Open IIIF manifest What is IIIF IIIF viewers

Dante and Virgil passing over the Sea of Traitors

Maker

(artist)
1554-1627

Formerly attributed to
(artist)
1527-1585

Title

Date of Production

1591

Medium

black chalk, pen and brown ink, brown wash on laid paper, laid down

Dimensions

Height: 19.4 cm
Width: 24.6 cm

Accession Number

D.1952.RW.566

Mode of Acquisition

Robert Clermont Witt, bequest, 1952

Credit

The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

Copyright

Work in the public domain

Location

Not currently on display

Keywords

traitors

Label Text

This drawing illustrates a passage from Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy (Inferno, XXXIII). Having arrived in the last circle of Hell, Dante and his companion, the Roman poet Virgil, cross a frozen lake where traitors are eternally imprisoned in ice. While Virgil looks on, Dante finds Count Ugolino della Gherardesca, who pauses from gnawing the back of Archbishop Ruggieri’s head. The inscription along the lower margin suggests that the drawing was presented to Pietro de’ Medici in 1591, who resided in Spain at the time.

Provenance

Nathaniel Hone, London (1718-1784), L.2793; possibly his estate sale, Hutchins (London), 7-14 February 1785, lot 25 on 3rd night (lot of 12 drawings, described as 'Cangiaso, etc.'; no buyer's name listed); Reverend Dr Henry Wellesley, Oxford (1791-1866); his estate sale, Sotheby’s (London), 25 June - 10 July 1866, lot 324; purchased there by Rowbotham (a vendor of drawings to the BM around 1892, who then lived at 20 Knowles Hill Crescent, Lewisham); Richard Johnson, Manchester and Chislehurst (active c. 1850-1875, d. c. 1877), L.2216; his estate sale, J.C. Platt (London), 23 - 26 April 1912, lot 115 (no buyer's name listed); E. Parsons & Sons (London), 1916, no. 878; purchased there by Sir Robert Witt, London (1872-1952), L.2228b (£2.1); Witt Bequest 1952

Exhibition History

Drawings Gallery Display - Unseen, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 15/01/2015-29/03/2015

The Primacy of Drawing, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, 21/09/1991-03/11/1991; City Museum and Art Gallery, Stoke on Trent, 09/11/1991-05/01/1992; Graves Art Gallery, Sheffield, 11/01/1992-23/02/1992

Literature

Newcome, Mary, 'Drawings by Paggi, 1577-1600' in 'Antichita Viva', 1991 - 14-23
p. 19
Illus. p. 18, fig. 6

Inscriptions

Inscription: Cangiaso.

Inscription: Al' Sig.r D.' Pietro Medici in Spagna. l'anno 1591 1_ff.a z.e 1/2----

Collector's mark: Nathaniel Hone (L.2793)

Collector's mark: Richard Johnson (L.2216)

Collector's mark: Sir Robert Witt (L.2228b)

Watermark: none evident in the drawing sheet. Backing sheet (historic), Verso: centre: “J WHATMAN”.

Information on this object may be incomplete and will be updated as research progresses. We are particularly committed to addressing any discriminatory or offensive language and ideas that might be present in our records. To help improve this record, and to enquire about images of The Courtauld Gallery Collection, please email gallery.collectionsonline@courtauld.ac.uk. Find out more about using and licensing our images.

____________________________

Buy a print from our collection