Empire Without End. Antiquities Collections in Renaissance Rome, c. 1350-1527

Kathleen Wren Christian

Published by Yale 2010

Hardcover with dusjacket 288 PAG Illustrated. ISBN 9780300098549. In the early fifteenth century, when Romans discovered ancient marble sculptures and inscriptions in the ruins, they often melted them into mortar. This book examines the 'long' fifteenth century, a critical period in the history of antiquities collecting that has received scant attention. This lucid and coherent account provides a new overview of the collecting of antiquities in early renaissance Rome, from the time of Petrarch to the Sack of Rome in 1527. In the early 15th century, when Romans discovered ancient marble sculptures and inscriptions in the ruins, they often melted them into mortar. A hundred years later, however, antique marbles had assumed their familiar role as works of art displayed in private collections. In this important book, the author steps back to examine the ?long? 15th century, a critical period in the history of antiquities collecting that has received scant attention. She examines shifts in the response of artists and writers to spectacular archaeological discoveries and the new role of collecting antiquities in the public life of Roman elites. The book culminates in a detailed catalogue of the thirty-six most important antiquities collections formed before the Sack and brings these vanished sites back to life by using archival documents, drawings, and descriptions by visitors to clarify the history and appearance of little-studied collections. 0 g. Seller Inventory # 63698

Bibliographic Details

Title: Empire Without End. Antiquities Collections ...
Publisher: Yale 2010
Binding: Hardcover