Andrea Sacchi’s Eternal Vision of Rome

T he Roman painter Andrea Sacchi was a leading champion of Baroque Classicism and his recently rediscovered painting, An Allegory of Rome, is a vital addition to his small body of works. Commissioned by Cardinal del Monte in the early 1620s, the work perfectly captures Sacchi’s singular style, defined by a rejection of the more exuberant aspects of the Roman High Baroque and a turn towards a tempered, Classical aesthetic reminiscent of the great French painter Nicolas Poussin. This unique masterpiece presents in staggering detail the core mythological attributes of the Eternal City – from the lean figure of the river god of the Tiber, to the dozing infant founders of the city, Romulus and Remus, and the towering figure of Rome herself with red flowing cape. The forthcoming auction of An Allegory of Rome, which is based on a red charcoal drawing held in the collection of Her Majesty the Queen at Windsor, presents an unmissable opportunity for fresh insight into Sacchi’s celebrated output.

Andrea Sacchi
An Allegory of Rome
Estimate £200,000–300,000