The Sassi Courtyard, Rome, circa 1510-1546 : reading representations of antique sculpture in prints and drawings, documents and texts

• Main Author: Warnes, Christina May
• Published: University of Leeds 2007
• Subjects: 709.37
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.486387

The thesis makes a fully comprehensive study of the Roman courtyard and collection of antique sculpture that belonged to the noble Sassi family, between 1510 and 1546. The thesis is initially concerned with the retrieval and examination of l-6th century primary materials in the forr:n:. 6f prints and drawings, doc~ents and texts, which are all regarded equally as 'Representations' of the subject. These add to the historical evidence for the existence and appearance of the courtyard and it~ contents.. However, close an~ysis of these materials not only adds to the historical record but also allows identification of 16th century perceptions and 'use' of the 'Antique'. It also leads to the re-identification of the majority of the Sassi sculptures, in Naples, allowing comparisons to be made with their two-dimensional representations. The thesis also locates, translates, reappraises and critiques neglected 18th, 19th and 20th century printed scholarship on 'the Sassi Courtyard and its contents, and by providing a systematic documentation of a site in Rome, the thesis also takes issue with conventional scholarship by establishing that considerable remains of' the Sassi Courtyard.continueas a presence in the 21st century. The arguments presented in Volume One are supported in Volume Two by the provision of extensive photographic analysis of the 16th century images of the courtyard and individual statues. The present condition of the sculptures themselves and the current state ofthe remains in the courtyard are also presented. The Sassi collection was a family collection and although comparison is made with other 16th century collections the thesis is' not about collecting per se. An Appendix to the thesis locates Italian documentation that provides an unprecedented Sassi Family Archive that covers the period between 1097 and 1546. The statues' connection with the Sassi was severed in 1546 when the collection was sold on to the Famese and consideration of data in this Archive allows suggestions as to not only who compiled the collection but also reasons for the sale of valuable sculptures.