Speculum Romanae Magnificentiae: Subjects after Antique Cameos and Gems
Medium
Engraving, first state
Dimensions
Sheet: 10 7/8 × 16 5/16 in. (27.7 × 41.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1941
Accession Number
41.72(2.169)
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the Renaissance revival of classical antiquity with *Speculum Romanae Magnificentiae: Subjects after Antique Cameos and Gems*, a captivating engraving from around 1550–70. Created by Italian artists including Enea Vico, Battista Franco, and an anonymous 16th-century engraver, under publisher Antonio Lafreri, this first-state print measures an impressive 10 7/8 × 16 5/16 inches. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, it faithfully reproduces intricate designs from ancient Roman cameos and gems, showcasing dynamic scenes of male and female nudes, hor...
About the Artist
Enea Vico|Antonio Lafreri|Anonymous, Italian, 16th century|Battista Franco · 1523–1567
Enea Vico (1523–1567) was born in Parma and came of age during the final, energetic decades of Italian Renaissance printmaking. By 1541 he had made his way to Rome, where he entered the orbit of the engraver and publisher Tommaso Barlacchi and began his professional career. In Rome, Vico encountered the work of the most celebrated printmakers of the preceding generation—Marcantonio Raimondi, Agost...