Italian school (XVIII) - Epigrafe devozionale






Specialised in 17th century Old Master paintings and drawings with auction house experience.
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Epigrafe devozionale, an 18th‑century Italian oil painting on canvas by a Scuola italiana workshop, signed as not signed, measuring 103 cm by 38 cm and sold with frame.
Description from the seller
Ancient painting
Devotional inscription on canvas
Italian School of the eighteenth century
“Miseremini mei, miseremini mei, saltem vos amici mei”
Description
The work presents itself as a large painted inscription on canvas, with a black background and a linear gilt frame delimiting the writing field. The text, in elegant golden capitals, reads:
MISEREMINI
MEI, MISEREMINI MEI
SALTEM VOS AMICI MEI
In the lower right corner appears the abbreviated quotation “Job. 19”, a reference to the Book of Job.
The color choice – gold on black – recalls the tradition of funerary epitaphs and convent inscriptions, giving solemnity and a strong visual impact. The letters, well spaced and regular, show a seventeenth-eighteenth century taste, inspired by the Roman monumental capitals but interpreted with painterly softness.
⸻
Text and meaning
The phrase comes from the Book of Job (19:21) in the Latin Vulgate:
“Miseremini mei, miseremini mei, saltem vos amici mei”
“Pity me, pity me, at least you, my friends.”
It is the poignant plea of Job, a righteous man struck by suffering, who appeals to his friends asking for compassion.
In the devotional context of the eighteenth century, this verse assumed a dual meaning:
• Call to Christian mercy
• Meditation on pain and human fragility
• A reminder of solidarity among confreres or members of a religious community
Dimensions: 103 x 38 cm
* condition report: work in good conservation condition with various signs of time and prior restorations (visible repair on the back)
Given the importance of the work, it will be shipped only with secure packaging and insured shipping at the appraised value / shipment in a wooden crate
Seller's Story
Ancient painting
Devotional inscription on canvas
Italian School of the eighteenth century
“Miseremini mei, miseremini mei, saltem vos amici mei”
Description
The work presents itself as a large painted inscription on canvas, with a black background and a linear gilt frame delimiting the writing field. The text, in elegant golden capitals, reads:
MISEREMINI
MEI, MISEREMINI MEI
SALTEM VOS AMICI MEI
In the lower right corner appears the abbreviated quotation “Job. 19”, a reference to the Book of Job.
The color choice – gold on black – recalls the tradition of funerary epitaphs and convent inscriptions, giving solemnity and a strong visual impact. The letters, well spaced and regular, show a seventeenth-eighteenth century taste, inspired by the Roman monumental capitals but interpreted with painterly softness.
⸻
Text and meaning
The phrase comes from the Book of Job (19:21) in the Latin Vulgate:
“Miseremini mei, miseremini mei, saltem vos amici mei”
“Pity me, pity me, at least you, my friends.”
It is the poignant plea of Job, a righteous man struck by suffering, who appeals to his friends asking for compassion.
In the devotional context of the eighteenth century, this verse assumed a dual meaning:
• Call to Christian mercy
• Meditation on pain and human fragility
• A reminder of solidarity among confreres or members of a religious community
Dimensions: 103 x 38 cm
* condition report: work in good conservation condition with various signs of time and prior restorations (visible repair on the back)
Given the importance of the work, it will be shipped only with secure packaging and insured shipping at the appraised value / shipment in a wooden crate
