Allegory of Divine Providence and Barberini Power (Cortona) Allegory of Divine Providence and Barberini Power (Cortona) The Allegory of Divine Providence and Barberini Power is a fresco by Italian painter Pietro da Cortona, filling the large ceiling of the grand salon of the Palazzo Barberini in Rome, Italy. Begun in 1633, it was nearly finished in three years; upon Cortona's return from Venice, it was extensively reworked to completion in 1639. The Palazzo, since the 1620s, had been the palatial home of the Barberini family headed by Maffeo Barberini, by then Urban VIII, who had launched an extensive program of refurbishment of the city with art and architecture.
Maffeo Barberini (1631–1685) Caravaggio. Barberini also commissioned paintings by Niccolò Tornioli. In 1653, Barberini reopened the Teatro delle Quattro Fontane after it had been closed for more than 10 years while his uncles and father had been in exile. It continued to host operatic performances until it was damaged by fire and abandoned. Maffeo Barberini and Olimpia Giustiniani had five children: Maffeo Barberini (1631–1685) Maffeo Barberini (19 August 1631 – 28 November 1685) was an Italian nobleman of the Barberini and "Prince of Palestrina". He was appointed Gonfalonier of the Church. Born in 1631, Barberini was one of the five children of Taddeo