La decorazione esterna della cappella di Santo Stefano a Giaglione : immagine religiosa e funzione nel contesto alpino della valle di Susa.

The pictorial decoration of the chapel of St. Stephen in Giaglione is an emblematic example of the artistic production in the Susa valley. At the end of the 15th century, the workshop of Bartolomeo and Sebastiano Serra from Pinerolo depicted the Virtues, the Vices, and the Infernal Punishments on the external wall of the chapel. Although it resumes a figurative model known on both the Piedmontese and French sides of the Alps, the examined pictorial cycle presents original elements. In particular, the panels representing Hell do not conform to previous depictions found in the territory between Italy and France but are derived directly from the engravings included in the Art de bien vivre et de bien mourir, first published in 1492 in Paris. The identification of the Parisian engravings as a reference model for the last register in Giaglione allows, in the first place, to date the depiction to the last decade of the 15th century, placing the first edition of the Art de bien vivre et de bien mourir as a post quem. Moreover, this comparison reveals how even a production considered a modest outcome of a periphery could be updated on the coeval developments of the major artistic centres. Ultimately, new evidence that emerged from historical sources invite us to believe that the commission of the painting represented both the political and spiritual interests of the community of Giaglione and a pastoral policy aimed at consolidating its presence in the valley.