"Christ Church Gentlemen and Their Collections" in Winckelmann and Curiosity in the 18th-century Gentleman's Library, edited by Katherine Harloe, Cristina Neagu and Amy Smith (2018). (original) (raw)
Related papers
in J. J. Winckelmann (1717-1768). Monumenti antichi inediti. Storia di un’opera illustrata / History of an Illustrated Work, a cura di / edited by Stefano Ferrari e Nicoletta Ossanna Cavadini, Milano, Skira, 2017, pp. 17-55.
17 16 "[…] questa Opera egregia, sulla quale come sulle spalle di un gigante si sono elevati tutti gli altri Antiquarj". P.P. Montagnani (1821) '[…] this notable work, on which all other antiquarians are raised as on the shoulders of a giant.' P.P. Montagnani (1821) Al tempo stesso, annuncio al pubblico un'opera in lingua italiana in folio grande, stampata a mie spese, che apparirà la prossima primavera a Roma. È un'illustrazione di monumenti antichi mai resi noti di ogni tipo, costs, I can only dedicate the work to him, being compelled by gratitude. I have already drafted half of it, and I am having the drawings done. 6 These statements show clearly that the philological concerns bound up with some controversial points of mythology and antiquities were beginning to allow space for a suitable set of illustrations. But the project that would lead to the publication of the Monumenti antichi was still far from complete. To this we must add that for an author resident in Rome self-publication of a text was an arduous and difficult task, due not only to the censorship, but especially the high production costs. 7 Then, apart from the uncertainty surrounding the number of engravings (rising from 50 in 1762 to 208 in the 1767 edition), and the financing of the work, one of Winckelmann's most urgent problems was language. The choice of Italian was dictated exclusively by practical considerations, largely bound up with the saleability and circulation of the new text. All the same, Winckelmann was aware that his knowledge of Italian could hardly enable him to do without the supervision of men of letters who were native speakers. 8 In the first half of May 1762 he wrote to Anton Raphael Mengs: 'The Explanation drafted in Italian will be finished in a month, and will pass first before the eyes of the most expert antiquarians and the most polished and elegant writers in the vernacular, starting with Baldani and Contucci, and then the last refinements will be given by Bottari and Giacomelli.' 9 In November Winckelmann wrote to his German correspondents in Italian announcing the new edition. 10 He mentioned that the "Work contains some two hundred Monuments, all unpublished, with the exception of four or five, and most of them are difficult to explain, illustrating antiquity very amply, and many passages in the ancient writers which, for lack of these monuments, have not been clearly understood.' After pointing out that the work was divided into four parts-'the fabulous history of the gods, profane mythology, ancient history, and the rites and customs of the Greeks and Romans'-he observed that the explanations are preceded by 'a discourse, of which one part deals with the style of the art of the Egyptians, Etruscans, and especially the Greeks.' 11 At this point the idea of the new work had almost reached its final form. On 7 December he wrote to Muzell-Stosch: My work is not being printed by subscription because, rather than doing that, I would never have begun it. The announcement only names the booksellers, so that art lovers can show up in good time and put down their names. 100 engravings have been prepared, and when the first is ready, which will be soon, printing will begin. Already about 150 of the ancient works have been illustrated [...]. 12 As was often the case, Winckelmann used his published works to announce or present forthcoming ones. At the end of the preface to the Geschichte der Kunst (published in late 1763, though the title page is dated 1764) he stated: At the same time, I wish to announce to the public a large folio work in Italian, printed at my expense, which will appear in Rome next spring. It is an illustration of ancient monuments of all kinds, never before made
2017
Much that we might imagine as ideal was natural for them [the ancient Greeks].' 1 ♣ Just as Johann Joachim Winckelmann mourned the loss of antiquity, so have subsequent generations mourned his passing at the age of fifty, in 1768, as he was planning his first journey to Greece. His deification through-not least-the placement of his profile head, as if carved out of a gemstone, on the title page of the first volume of his Geschichte der Kunst des Alterthums ('History of Ancient Art') in 1776 (the second edition, published posthumously) made him the poster boy for the study of classical art history and its related branches, Altertumswissenschaft or classical studies, history of art, and classical archaeology. 2 While Winckelmann strongly influenced artists, aesthetes, and historians, who have debated and developed his ideas in his and succeeding generations, his renown has put him at the centre of many movements-aesthetic (classicism, Hellenism, and neoclassicism), intellectual (historicism, 3 romanticism, 4 and modernism 5 * I am grateful to the editors for the invitation to contribute this piece and for their patience and to Katherine Harloe for encouragement, useful discussions, and reading an earlier draft of this article. I acknowledge all responsibility for remaining errors. 9 In emphasizing first-hand observation of works, Winckelmann was influenced by, in particular, Comte de
I Monumenti antichi inediti di Winckelmann tra storia editoriale e transferts culturali (1760-1823)
in J. J. Winckelmann (1717-1768). Monumenti antichi inediti. Storia di un’opera illustrata / History of an Illustrated Work, a cura di / edited by Stefano Ferrari e Nicoletta Ossanna Cavadini, Milano, Skira, 2017, pp. 16-54.
