Plate 27: The female personification of Fortitude, holding a pillar and stroking a lion; from the 'Galeria nel Palazzo Farnese in Roma ... dipinta da Annibale Caracci'
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Sheet: 5 7/8 × 4 1/8 in. (15 × 10.5 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ornament & Architecture
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1951
Accession Number
51.501.3545
Art Historical Context
Behold Plate 27 from the celebrated series *Galeria nel Farnese in Roma*, an exquisite etching capturing Annibale Carracci's fresco of Fortitude, the female personification of strength. Here, she gracefully holds a pillar—symbolizing endurance—while gently stroking a lion, evoking mastery over wild forces. Created in 1657 by etchers Carlo Cesi, François Coll, and Arnold van Wester after Carracci's original, this intimate print measures just 5 7/8 × 4 1/8 inches, perfect for collectors' cabinets. Annibale Carracci, a pioneer of Baroque art, painted the Galleria Farnese frescoes (ca. 1597–1604)...
About the Artist
Carlo Cesi|François Collignon|Arnold van Westerhout|Annibale Carracci · 1612–1692
Comment on works: religious