Design for a Wall Decoration: Representations of the Ascension and of the Conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch

Giovanni de' Vecchi

ca. 1600 · Pen and brown ink, over black chalk (architectural elements); red chalk, pen and brown ink, traces of black chalk (narrative scenes) · Drawings and Prints

In the scene at left Christ ascends into a bank of clouds, having left his footprints on the summit of the Mount of Olives. At right of center Saint Philip has joined the Eunuch in his chariot and explains the passage of Isaiah the Ethiopian is reading, while in the background Saint Philip is seen baptizing his convert (Acts 8:26-40). The "bretessed bend" and the stars of the Aldobrandini arms that appear above the figure of Saint Philip could identify this project as a never-executed scheme commissioned by or proposed to Pope Clement VIII Aldobrandini, who reigned from 1592 to 1605. The convincing attribution to Giovanni de' Vecchi for this large, vibrant design for a wall decoration was first proposed by Philip Pouncey in 1965.

Artist

Giovanni de' Vecchi

Date

ca. 1600

Medium

Pen and brown ink, over black chalk (architectural elements); red chalk, pen and brown ink, traces of black chalk (narrative scenes)

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Gift of Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1880