avignon: according to the interpretation of a poem by Petrarch, Simon would have painted a portrait of Laura (sonnets LXXVII and LXXVIII of the Canzoniere). Although some think that the verses may refer instead to Simone da Cremona, a miniaturist active in Naples since about 1335, the Martini hypothesis is more likely, also for the relationship documented by the miniature of the Commentary.

The verses read:

The illuminated page shows, with a wealth of naturalistic details and with a refined style with soft colors typical of the artist, the Latin commentator Servius, who moves away from a semi-transparent curtain to show the great poet lying down while he seems to draw inspiration looking at the sky, with pen and book in hand. The act of pulling the curtain is a clear metaphor for the commentator's disclosure. A soldier, a shepherd and a farmer attend the scene, alluding to the epic, pastoral, bucolic themes sung in the poet's work.