Studies & Designs: View of a Bridge with Castel Sant'Angelo behind

Studies & Designs: View of a Bridge with Castel Sant'Angelo behind
Studies & Designs: View of a Bridge with Castel Sant'Angelo behind
Studies & Designs: View of a Bridge with Castel Sant'Angelo behind
The Trustees of the British Museum
title=Credit line
Artist
John Whessell (c.1760-1806) after Wilson
Title
Studies & Designs: View of a Bridge with Castel Sant'Angelo behind
Date
Published 1811
Medium
Soft-ground etching, with etching
Dimensions
Metric: 155 x 209 mm
Imperial: 6 1/8 x 8 1/4 in.
Accession Number
1863,1114.222
Wilson Online Reference
E60/18
Description
View of a bridge with Castel Sant'Angelo behind, a boat with fisherman in front and a man holding a gun sitting under large trees in the left foreground - all within an etched rectangular border
Provenance
Bought from Samuel & Sons, 1863
Signature/inscription
Lettered below the image 'Wilson del | Whessell Sc'
Subject
The Castel Sant'Angelo, seen in the distance, was initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausoleum for himself and his family. Constructed on the right bank of the Tiber from 134-139 AD, the building, once the tallest in Rome, was later used by the popes as a fortress and castle. According to legend the Archangel Michael appeared above it, sheathing his sword as a sign of the end of the plague of 590 AD.
Related Drawings
D53/21 Studies and Designs done in Rome in the Year 1752, p. 21, Victoria & Albert Museum, London
D119 The Castle of Sant' Angelo, Rome, Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
D119A The Castle of St Angelo, Rome, Tate, London
Related Prints
E60/17A Studies & Designs: Castle of St Angelo, National Museum Wales, Cardiff
Versions
See 'Links' tab
Critical commentary
From a set of small soft-ground etchings by Whessell at the British Museum ( E60/1- E60/44). These were made after Wilson's drawings in the sketchbook of the same title at the Victoria & Albert Museum (D53-D53/81).The present print is taken from p. 21 (D53/21). In 1811 the etchings were published by the Oxford-based publisher, Robert Archer in more than one format - this one with an introduction and list of subscribers.