The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 20, 2024

Tarquinius Priscus Entering Rome

Tarquinius Priscus Entering Rome

c. 1470
(Italian, c. 1441–1493)
Italy, late 15th Century
tempera on wood, mounted on canvas
Framed: 81.9 x 202.2 x 11.4 cm (32 1/4 x 79 5/8 x 4 1/2 in.); Unframed: 41 x 165.4 cm (16 1/8 x 65 1/8 in.)
Bequest of John L. Severance 1942.646
Location: 117A Italian Renaissance

Did You Know?

This painting utilizes continuous narrative; the same figures appear multiple times as the story unfolds from left to right.

Description

Originally the front of a bridal chest, this panel was later removed and framed like a painting. At left, the Etruscan prophetess Tanaquil foresees her husband’s entry into Rome. En route, an eagle snatched his hat, then returned it as they approached the city, which Tanaquil interpreted as a good omen. Ancient triumphal processions, closely connected to ancient sarcophagi, were common subjects for bridal chests. Here Tanaquil is a model for a supportive, dutiful wife.
  • Rudolph Lepke's Kunst-Auctions-Haus. Sammlung des verstorbenen Geheimen Regierungsrats und Früheren Direktors des Koenigl. Kupferstichkabinetts zu Berlin, Friedrich Lippmann. 1912. No. 33
    Catalogue of the John L. Severance Collection: Bequest of John L. Severance, 1936. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1942. Mentioned: p. 25, cat. no. 15 archive.org
    Cleveland Museum of Art. Catalogue of Paintings. Pt. 1. European Paintings before 1500. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1974. Reproduced: fig. 44, p. 125 - 126
    Alan Chong. European & American Painting in the Cleveland Museum of Art: A Summary Catalogue. Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1993. 221
    Baskins, Cristelle Louise, Adrian W. B. Randolph, Jacqueline Marie Musacchio, and Alan Chong. The Triumph of Marriage: Painted Cassoni of the Renaissance. Boston: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 2008. 133-136 (cat. no. 11)
    Antonio del Massaro, and Luisa Caporossi. Antonio del Massaro detto il Pastura: studi su un "peruginesco" viterbese e la sua bottega.
    Firenze : Leo S. Olschki, 2022. Mentioned; p. 66; Reproduced; p. 66; Fig. 6.
    Dobson, Chris. Beaten Black and Blue: The Myth of the Medieval Knight in Shining Armour. Sant'Albano Stura, Italy: Chris Dobson, 2023. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 126-127, fig. 148, p. 242, fig. 280, p. 289-290, fig. 337
  • The Triumph of Marriage: Painted Cassoni of the Renaissance. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston, MA (organizer) (October 16, 2008-January 18, 2009); John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, FL (February 14-April 19, 2009).
    An Approach to Musem Objects. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 3-June 30, 1958).
    Exhibition of the Month: Art is Long. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 14-June 7, 1948).
    Exhibition of the John L. Severance Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (November 12, 1942-March 14, 1943).
  • {{cite web|title=Tarquinius Priscus Entering Rome|url=false|author=Jacopo del Sellaio|year=c. 1470|access-date=20 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1942.646