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Source Description
Nature and garden imagery abound in the poetry of Petrarch (d. 1374), one of the great scholars and authors of the Renaissance. This letter N depicts Petrarch holding branches of a laurel tree, a symbol of poetry and knowledge personified by his beloved deceased Laura, his muse. Laurel crowns denoted military victory in the days of the Roman Empire but came to represent the ideals of knowledge and learning in the age of Petrarch. The poem itself recounts Petrarch's dream vision of six allegorical processions (Love, Chastity, Death, Time, Fame, and Faith).
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
37288
label
Portrait of Petrarch in the Incipit Letter “N”
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
2
Source metadata
id
37288
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Portrait of Petrarch in the Incipit Letter “N”
description
Nature and garden imagery abound in the poetry of Petrarch (d. 1374), one of the great scholars and authors of the Renaissance. This letter N depicts Petrarch holding branches of a laurel tree, a symbol of poetry and knowledge personified by his beloved deceased Laura, his muse. Laurel crowns denoted military victory in the days of the Roman Empire but came to represent the ideals of knowledge and learning in the age of Petrarch. The poem itself recounts Petrarch's dream vision of six allegorical processions (Love, Chastity, Death, Time, Fame, and Faith).
provenance
Sir George Holdford; Sale, Sotheby's, London, 1929, no. 6, pl. 11; B. Quaritch [date and mode of acquisition unknown] [Cat. 1931, p. 98-99]; Harvey Frost [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Sale, London, October 1955 [Maggs Bros. Ltd. as agent]; Walters Art Museum, 1955, by purchase.
date
ca. 1480 (Renaissance)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
illuminated manuscripts
folios (leaves)
imageCount
2
pageCount
2
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
21.5
height
13.6
dimensionsRaw
8 7/16 x 5 3/8 in. (21.5 x 13.6 cm)
Source extras
style
Paduan
med
ink and paint on parchment
creator_ids
7540
8167
collection_ids
REN
MSS
exhibition_ids
97
470
86
163
3171
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
2bb97f87bd44f116
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
8c2290c7c4db2a00
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no