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An Allegory

1710–20
Not on view
The fantastical subject of this painting has eluded scholars. The woman holding dividers over an open book with diagrams has been identified as Circe or Melissa, but is probably a more generic sorceress surrounded by symbols of her dark magic: skulls, a bat, and a chimera (a fantastical winged creature). The representation in the left foreground of a coati, a member of the raccoon family native to South America, is unique in early modern painting and was probably based on an animal living in a private zoo in Genoa.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: An Allegory
  • Artist: Domenico Guidobono (Italian, Genoese, 1668–1746)
  • Date: 1710–20
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 56 3/4 x 92 1/4 in. (144.1 x 234.3 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Purchase, R. A. Farnsworth Gift, Gwynne Andrews, Charles B. Curtis, Rogers, Marquand, The Alfred N. Punnett Endowment, and Victor Wilbour Memorial Funds, 1970
  • Object Number: 1970.261
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

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