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C1875
Caligula’s Palace and Bridge
The subject of this painting is an episode from Suetonius’s ‘Life’ of the Emperor Caligula. Confounding a prediction that he would no more become emperor than ride across the Gulf of Baiae with horses, Caligula constructed an artificial floating bridge … Read Full Description
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S/N: TTGA-ITA-001–226642
(DRW04)
Categories: DECORATIVE & CLASSICAL, EUROPE, Italy, Mythology, Mythology, PRINTS & PHOTOGRAPHS, TOPOGRAPHICAL VIEWS
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Details
Full Title:
Caligula’s Palace and Bridge
Date:
C1875
Condition:
In good condition.
Technique:
Hand coloured engraving.
Image Size:
260mm
x 185mm
AUTHENTICITY
Genuine antique
dated:
1875
Description:
The subject of this painting is an episode from Suetonius’s ‘Life’ of the Emperor Caligula. Confounding a prediction that he would no more become emperor than ride across the Gulf of Baiae with horses, Caligula constructed an artificial floating bridge of boats which he then crossed with a chariot. Following popular accounts, Turner has depicted the bridge as a solid construction. It has, however, like the adjacent palace, fallen into ruin and decay. Baiae, known in modern Italian as Baia, was a mineral springs and coastal resort on the northwest shore of the Gulf of Naples in ancient Italy.
The picture was widely admired in 1831. The Times described it as ‘one of the most beautiful and magnificent landscapes that ever mind conceived or pencil drew’.
Turner’s visits to Italy, where he studied the light and reflections of the beautiful city of Venice, resulted in some of his finest paintings.
This engraving is from Joseph William Turner & Monkhouse’s The Turner Gallery.
Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775 - 1851)
William Turner (1775-1851) Turner began his artistic career at a very young age, selling his first painting at just 12 years old. Throughout his career he remained highly sought-after and acquired a very large fortune from his commissions. He is remembered as an influential painter, said to be the best landscapist of the 19th century, and a key artist to influence the Impressionist movement. At 14, Turner entered the Royal Academy schools where he exhibited his watercolors. At age 19 he got a job as a reproduction artist, making copies of the unfinished drawings of John Robert Cozens, a recently deceased landscape painter. In 1796 Turner began to exhibit oil paintings in addition to his watercolors at the Royal Academy and soon was elected as an associate of the Royal Academy, he was 24, the youngest permitted age for such an honor. In 1802 he became a full academician and by 1807 he was appointed professor of perspective. Turner travelled in quest for inspiration. He travelled throughout England and Wales and throughout Europe where he picked up the his love for marine subjects. In 1817, Turner set out for his first trip to Italy, spending three months in Rome, and visiting Naples, Florence and Venice. During these trips he produced about 1,500 drawings. He continued to travel around England, Scotland and the rest of the continent for inspiration. He continued to paint and travel throughout the last 15 years of his life. He died at the age of 76, in 1851 in Chelsea. According to his wishes, he was buried in St. Paul's Cathedral. The $140,000 he left to fund a charity was dispersed amongst distant relatives. He had planned that the majority of his fortune would help "decayed artists. " Turner is remembered as the pioneer of light color and atmosphere.
