Laocoön

Inscriptions

In plate, bottom left corner, signed: Sisto. Ba. F.; in plate, bottom right corner, publisher and date: Andreas Vaccarius formis Rome / 1606; watermark: Three Mounds, surmounted by the letter F, in a shield.

Label

Ancient sculpture was widely admired in the 16th century for its elegance of carving and complexity of form. Many artists traveled to Rome to draw and study ancient sculptures, which were avidly collected by the nobility and clergy of the period. The statue of Laocoön, the Trojan priest, and his sons as they are attacked by snakes quickly became one of the most famous ancient sculptures after its excavation in Rome in 1506. It was displayed in the Vatican, where it remains today. Admired for its twisting composition, the statue served as inspiration to artists seeking to study the past. Prints of such sculptures not only heightened the fame of these ancient carvings but also made them accessible to wider audiences.

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

Course History

ARTH 28.08 – Italian Art from Renaissance to Baroque: Crisis and Intervention, Elizabeth Kassler-Taub, Winter 2020

ARTH 27.02, Living Stone: Sculpture in Early Modern Italy, Elizabeth Kassler-Taub, Winter 2022

ARTH 27.02, Living Stone: Sculpture in Early Modern Italy, Elizabeth Kassler-Taub, Winter 2022

ITAL 23, 17th and 18th Century Italian Literature, Nancy Canepa, Spring 2022

History 42.01, Women's Gender, and Sexuality Studies 22.01, Gender & European Society, Patrick Meehan, Spring 2024

History 96.39, Saints and Relics, Cecilia Gaposchkin, Spring 2024

Italian 1.01, Introductory Italian I, Noemi Perego, Spring 2024

Italian 11.01, Intensive Italian, Floriana Ciniglia, Spring 2024

Italian 2.01, Introductory Italian II, Floriana Ciniglia, Spring 2024

Italian 3.01, Introductory Italian III, Tania Convertini, Spring 2024

Italian 3.02, Introductory Italian III, Giorgio Alberti, Spring 2024

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

Richard Jung (1911-1986); Susan Schulman Printseller, New York, New York; sold to present collection, 2011.

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