| Method | Etching |
| Artist | Giovanni Battista Piranesi |
| Published | In atto d'Ossequio il Cavalier Gio. Batta Piranesi D.D.D. Cavalier Piranesi del. e inc. [Firmin-Didot, Paris, 1836] |
| Dimensions | Image 520 x 355 mm, Plate 535 x 390 mm, Sheet 625 x 475 mm |
| Notes |
Plate 98 of Vasi, candelabri, cippi, sarcofagi, tripodi, lucerne, ed ornamenti antichi disegnati ed incisi dal Cav. Gio. Batt. Piranesi, depicting a large ornamental boar's head rhyton, reportedly found in a tomb on the Via Appia. The rhyton sits atop a fluted column base, which is in turn supported by a frieze of griffins and a funerary inscription bearing a dedication to Urbanus and Fabia (Urbanus Aug. N. Vern. et Fabia Successa). The plate is dedicated to the Earl of Lincoln, most likely Henry Pelham-Clinton, 2nd Duke of Newcastle-under Lyne. The full descriptive text at the bottom of the plate reads: 'Monumento antico ritrovato fra le ruine di un Sepolcro sulla Via Appia vicino a Capo di Bove nella vigna Cenci. Questo monumento a adornato ne'suoi quattro lari d'intagli e figuri di ottima maniera, e per la sua forma bizzarra si rende particolare fra tutti li sogetti di questo genere. Sembra che questo dovesse essere stato eretto per riporvi le ceneri de'servi, e famigliari di qualche Imperatore, e cio si rileva dalli nomi dell'iscrizione Urbanus, et Fabia, Vern..., cioe figli di servo nati in casa del Padrone, le ceneri de'quali furono ritrovate nel sito dove e posta l'iscrizione. Si vede fra le altre antichita dell'Autore.' The Vasi, candelabri, cippi, sarcofagi, tripodi, lucerne, ed ornamenti antichi disegnati ed incisi dal Cav. Gio. Batt. Piranesi was published in two volumes in 1778, and collected together a range of single plates that Piranesi had issued over the preceding decade. As the title suggests, the work was a collection of detailed drawings of vases, funeral monuments, and various ornaments, intended as much as a seller's catalogue as an exercise in antiquarian illustration. Piranesi's collaborations with notable dealers of antiquities like Gavin Hamilton and Thomas Jenkyns meant that his skills as a restorator, decorator, and dealer in his own right were in high demand. Many of the antiquities featured in the Vasi, Candelabri, cippi... made their way into the collections of British grand tourists, as the dedications on the plates suggest. Giovanni Battista (also Giambattista) Piranesi (1720 – 1778) was an Italian artist famous for his etchings of Rome and of fictitious and atmospheric "prisons" (the Carceri d'Invenzione). He was a major Italian printmaker, architect and antiquarian. The son of a Venetian master builder, he studied architecture and stage design, through which he became familiar with Illusionism. During the 1740's, when Rome was emerging as the centre of Neoclassicism, Piranesi began his lifelong obsession with the city's architecture. He was taught to etch by Giuseppe Vasi and this became the medium for which he was best known. Wilton-Ely 993, F706, C604 Condition: Central horizontal fold, as issued. Minor foxing and time toning. Bird-and-house watermark (Robinson No.87). |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £650.00 |
| Stock ID | 51752 |