Allegory of the maritime glory of Tuscany
Artist/Maker
Material / Technique
Dimensionsh x w: Mått 10,3 x 18,2 cm
Inventory numberNMH 157/1866:46
Other titlesTitle (sv): Allegori över Toscanas maritima ära Title (en): Allegory of the maritime glory of Tuscany
DescriptionDescription: Watermark: Balance in oval Provenance: Nicodeumus Tessin the Younger ; C.G. Tessin (Cat. 1730, p.4 as Volterrano) ; Kongl. Biblioteket This is an unpublished preparatory sketch for one of Volterrano's most important early commissions, for a series of frescoes celebrating glories of the Medici family in the courtyard of the villa of Petraia. According to Baldinucci (V, p. 148), Don Lorenzo de' Medici commissioned the paintings in 1636 when Volterrano was only twenty-five years old. Baldinucci described the subject of the present drawing and the extant fresco at Petraia accurately, a view of the port of Livorno with the statue by Pietro Tacca of Ferdinando I, with four slaves attached to its base. Other drawings for the project are in the Uffizi (3328 S) and at Christ Church (0245). In both the present drawing and the one at Christ Church, Volterrano depicted the statue of Ferdinando I, but the Swedish sheet is distinguished by the presence of cannons and soldiers, while the one in Great Britain contains an allegory of Florence and the Sea [Bjurström, It. Drawings, cat. no. 1142]
Collection
Geographical origin
TechniqueDrawing, Wash drawing
Object category