Roman School, 17th century, Angelica and Medoro

Roman School, 17th century Angelica and Medoro carve their names on the bark of a tree. Oil on canvas, 65 x 48.5 cm "Amid so many pleasures, wherever a straight tree / Gave shade to a spring or pure stream, / There a pin or knife was quickly stuck; / So, if there was any less hard stone:/ And it was written outside in a thousand places,/ And so inside the house on just as many the wall, / Angelica and Medoro, in various ways / Bound together by different knots." (Ariosto, Orlando Furioso, XIX, 36) The canvas depicts one of the most famous episodes of Orlando Furioso, a chivalric poem by Ludovico Ariosto, published in Ferrara in 1519 and a source of inspiration for many artists of the following centuries. The protagonist of canto XIX is the beautiful Angelica, princess of Cathay, with whom many Christian paladins have fallen in love, including the valiant Orlando, who in the course of the poem also goes mad, not seeing his feeling reciprocated. Yet, the fascinating maiden rejects all suitors, until, struck by Cupid's arrows, she falls in love with Medoro, a simple Muslim foot soldier. Angelica, having moved away from the battlefields, finds him wounded in the woods and stops to tend to him; the more the physical wound heals, the more the wound in her heart grows. Therefore, Angelica decides to marry the Saracen in secret in the forest and, overwhelmed by amorous passion, the two carve their names everywhere, before leaving definitively for India. It is precisely this universal declaration of love that the 17th-century painter intended to depict. At the edge of the forest, Angelica is intent on carving the bark of a tree, while beside her, softly lying, is Medoro, who watches the companion's gesture intently. They wear simple clothes, suitable for the bucolic atmosphere in which their love story takes place, far from the bloody war settings narrated in the previous cantos by the Ferrarese poet. The painter must have been active in the Roman area in the 17th century. In the rendering of nature, he seems to look at the manners of Annibale Carracci (Bologna, 1560 - Rome, 1609) and his circle; the graceful poses of the characters, which seem reminiscent of ancient sculptures, and the delicate rendering of the clothes, whose colors based on red and white tones, stand out in a landscape otherwise dominated by the soft evening light, must be traced back to the classicism of the time. With Ars Antiqua it is possible to defer all amounts up to €7,500 at ZERO RATE, for a total of 15 INSTALLMENTS. Ex. Tot. €4,500 = Monthly installment €300 for 15 months. Ex. Tot. €3,600 = Monthly installment €720 for 5 months. For amounts greater than €7,500 or for a longer deferral (over 15 installments), we can provide a personalized payment. Contact us directly to get the best quote. LIVE TV – SUNDAY 17.00 – 21.00 Dig.terr. 126 + 813 SKY – Streaming on our website www.arsantiquasrl.com and on our social media Facebook and Youtube All the works proposed by Ars Antiqua are sold accompanied by a certificate of authenticity in accordance with the law and an accurate in-depth sheet. You can see the works directly at the Milan showroom gallery, in via Pisacane 55 and 57. We personally organize the transport and delivery of the works, both for Italy and abroad.