Four Designs for the Interiors of Tazza, Incorporating Portrait Medallions of Roman Emperors

Inscriptions

Inscribed, in black ink, at center of top left circle: IMMODICA / IRAGIGNIT / INSANIUM; inscribed, in black ink, at bottom of top left circle: THEODOR DE BRY, FECIT ET EXCVDEBAT; inscribed, in black ink, at center of top right circle: CLEMENTEAE SIS / CVLTOR, SAEVITIAE / VERO DETESTATOR; inscribed, in black ink, at bottom of top right circle: T . D . B . F . E . EX .; inscribed, in black ink, at center of lower left circle: MAXIMA / EGESTAS EST / AVARITIA; inscribed, in black ink, at bottom of lower left circle: THEO' DE BRY . FE . ET . EX; inscribed, in black ink, at center of lower right circle: PRAECLARISSIMA / VIRTVTVM EST / IVSTITIA; inscribed, in black ink, at bottom of lower right circle: THE' . DE . BRY . FE' . ET . EX

Label

The prolific engraver and publisher Theodor de Bry created a series of designs for tazze that demonstrate how the popularity of antique coins influenced designs in contemporary metalworking, thereby bridging the boundaries between the past and the present. The form of a tazza, a wide, shallow cup on a foot, was also a form associated with Antiquity. In this engraving, each tazza features three coins of Roman emperors set in the rim, connected by bands of grotesque ornament of de Bry’s own invention. While building on the contemporary practice of incorporating ancient coins into vessels, the engravings also encouraged metalworkers to re-create and extend the past through variations of ornament.

From the 2024 exhibition Living with Sculpture: Presence and Power in Europe, 1400–1750, curated by Elizabeth Rice Mattison, Andrew W. Mellon Curator of Academic Programming and Curator of European Art, and Ashley B. Offill, Curator of Collections

Exhibition History

Living with Sculpture: Presence and Power in Europe, 1400–1750, Citrin Family Gallery and Engles Family Gallery, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, March 23, 2024–March 22, 2025.

Provenance

Carolyn Bullard Fine Prints and Drawings, Dallas, Texas; sold to present collection, 2006.

Catalogue Raisonne

Hollstein 191-194, only states; De Jong / De Groot, Ornamentprenten I, 15 de & 16 de Eeua, Rijksprentenkabinet, Amsterdam, 1988, nos. 57.1-57.4.

This record is part of an active database that includes information from historic documentation that may not have been recently reviewed. Information may be inaccurate or incomplete. We also acknowledge some language and imagery may be offensive, violent, or discriminatory. These records reflect the institution’s history or the views of artists or scholars, past and present. Our collections research is ongoing.

We welcome questions, feedback, and suggestions for improvement. Please contact us at: Hood.Collections@dartmouth.edu

Subject