The River God Tiber (Study for a fresco, Miracle of the Snow, or the Foundation of Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome in the Canigiani chapel of S. Felicita, Florence)

Executed in fine pen and wash, the study displays Poccetti’s characteristic fluid line work and subtle tonal modulation. The reclining god is rendered with a gentle expression and relaxed posture, while the ancillary elements—the wolf’s head and infant’s face—are sketched with minimal strokes, indicating their provisional role in the final composition.

Created as a preparatory drawing for the fresco known as the Miracle of the Snow or the Foundation of Santa Maria Maggiore, the work remained in the artist’s workshop before being associated with the Canigiani chapel. Its survival provides insight into the planning stages of large-scale religious commissions in late‑16th‑century Florence.

During the Italian Renaissance, river deities were frequently personified as bearded men leaning on or holding large urns that symbolized the flow of water. Poccetti’s study follows this iconographic tradition while integrating local Roman myth, reflecting the period’s interest in merging classical motifs with Christian narratives.