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1 of 253523 objects
Guercino (Cento 1591-Bologna 1666)
A symbolic or magical subject c. 1620-40
Pen | 18.2 x 15.6 cm (sheet of paper) | RCIN 902551
Guercino (Cento 1591-Bologna 1666)
902551.jpg c. 1620-40
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A drawing of two half-length figures standing back to back in a trench, an elderly woman to the left, and a bearded man to the right. On the extreme right a kneeling man in a plumed hat pours liquid from a jug into a funnel resting upon the heads of the figures, which allows the liquid to run into a large vase in front of them. The drawing possibly depicts the two-faced Roman god Janus, often associated with new beginnings. His faces look simultaneously back to the past and into the future.
The drawing was etched by James Basire in the 1760s with the title 'Janus' (Boydell, I, 67).Provenance
Bequeathed by the artist to Benedetto and Cesare Gennari; from whose descendants purchased by Richard Dalton for George III, c.1758-63; first recorded in a Royal Collection inventory of c.1800-1820 (Inv.A, p.62: 'A Carricatura of a figure pouring liquor')
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Medium and techniques
Pen
Measurements
18.2 x 15.6 cm (sheet of paper)
Object type(s)
Other number(s)
RL 2551
