Renaissance 2/2025 - 24 Fig. 1: Giovanni Battista Crespi Cerano, Melchiorre Gherardini, Gero- lamo Chignoli, Madonna delle Grazie, 1631, Oil on canvas, 210 x 315 cm, Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milano. As history runs its course, there are times when hu- manity witnesses the collapse of its own identity, soci- opolitical system, and cultural order. Recent studies have made clear how history is, on closer inspection, punctuated by catastrophes and sudden changes in the forces in equilibrium, and how such changes, even when chaotic, need to be understood. 1 To phrase it in the words of Spinks and Zika: "Disaster wreaks terrible havoc in the lives of individu- als and communities. It destroys infrastructure, brings death, and produces violent emotions and trauma. But it also reinforces coping strategies and develops new pathways to recovery." 2 When addressing the complexity of such periods, epochal events are frequently regarded solely as end- points, thereby obscuring the potential for transforma- tion tion or regeneration that they might offer. In this con- text, Button and Schuller argue that scholarly analyses often focus solely on the triggering event, neglecting the broader disaster continuum, which includes the preceding historical context and the long-term recov- ery process. 3 This phenomenon is particularly evident in studies of 17th-century Milanese art. Historiography, espe- cially since the Enlightenment, has largely portrayed Milan’s period under Spanish rule (1554–1700) as one of decline. 4 The pessimistic view is reinforced when considering the aftermath of the 1630 epidemic, an epoch-making event that profoundly influenced the city’s history. 5 This era is often seen as a time of pro- found crisis in the arts, devoid of significant initiatives, and marked by what has been interpreted as a leth- argy in pictorial production throughout the city, which lasted for approximately twenty years. However, this Emma Ferrari In my End is my Beginning Painters in Milan after the Plague of 1630