Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
An assistant to influential Renaissance designer Perino del Vaga (1501–1547), Luzio Romano is known primarily through the drawings he made for liturgical objects (objects used for public worship), such as this chalice, likely a goldsmith’s design. The foot is decorated with seraphim—the highest order of angels—and nude children below figures of women and pelicans on the base of the bowl, which together allude to the theological virtue of charity. A pelican piercing its breast to feed its young with its blood is also a symbol of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, fitting for a vessel meant to hold the eucharistic wine.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
106527
label
Design for a Chalice (recto)
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
106527
contentType
drawing
title
Design for a Chalice (recto)
description
An assistant to influential Renaissance designer Perino del Vaga (1501–1547), Luzio Romano is known primarily through the drawings he made for liturgical objects (objects used for public worship), such as this chalice, likely a goldsmith’s design. The foot is decorated with seraphim—the highest order of angels—and nude children below figures of women and pelicans on the base of the bowl, which together allude to the theological virtue of charity. A pelican piercing its breast to feed its young with its blood is also a symbol of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, fitting for a vessel meant to hold the eucharistic wine.
date
mid-1500s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79893265
creators
64047
genreSpecific
Drawing
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Sheet: 32.1 x 20 cm (12 5/8 x 7 7/8 in.)
cul
Italy, 16th century
accession
1924.587.a
Source extras
tec
Black chalk, pen and brown ink, and brown wash, over black chalk, on laid paper
tombstone
Design for a Chalice (recto), mid-1500s. Luzio Romano (Italian, active 1528–75). Black chalk, pen and brown ink, and brown wash, over black chalk, on laid paper; sheet: 32.1 x 20 cm (12 5/8 x 7 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Dudley P. Allen Fund, 1924.587.a
supportMaterials
description
beige(1) laid paper laid down on cream(3) laid paper (discolored)
collection
DR - Italian
inscriptions
inscription
lower center, in brown ink: Pierino ; VERSO OF SECONDARY SUPPORT, lower center, in graphite: A 3089
creditline
Dudley P. Allen Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 05:43:47.241000
sourceId
106527
dept
Drawings
coll
DR - Italian
med
Black chalk, pen and brown ink, and brown wash, over black chalk, on laid paper
creatorTags
male
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
ed33d7dcac6acffb