Italy - Venice, Doge; Rogissart - La pompe du Doge de Venise lors quil sort - 1701-1720

Technical data sheet

Title: La pompe du Doge de Venise lors qu’il sort.
Author: Alexandre de Rogissart, author of the provenance work; engraver not indicated.
Draftsman: not indicated.
Publisher: Pieter van der Aa, also listed as Pierre Vander Aa.
Place: Leiden, Netherlands.
Era: early 18th century, about 1709; dating referred to the Leiden edition of Les Délices de l’Italie. siris-libraries.si.edu
Technique: copperplate intaglio engraving, with burin and etching, manually colored in an undetermined period.
Support: laid paper.
Dimensions: plate 13 × 34.5 cm; sheet 16.5 × 39.5 cm.
Composition: single horizontal plate, folded to fit into a volume; title at the lower margin, captions in French and reference “Tom. I, pag. 166” at the upper right.
Provenance: Les Délices de l’Italie, by Alexandre de Rogissart.
Subject and setting: dogal procession in Venice, in the present Veneto region, Italy, then capital of the Republic of Venice.

Description

Engraving depicting the ceremonial procession of the Doge of Venice, accompanied by the magistracies of the Republic, dignitaries and officers bearing the regalia of ducal power. The scene unfolds in a broad horizontal composition, with the figures arranged in succession and identified by captions in French.
The Doge, recognizable by the distinctive ducal horn and the ornate cloak, occupies a central position under the ceremonial parasol. He is accompanied by senators, ambassadors, the chancellor and other officials; also depicted are the bearers of the sword, the cushion, the seat and the ducal cap. In the rear plane appear pennants, musicians, canons and the patriarch, composing a complex portrayal of the Venetian civil and religious apparatus.
The setting evokes the monumental area of San Marco, with colonnaded buildings, columns facing the basin and boats in the background. Manual coloring distinguishes the robes and the different functions of the participants through reds, greens, blues and ochre tones. The dense hatching describes the draperies, architectural shadows and the paving, giving rhythm and depth to the scene.

Historical-artistic note

The plate belongs to the tradition of travel illustrations devoted to Italian cities, in which monuments, costumes and ceremonies contributed to describing the identity of the places. The subject presents Venice through the solemnity of its institutions and the visual richness of public ceremony.
The arrangement of the figures and the indications of their respective offices confer to the engraving documentary interest as well as decorative. The regalia and objects carried in the procession make the symbolic representation of the ducal authority and its relations with the magistracies and the Church legible.

Condition Report

Copy in very good condition. There are vertical editorial folds, with slight browning and minor wear along some folds. Slight waviness of the paper, small foxing spots and marginal soiling traces. Margins preserved, with minimal edge irregularities and a fold at the upper left corner. The depicted part is clearly legible and the verso is blank, with traces of color and light offset."} }{{}