Antonio Tempesta, “A Horse Galloping to the Left”, 1590

 Antonio Tempesta (1555–1630)

“A Horse Galloping to the Left” (or “Een paard naar links galopperend”), 1590

Contextual Commentary:

This etching is plate 12 from the series of twenty-eight plates, “Horses of Different Lands” (“Cavalli di diversi paesi”). In this series, each plate features one or two horses in a landscape with the series preceded by a frontispiece depicting Minerva in a chariot, driven by Prudence with a Latin dedication to Virginio Orsini—the Duke of Bracciano (1572–1615). This copy has an historic ink inscription that is now slightly faded by an old hand in the same location that the plate number, “12”, was printed in the plate. There is also a hand-inscribed number “11” in brown ink on the right also located in the writing edge.

Technical Details & Condition:

Etching on fine laid paper, trimmed with a thread margin around the borderline on the top and sides and slightly within the borderline on the lower edge. The sheet has been professionally backed with archival quality washi paper for structural support and to provide wide false margins for presentation purposes.

The impression is strong, crisp, and slightly silvery. The sheet has a restored upper right corner, otherwise it remains in very good condition free of holes, folds, abrasions, foxing or stains.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 13.9 x 16.6 cm
• Image borderline: 12.3 x 16.5 cm

In-Plate Lettering:

• Within the image borderline: (lower left) “antonio tempesti”
• Below the image: (centre in two columns of two lines of Latin) “Hic celer ante alios ualido quatit impete campos, / Ocior aut iaculo, aut uentos equante sagitta // Plerumq et uarijs maculis distinctus, anhelo / Est comites reliquos aßuetus Vincere cursu.” (Translation: “Swiftly, ahead of all the rest, he traverses the plains with powerful strides—faster than a javelin, or an arrow that rivals the winds. Marked, for the most part, by varied spots, he is accustomed to outstripping all his companions in the race.”)
• Below the image: (right) “A.T.F.” (monogram acronym for Antonio Tempesta Fecit)

References:

• TIB 36.952: Sebastian Buffa (ed.), “The Illustrated Bartsch: Italian Masters of the Sixteenth Century”, vol. 36, 1983, (New York, Abaris Books), p. 196, cat. no. 952
• British Museum, Asset Number 1613368721: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/image/1613368721
• Rijksmuseum, Object Number RP-PHH-396: https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200263452
• Harvard Art Museums, Object Number S9.106.2: https://hvrd.art/o/236579

Price & Shipping:

AU$254 (approximately US$174.45 / €156.55 / £130.62), including worldwide express shipping. Import duties and taxes are the buyer’s responsibility.

To Purchase or Enquire

For questions or a PayPal invoice, please contact oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com.

Please note: The scan contrast has been digitally enhanced to show the print’s fine details more clearly. As a result, the digital image tones may not fully reflect the subtle tonal qualities of the physical original.