Artist: Alfonso Parigi, the Younger (Italian, 1606–1656)
Engraver & publisher: Stefano della Bella (Italian, 1610–1664)
Series/portfolio: Le nozze degli Dei (The Wedding of the Gods)
Place/Date: Florence, 1637 (produced for the public celebration of the Medici marriage on 6 April 1637)
State: II/II (second state), with letters
Medium: Etching; black ink; laid paper; watermark: le soleil (sun in circle)
Dimensions: Image 187 × 284 mm; sheet 203 × 286 mm; c. 1 mm margins
Printed inscriptions (below the image):
— left: Alfon.us Parig.us Inu. | SDB Deli. e. F.
— centre: SCENA GROTTA DI VULCANO ❧
Description: Fantastical grotto architecture framing a deep stage; at centre, within a large arched cavern, three smiths at the forge (Vulcan’s workshop). The foreground is animated by costumed warriors wielding swords and spears, accompanied by musicians and dancers; drummers in musketeer dress stand to the sides. Above, tiered clouds carry a distant chorus; Hermes descends through the air toward the scene. From the theatre-decoration series for Medici wedding festivities, Le nozze degli Dei (The Wedding of the Gods, 1637), engraved by Della Bella after Parigi. In De Vesme/Massar, the “Scena grotta di Vulcano” is placed after the Terza scena (no. 921) and before the Quarta scena (no. 922). Ferdinando II de’ Medici (Italian, 1610–1670) married Vittoria della Rovere (Italian, 1622–1694) privately on 2 August 1634; the official public ceremony was celebrated on 6 April 1637.
Catalogue raisonné: De Vesme/Massar 925 (p. 144).
References: A. M. Nagler, Theater Festivals of the Medici (Yale, 1964), pp. 162–174; Angelo Solerti, Musica, Ballo e Drammatica alla Corte Medicea dal 1600 al 1637 (Florence, 1905; repr. 1968), pp. 197–201; Cesare Molinari, Le nozze degli Dèi (Rome, 1968), pp. 176–178, pls. 62–68.
Note: For the full suite of della Bella's etchings Le nozze degli Dei, see The Metropolitan Museum no. 2012.136.558.1.
Additional Information
| Collection | European prints and drawings |
|---|---|
| Type / Purpose | Print , Works on paper |
| Period | 17 AD , Mid-17th century |
| Country | Italy |
| Material | Laid paper , Paper |
| Media/Technique | Copperplate engraving , Engraving , Etching |
| Genre | Festival and pageant images |
| Subject | 17th century , Engraving , Etching , Europe , Festival , Florence (city) , Hermes (Mercury) , House of Medici , Italian art , Stage design , Vulcan (Roman deity) , Wedding |
| Impression/State | Second state |
| Creation / Publishing year | 1637 |
| Catalogue raisonne | De Vesme (1971) |
| Acquisition year | 2025 |
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