Allegory of Abundance and Peace
About this artwork
This recently rediscovered painting once formed part of the celebrated collections of the Farnese family and was probably painted at the very end of the artist’s career, when he was employed by Duke Ranuccio Farnese in Parma (1600-02). The woman at the left holding a sheaf of wheat and a bunch of grapes represents Abundance or Plenty. We know from two preparatory drawings that the figure at the right was intended to hold a winged sceptre or caduceus, an emblem of Peace. The painting itself is not quite finished – perhaps interrupted by Agostino’s sudden death – and only the lower handle of the caduceus is visible. In the background an army can be seen retreating into a fortified citadel. The essential message of the allegory has to do with the benefits to be gained from peaceful government.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Agostino Carracci (1557 - 1602) Italian
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title:Allegory of Abundance and Peace
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date created:About 1602
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materials:Oil on canvas
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measurements:87.00 x 73.40 x 1.60 cm Framed: 103.40 x 91.20 x 7.50 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Presented by the American Patrons of the National Library and Galleries of Scotland, 2021 (Gift of Karen and Edward Friedman, Kristin and Gary Friedman, Darcy Bradbury and Eric Seiler)
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accession number:NG 2888
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gallery:
Agostino Carracci
Agostino Carracci
Although highly accomplished as a painter, Agostino Carracci is best known as one of the leading printmakers of his generation. He executed reproductive engravings of exceptional quality after the works of many past and contemporary painters, notably Veronese and Tintoretto, as well as numerous...