The Chimneypiece of Francesco Borromini at the Casa Filippi

Borromini’s Chimney at the Casa Filippi in Rome

Francesco Borromini (1599-1667) was the master architect of the Roman Baroque. He was also a master decorator. In 1641 he created for the Sala di Recreatione at the Casa Filippi a chimney piece extraordinaire. It has an oval hearth and convex mantel set into a concave wall. Eighteen feet long, it is of marble (except for a stucco top), made from a single piece of marble Borromini found during the excavations for the Oratory of Saint Philip. The coarse marble is white with greenish grey streaks that give the chimneypiece a fabulous luminosity in which the individual crystals glitter in the light. It is shaped like a tent, with a convex oval that projects into the Sala. Borromini made a doric frieze on the fringe of the tent, and placed stars, flaming hearts and lilies in the metopes, below which are little tassels.The elaborate fluted panels came from a drawing of Roman columns by G.B.Montano. The pious brothers of the Oratorians wanted to remove the chimneypiece, which they thought was too showy. Fortunately Borromini prevailed.