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Source Description
This work may be from a set of engraved rock crystal plaques depicting the life of Christ that, according to the writer Giorgio Vasari, Giovanni Bernardi completed in 1547 for Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (1520-89). They were probably intended to be set into a casket by another craftsman.Bernardi was one of the most famous rock crystal engravers of the Renaissance. This plaque-with its closely packed, relief-like arrangement, oval shape, and tightly drawn figures-points to his familiarity with Roman intaglio carving on gems. The artist signed the plaque with his first name (in Latin) and F, short for "fecit" ("made this"). The delicate frame in gold and detailing in painted enamel may be from around 1600; framing the piece turns it into an independent object.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
23974
label
Plaque with Christ before Pilate
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
23974
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Plaque with Christ before Pilate
description
This work may be from a set of engraved rock crystal plaques depicting the life of Christ that, according to the writer Giorgio Vasari, Giovanni Bernardi completed in 1547 for Cardinal Alessandro Farnese (1520-89). They were probably intended to be set into a casket by another craftsman.Bernardi was one of the most famous rock crystal engravers of the Renaissance. This plaque-with its closely packed, relief-like arrangement, oval shape, and tightly drawn figures-points to his familiarity with Roman intaglio carving on gems. The artist signed the plaque with his first name (in Latin) and F, short for "fecit" ("made this"). The delicate frame in gold and detailing in painted enamel may be from around 1600; framing the piece turns it into an independent object.
provenance
Cook [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Cook Sale, July 1925, no. 469; Sadie Jones (Mrs. Henry Walters), New York [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Mrs. Henry Walters Sale, New York, December 4, 1943, no. 996; Walters Art Museum, 1943, by purchase.
date
ca. 1547 (Renaissance)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Stone
plaques
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
10
height
12
dimensionsRaw
3 15/16 x 4 3/4 in. (10 x 12 cm)
Source extras
inscriptions
[Translation]: Giovanni F
med
rock crystal; gold frame with enamel, pearls, rubies
creator_ids
5685
15380
collection_ids
REN
exhibition_ids
170
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
48fdc45f968ed5d2