Other Frescoes
Other Frescoes
AFTER A WORK BY THE WORKSHOP OF RAPHAEL (URBINO 1483-ROME 1520)
The Banquet of the Gods
c.1853-1876Albumen print | 35.4 x 86.4 cm (sheet of paper) | RCIN 853970
A photograph reproducing the fresco depicting the Banquet of the Gods from the vault of the entrance loggia of the Farnesina, Agostino Chigi's villa in Rome, which was frescoed with mythological subjects by Raphael's workshop c.1518. On two sheets joined together.
The fresco decoration in the Farnesina illustrates the classical fable of Cupid and Psyche, a story which was also frequently used to decorate Florentine wedding chests. Raphael's fresco scheme comprises two primary scenes in the vault (painted to resemble tapestries), accompanied by a series of episodes painted in the pendentives. The whole is encompassed within a fictive pergola, which gives the viewer the impression of looking up into the heavens. Only the upper part of the loggia is painted (the vault and its supporting pendentives and spandrels).
The fresco decoration in the Farnesina illustrates the classical fable of Cupid and Psyche, a story which was also frequently used to decorate Florentine wedding chests. Raphael's fresco scheme comprises two primary scenes in the vault (painted to resemble tapestries), accompanied by a series of episodes painted in the pendentives. The whole is encompassed within a fictive pergola, which gives the viewer the impression of looking up into the heavens. Only the upper part of the loggia is painted (the vault and its supporting pendentives and spandrels).
Creator(s)
After a work by the workshop of Raphael (Urbino 1483-Rome 1520) (artist)
35.4 x 86.4 cm (sheet of paper)
Acquired for the Prince Consort's Raphael Collection (c.1853-76)
Bibliographic reference(s)
pp.183-89 (Jones/Penny 1983 : Jones, R. and Penny, N. Raphael, 1983)
