Portret van Pietro Verri

About this artwork

collector's mark: Lugt 2228

Art Historical Context

**Portrait of Pietro Verri *Giuseppe Benaglia, 6–1830,, 324 × 234 mm* This elegant engraving captures the likeness of Pietro Verri (1728–1797), a pivotal Italian Enlightenment thinker, economist, and reformer. Verri founded the Milanese Academy of Fistole and championed economic liberalism and legal reforms through works like *Meditazioni sulla economia politica*. Created well after his death, the portrait reflects the era's reverence for intellectual luminaries, preserving his image for posterity amid Italy's Napoleonic upheavals and push toward unification. Giuseppe Benaglia, an Italian engraver active in the early 19th century, employs the intricate technique of engraving—incising lines into a metal plate with a burin to produce rich, detailed prints. This medium was ideal for portraits, enabling affordable reproduction and wide dissemination of notable figures' images in scholarly circles. The sheet's generous dimensions suggest it was designed for display in libraries or collections, blending neoclassical precision with expressive depth. Bearing the collector's mark Lugt 2228—linked to esteemed European holdings—this work underscores its cultural value, bridging Enlightenment ideals with 19th-century print culture. A testament to Verri's enduring legacy, it invites visitors to ponder the power of the printed portrait in shaping historical memory.