Mercury and Minerva presiding over the Arts
Andrea Casali (Rome 1705 - Rome 1784)
Category
Art / Oil paintings
Date
circa 1760 - circa 1765
Materials
oil on canvas
Measurements
2665 x 3962 mm (105 x 156 in)
Order this imageCollection
Dyrham, Gloucestershire
NT 453809
Caption
Mercury, the god of commerce, and Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, are shown presiding over figures representing the Seven Liberal Arts. This is one of five ceiling paintings at Dyrham Park by Andrea Casali. They were all painted for Alderman William Beckford (1709–1770), for his house, Fonthill Splendens, in Wiltshire. 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, Mercury and Minerva presiding over the Arts, by Andrea Casali (Rome 1705 - Rome 1784), early 1760s.
Provenance
Painted for Alderman William Beckford (1709-1770) for Fonthill Splendens, Wiltshire; Fonthill sale, 1801; possibly 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 purchased by the 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)
Marks and inscriptions
No.42
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