Artwork
Copy after Raphael’s fresco representing the ‘Poets on Mount Parnassus’ in the Stanza della Segnatura (Vatican Palace, Rome, 1510-11), 1864-66
Copy after Raphael’s fresco representing the ‘Poets on Mount Parnassus’ in the Stanza della Segnatura (Vatican Palace, Rome, 1510-11), 1864-66 is a watercolor work on paper by the Impressionist artist Cesari Mariannecci. It dates from 1865 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This watercolour is a copy of Raphael's 'Poets on Mount Parnassus', a fresco in the Vatican Palace's Stanza della Segnatura.
About this work
Overview
This watercolour is a copy of Raphael's 'Poets on Mount Parnassus', a fresco in the Vatican Palace's Stanza della Segnatura. Created between 1864-66 by Cesare Mariannecci, it reproduces a key element of Raphael's original decoration.
Subject & Meaning
The original fresco depicts a gathering of poets on Mount Parnassus, a site associated with Apollo and the Muses, symbolizing the arts, particularly poetry.
History & Provenance
Commissioned by the Arundel Society, Mariannecci's watercolour was later converted into a chromolithograph published in 1873. The Arundel Society gifted it to the National Gallery upon its dissolution in 1897; it was transferred to the V&A in 1993.
Technique & Style
Executed in watercolour, this work is a faithful reproduction of Raphael's fresco, demonstrating Mariannecci's skill in capturing the nuances of the original.
Context
Raphael's fresco was part of a larger decorative scheme in the Vatican Stanze, initiated by Pope Julius II and continued by his successors, reflecting the Renaissance humanist ideals of the time.
Artist & collection
Artist
In the 1860s, Mariannecci spent years hunched over watercolors in Rome, squinting at Raphael’s frescoes until her brush matched their curves.
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