17 16 "[…] questa Opera egregia, sulla quale come sulle spalle di un gigante si sono elevati tutti gli altri Antiquarj". P.P. Montagnani (1821) '[…] this notable work, on which all other antiquarians are raised as on the shoulders of a giant.' P.P. Montagnani (1821) Al tempo stesso, annuncio al pubblico un'opera in lingua italiana in folio grande, stampata a mie spese, che apparirà la prossima primavera a Roma. È un'illustrazione di monumenti antichi mai resi noti di ogni tipo, costs, I can only dedicate the work to him, being compelled by gratitude. I have already drafted half of it, and I am having the drawings done. 6 These statements show clearly that the philological concerns bound up with some controversial points of mythology and antiquities were beginning to allow space for a suitable set of illustrations. But the project that would lead to the publication of the Monumenti antichi was still far from complete. To this we must add that for an author resident in Rome self-publication of a text was an arduous and difficult task, due not only to the censorship, but especially the high production costs. 7 Then, apart from the uncertainty surrounding the number of engravings (rising from 50 in 1762 to 208 in the 1767 edition), and the financing of the work, one of Winckelmann's most urgent problems was language. The choice of Italian was dictated exclusively by practical considerations, largely bound up with the saleability and circulation of the new text. All the same, Winckelmann was aware that his knowledge of Italian could hardly enable him to do without the supervision of men of letters who were native speakers. 8 In the first half of May 1762 he wrote to Anton Raphael Mengs: 'The Explanation drafted in Italian will be finished in a month, and will pass first before the eyes of the most expert antiquarians and the most polished and elegant writers in the vernacular, starting with Baldani and Contucci, and then the last refinements will be given by Bottari and Giacomelli.' 9 In November Winckelmann wrote to his German correspondents in Italian announcing the new edition. 10 He mentioned that the "Work contains some two hundred Monuments, all unpublished, with the exception of four or five, and most of them are difficult to explain, illustrating antiquity very amply, and many passages in the ancient writers which, for lack of these monuments, have not been clearly understood.' After pointing out that the work was divided into four parts-'the fabulous history of the gods, profane mythology, ancient history, and the rites and customs of the Greeks and Romans'-he observed that the explanations are preceded by 'a discourse, of which one part deals with the style of the art of the Egyptians, Etruscans, and especially the Greeks.' 11 At this point the idea of the new work had almost reached its final form. On 7 December he wrote to Muzell-Stosch: My work is not being printed by subscription because, rather than doing that, I would never have begun it. The announcement only names the booksellers, so that art lovers can show up in good time and put down their names. 100 engravings have been prepared, and when the first is ready, which will be soon, printing will begin. Already about 150 of the ancient works have been illustrated [...]. 12 As was often the case, Winckelmann used his published works to announce or present forthcoming ones. At the end of the preface to the Geschichte der Kunst (published in late 1763, though the title page is dated 1764) he stated: At the same time, I wish to announce to the public a large folio work in Italian, printed at my expense, which will appear in Rome next spring. It is an illustration of ancient monuments of all kinds, never before made
At that stage, Christian Archaeology was not considered as an independent discipline and did not have a specific identity, oscillating between the studies on Semitic languages and the exegesis of the Old Testament. The subject had no institutional connection to other disciplines, while remaining within the Catholic Theological Faculty, where Neumann was a full professor in 1887 2. He, among others, was one of the most dynamic promotors of the 1 st International Congress for Christian Archaeology in Split in 1894 3 (fig. 1). His successor Heinrich Swoboda 4 , after his priestly ordination, studied Christian Archaeology at the Campo Santo Teutonico in Rome, where he had close contacts with Johann Peter Kirsch 5 , Giovanni Battista de Rossi 6 and Anton Maria de Waal 7. In 1890, Swoboda obtained his habilitation for Christian Archaeology at the Catholic Theological Faculty and taught courses with a focus on ecclesiastic archaeology, liturgical and artistic traditions of the Roman catacombs. He organized excursions and exhibitions and promoted the knowledge and awareness of the archaeology of Early Christianity and of its most important places and monuments 8. Johannes Heinrich Emminghaus 9 , also a priest, contributed to shifting the attention towards liturgical space and its decoration; ecclesiastical architecture and baptism sites 1
At that stage, Christian Archaeology was not considered as an independent discipline and did not have a specific identity, oscillating between the studies on Semitic languages and the exegesis of the Old Testament. The subject had no institutional connection to other disciplines, while remaining within the Catholic Theological Faculty, where Neumann was a full professor in 1887 2. He, among others, was one of the most dynamic promotors of the 1 st International Congress for Christian Archaeology in Split in 1894 3 (fig. 1). His successor Heinrich Swoboda 4 , after his priestly ordination, studied Christian Archaeology at the Campo Santo Teutonico in Rome, where he had close contacts with Johann Peter Kirsch 5 , Giovanni Battista de Rossi 6 and Anton Maria de Waal 7. In 1890, Swoboda obtained his habilitation for Christian Archaeology at the Catholic Theological Faculty and taught courses with a focus on ecclesiastic archaeology, liturgical and artistic traditions of the Roman catacombs. He organized excursions and exhibitions and promoted the knowledge and awareness of the archaeology of Early Christianity and of its most important places and monuments 8. Johannes Heinrich Emminghaus 9 , also a priest, contributed to shifting the attention towards liturgical space and its decoration; ecclesiastical architecture and baptism sites 1