Title
"Minerva Goddess of Wisdom Overcoming Time"
Date
c. 1721
Description
"MINERVA GODDESS OF WISDOM OVERCOMING TIME" (Italian, c. 1721) by Venetian artist Giovanni Antonio Pellegrini (1675-1741), from the workshop of Jules Allard et ses Fils, Paris. This ceiling painting depicting the helmeted goddess Minerva seated in the heavens is installed in Alva Vanderbilt’s bedroom at Marble House. The main circular scene shows Minerva with Time asleep at her feet, with four allegorical female figures reclining before them. Four separate smaller oval scenes accompany this, each with a putto holding attributes of the arts and sciences. The ceiling painting was originally installed at the Library of the Palazzo Pisani in Venice, 1721-1722.
Cultural Origin
Italian
Medium
oil on canvas applied to plaster
Extent
Center panel: 9' diameter
Corner ovals: 4'8" x 2'
Corner ovals: 4'8" x 2'
Collection
Source
Gift of the Estate of Mr. Frederick H. Prince.
Identifier
PSNC.10544.1-.5
Related Materials
"Un Soffitto Ritrovato Di Palazzo Pisani" by Alessandro Bettagno; in Arte Veneta, XXIX, 1975; pp 224-226.
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