Personifications of Astronomy and Architecture
Andrea Casali (Rome 1705 - Rome 1784)
Category
Art / Oil paintings
Date
circa 1760 - circa 1765
Materials
oil on canvas
Measurements
2311 x 2464 mm (91 x 97 in)
Order this imageCollection
Dyrham, Gloucestershire
NT 453806
Caption
Seated on a cloud, the female figure wearing a gold dress and draped in red is a personification of Astronomy. She has wings at the back of her head and gazes up at the heavens, while measuring a celestial sphere with a pair of dividers. Above her, wearing a gold dress and draped in blue, is a female figure representing Architecture. She presents an architectural drawing of a stately home to the viewer. There are five ceiling paintings by Andrea Casali at Dyrham Park. They were all painted for Alderman William Beckford (1709–1770), for his house, Fonthill Splendens, in Wiltshire, the property represented on the drawing held by the figure of Architecture. They were sold from Fonthill in 1801 and later installed in the ceiling of the Theatre Royal in Bath. Colonel George William Blathwayt (1797–1871) bought them for Dyrham Park in 1845.
Summary
Oil painting on canvas, Personifications of Astronomy and Architecture by Andrea Casali (Rome 1705 - Rome 1784), early 1760s. Two female figures are seated on clouds. The figure to the left wears golden-coloured garments and is draped in red, while her companion on the right wears the same golden-coloured garments but is draped in blue, with a pink sash around her waist. The figure on the left, identified as Astronomy, bears small wings on her head, and marks out a sphere with a pair of dividers, while looking up to the top left. The figure to the right, identified as Architecture, holds a representation of Fonthill Splendens, the house for which the paintings were originally produced.
Provenance
Painted for Alderman William Beckford (1709-1770) for Fonthill Splendens, Wiltshire; Fonthill sale, 1801; ? bought by Paul Methuen of Corsham and presented by him in 1802 to the City of Bath, or possibly bought by William Evill on behalf of Dimond, joint proprietor of the Theatre Royal, Bath; built into the ceiling of the Theatre Royal, Bath; purchased by Colonel Blathwayt for Dyrham Park in 1845; thence by descent; Indigenous collection purchased by Ministry of Works in 1956 and given to Dyrham Park in 1961
Credit line
Dyrham Park, The Blathwayt Collection (acquired by the Ministry of Works via the National Land Fund in 1956, and transferred to the National Trust)
Makers and roles
Andrea Casali (Rome 1705 - Rome 1784), artist
References
Croft-Murray 1962-1970: Edward Croft-Murray, Decorative Painting in England, 1537 - 1837 (2 vols), 1962-1970, vol.II, p.182