A Roman Altar at Palestrina

A Roman Altar at Palestrina
A Roman Altar at Palestrina
A Roman Altar at Palestrina
Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
title=Credit line
Artist
Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
Title
A Roman Altar at Palestrina
Date
c.1752-56 (undated)
Medium
Black chalk heightened with white on brownish-grey paper
Dimensions
Metric: 148 x 143 mm
Imperial: 5 3/4 x 5 1/2 in.
Accession Number
WA1855.134
Wilson Online Reference
D172
Provenance
Chambers Hall Gift, 1855
Signature/inscription
Inscribed by the artist in black chalk above the lower margin: 'at Palestrina'
Collectors' marks
[1] Lower right corner: Chambers Hall (Lugt 551)
[2] Lower left corner: Oxford University Galleries (Lugt 2003)
Mount inscriptions
[1] Recto upper right corner on old washline mount in reinforced brown ink: No 6
Subject
An ancient altar is shown, carved with Victories holding swags. The town of Palestrina is about 20 kms south of Tivoli.
Related Prints
E72/2 Hastings after Wilson, 'Near Rome, 1820, The British Museum
E72/38 Hastings after Wilson, View on the Tiber with Rome in the Distance, The British Museum
Related Paintings
P64A A View of the Tiber with Rome in the Distance, Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
P156 Near Rome, Private Collection, England
Critical commentary
As noted by Ford, altars carved with swags appear in Wilson's paintings, such as P64A A View of the Tiber with Rome in the Distance, Yale Center for British Art and P156 Near Rome, Private Collection, England.
Previous Cat/Ref Nos
1898
Bibliography
Ford 1951, p. 53, no. 13; WGC, pp. 221-22 under pl. 113b; Brown 1982, p. 664, no. 1898, pl. 547; Spencer-Longhurst 2012, pp. 65, 67, fig. 37
More Information
Mounted with D19 A Sandalo, Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford (WA1855.148)