Important British Paintings 1500-1850

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Lot 55
  • 55

David Roberts R.A. 1796-1864

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Description

  • David Roberts R.A.
  • A view of the Palace of the Caesars, Rome, from the River Tiber
  • signed l.r.:David Roberts.R.A. 1863.
  • oil on unlined canvas

Provenance

Acquired from the artist by Ernest Gambart for £262-10-0;
Probably acquired from the above by Henry Brassey, by whom sold, Christie's, 23rd February 1901, lot 147, bt. Agnew for £105-0-0;
Anon. sale, Christie's, 2nd February 1979, lot 135

Literature

James Ballantine, The Life of David Roberts, R.A., 1866, no.272 in the list of pictures

Catalogue Note

This magnificent view looks towards the Palace of the Caesars.   The Ponte Rotto is visible on the left.  Begun in 179 BC and completed in 142 BC this bridge was one of Rome's first bridges to be built in stone.  By the end of the sixteenth century repeated flooding and the fast flow of the Tiber had rendered the bridge beyond repair, eventually leaving only three of the arches standing.  Beyond the Ponte Rotto lies the Isola Tibertina.  In the central background the rotunda Temple of Vesta is clearly visible and immediately to the right rises the square tower of the Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin where the famous Bocca di Verita is situated.

The present picture appears to be a pair with another view of the Tiber viewed from the other side of the Ponte Rotto.  Both works are the same size and are dated 1863. Both works were bought by Ernest Gambart, who together with Agnew was the pre-eminent art dealer of the mid nineteenth century.