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Source Description
At first glace, this is simply a scene in a darkened inn frequented by the poor and down-and-out. Embedding a classical allegory (a symbolic image) in such a subject makes it especially intriguing. Each person acts out one of the five senses: sound is represented by the woman with a lute, at center; taste, by the man emptying a flask of wine; smell, by the young man with a melon; sight, by the man on the right holding a pair of spectacles; and touch, by the two people who are fighting.Paolini's allegory dates from his early years in Rome, where he studied the paintings of Caravaggio (1571-1610), known for their realism and strong chiaroscuro (modeling in light and shade).
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
15244
label
Allegory of the Five Senses
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
15244
sourceUrl
contentType
drawing
stage
normalized
title
Allegory of the Five Senses
description
At first glace, this is simply a scene in a darkened inn frequented by the poor and down-and-out. Embedding a classical allegory (a symbolic image) in such a subject makes it especially intriguing. Each person acts out one of the five senses: sound is represented by the woman with a lute, at center; taste, by the man emptying a flask of wine; smell, by the young man with a melon; sight, by the man on the right holding a pair of spectacles; and touch, by the two people who are fighting.Paolini's allegory dates from his early years in Rome, where he studied the paintings of Caravaggio (1571-1610), known for their realism and strong chiaroscuro (modeling in light and shade).
provenance
Philippe, duke of Orléans [d. 1723]; Louis Philippe Joseph, duke of Orléans, Philippe Egalité [d. 1793], by inheritance; Orléans Sale, Coxe, Burrell and Foster, London, February 14, 1800; Dr. Frank Lewarne, Cricklade, Wiltshire; Cricklade Town Hall, Wiltshire, October 1945, by gift; Private collection, London; Sale, Sotheby's, London, December 8, 1993; Mattiesen Fine Art Ltd., London; Walters Art Museum, 2003, by purchase.
date
ca. 1630
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Painting & Drawing
paintings
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
125.1
height
173
dimensionsRaw
49 1/4 x 68 1/8 in. (125.1 x 173 cm)
Source extras
med
oil on canvas
creator_ids
8640
collection_ids
BAR
exhibition_ids
none
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
f7113d0e8b5f365e