Trajans Column (2 results)

Oblong folio (ca. 39 x 54 cm). With 72 drawings on paper, in pen, ink, and ink wash. Probably early 18th-century gold-tooled red morocco with the elaborate coat of arms of King Philip V of Spain as a centrepiece on both boards, within a double frame with floral corner pieces in the inside corners of the inner frame; gold-tooled board edges, marbled endpapers. Substantial and coherent suite of 72 studies after the reliefs on Trajan's Column in Rome, recording episodes from both Dacian campaigns and reflecting the enduring scholarly and artistic engagement with the monument from the late Renaissance through the early Enlightenment. - Executed in pen, ink, and ink wash by at least two Italian hands working at different dates yet in closely related manner, the drawings are on distinct papers and appear to derive from a common printed model. The later group, on light cream paper, follows the initial narrative scenes at the base of the column and has been mounted in correct sequence; the earlier group, on darker paper, concentrates on the martial episodes higher up the spiral frieze and appears to have been partly mounted in reverse order, opening with victory scenes from the close of the first Dacian War. - The close fit of adjacent sheets indicates that portions were originally drawn as continuous frieze segments, likely on a long strip subsequently cut and mounted, consistent with contemporary practices of copying the column on rolls or rotuli. The handling and state of preservation - especially in the earlier set - suggest historical use as a working reference by artists or antiquarian scholars. The binding of gilt red morocco, bearing the large armorial centrepiece of Philip V of Spain (1683-1746), underscores early prestige ownership and frames the later, uniform 19th-century album leaves to which the drawings are mounted. - The iconography and sequencing correspond most closely to Alfonso Chacón's foundational "Historia utriusque belli Dacici a Traiano Caesare gesti" (Rome, 1576) and its celebrated engraved suites by Francesco Villamena, and later by Giovanni Pietro Bellori with Pietro Santi Bartoli; the present album exemplifies how such printed cycles informed drawn repertoires across two centuries. - A rare survival of an extensive, purpose-assembled corpus of column studies, valuable both as a visual digest of the Trajanic narrative and as evidence for early modern modes of antiquarian study and transmission. - Endpapers slightly faded and browned at edges. Drawings generally browned, each creased at centre; earlier sheets with losses and extensive paper repairs, some laid to support; heavy overall toning and surface dirt; slight offsetting on blank versos of mounts; lacking the illustration formerly mounted on leaf. - Binding with the arms of King Philip V of Spain (1683-1746). - Volker Heenes, "On sixteenth-century copies of the reliefs from the Column of Trajan: Two new drawings from an unknown rotulus", RIHA Journal 0094 (July 2014).

Remarkable collection of 72 drawings of the scenes on Trajan's Column in Rome. They were made by at least two different Italian artists from slightly different periods, but in a cohesive style. The drawings have been mounted into an album bearing the coat of arms of King Philip V of Spain (1683-1746). Trajan's Column proved to be endlessly inspiring in the time period the present drawings were made, as similar collections of studies are known from artists such as Amico Aspertini (1474-1552), Giovanni Battista Cipriani (1727-1785), and Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665). The drawings show a selection of scenes from both the first and second Dacian Wars, as depicted on the friezes of the Trajan Column. They are made on different types of paper, which are easily distinguished by their colour. The later drawings on the light cream coloured paper depict the very first scenes, found at the base of the column. They have been mounted in the album in the right order. The earlier drawings on the darker paper depict the later scenes, including the battles. They appear to have been mounted at least partly in reverse order, as the first few drawings in the album show the victory scenes at the end of the first Dacian War. The cohesive style of the different sets of drawings strongly suggests that the artists used the same model. This was most likely Alfonso Chacón's Historia utriusque belli Dacici a Traiano Caesare gesti (1576), with engravings by Francesco Villamena (ca. 1565-1624), or one of the 17th-century editions with engravings by Giovanni Pietro Bellori (1613-1696) and Pietro Santi Bartoli (1635-1700). The drawings, especially the later ones, fit together perfectly side by side, suggesting they were made on a very long strip of paper and cut into smaller pieces at a later date. They may even have formed a scroll or rotulus, which was not uncommon for studies of Trajan's Column. The condition of especially the earlier drawings implies that the collection was handled often in the past, and possibly served as a reference for either scholars or artists. The binding shows clear signs of wear (the boards are scuffed and rubbed, the leather around the edges and joints is shaved), the work has been re-backed with the original back strip laid down, the album contains 19th-century leaves on which the illustrations are mounted. The marbled endpapers are slightly faded and browned along the edges, the illustrations are somewhat browned and creased/ folded in the middle, the earlier drawings with losses and extensive repairs, some laid onto a support, heavy toning and surface dirt throughout, some slight offsetting on the blank versos of the album leaves, probably lacking the illustration which was mounted on leaf [73]. Otherwise in good condition.l Cf. Heenes, Volker, "On sixteenth-century copies of the reliefs from the Column of Trajan - Two new drawings from an unknown rotulus", in: RIHA Journal (0094), July 2014. Probably early 18th-century gold-tooled red morocco with the elaborate coat of arms of King Philip V of Spain as a centre piece on both boards, within a double frame with floral corner pieces in the inside corners of the inner frame; gold-tooled board edges, marbled endpapers. With 72 drawings on paper, in pen, ink, and ink wash. Pages: [74] ll.