The Duke of Mantua Surrounded by Pagan Deities
Printmaker
Oliviero Gatti
(Italian, born ca. 1579 – active ca. 1630)
Artistafter
Lodovico Carracci
(Italian, 1555 - 1619)
Dateca. 1616-19
CultureItalian
MediumEngraving on paper
ClassificationPrints
Credit LineMuseum purchase, 1972
Object numberSN8713
This rare and unusual engraving from The Ringling's collection is by Oliviero Gatti, an accomplished printmaker active in Bologna in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, after a design by the painter Lodovico Carracci. Though Lodovico never achieved the fame of his cousins Annibale and Agostino, who were also painters, he was a key figure in the development of Bolognese art in the late 16th century.
This work was likely created as a frontispiece to a dissertation at the University of Bologna, and is dedicated to Ferdinando I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua (1587-1626). In the center, the duke appears in full plate armor, with helmet and sword, while his coat of arms is shown prominently below. On his breastplate is the Maltese cross; as with many sons of noble Italian families, he was admitted to the Order of Malta as a young boy.
The duke is shown embracing a palm tree, surrounded by six pagan gods and goddesses, each of whom holds his or her sacred tree. The work is full of esoteric Latin inscriptions and allegorical meaning, which would have appealed to the duke's educated tastes.
On View
Not on viewImage: 14 1/8 × 15 in. (35.9 × 38.1 cm)
