Design for Overmirror Decoration, Blank Roundel with Grotesques, for the Noble Cabinet of the Palazzo Altieri
1789â1793
Classification
architecture
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Museum purchase through gift of various donors and from Eleanor G. Hewitt Fund
Accession Number
1938-88-1842
About this artwork
Research in Progress
Art Historical Context
Giuseppe Barberi, a Italian architect and designer active late 18th-century Rome1746–1809), created this intricate *Design for Overmirror Decoration, Blankel with Grotesques between 1789 and 1793. Intended for the Noble Cabinet of the Palazzo Altieri—a grand Baroque palace belonging to one of Rome's noble families—this architectural drawing outlines an elegant overmantel or overmirror ornament. At its center is a blank roundel, a circular panel framed by whimsical grotesques: fantastical motifs blending human, animal, and vegetal forms, inspired by ancient Roman discoveries. Dating to the Neo...