Building

Attributed to Cesare Nebbia Italian

1536–1614

Not on view

Depictions of construction sites are common throughout art history and often function as a part of a larger narrative. In this drawing, for example, a construction site is supervised by a man (perhaps a military officer) dressed in Roman armor. Under his instruction, large blocks of stone are carried up a ladder, while mortar is applied to bond them in place. The presumed author of this drawing, Nebbia, frequently used Greco-Roman antiquity as inspiration for his paintings and fresco cycles. In this case, he seems to have taken cues from the figurative relief sculpture found on Trajan’s Column in Rome. In a scene depicted on the column similar to that of Nebbia’s drawing, the Roman army constructs a fortification under the supervision of the two central commanders. Renaissance artists often utilized Trajan’s Column as an exemplar to reinterpret antiquity.

Artwork Details

Title: Building
Artist: Attributed to Cesare Nebbia (Italian, Orvieto ca. 1536–1614 Orvieto)
Date: 1536–1614
Medium: Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over leadpoint
Dimensions: 9-5/8 x 11-1/4 in. (24.5 x 28.6 cm); maximum (lower half of sheet made up)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Gift of Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1880
Object Number: 80.3.81
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

By Cesare Nebbia

In the same medium

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The Pentecost (The Descent of the Holy Spirit), Cesare Nebbia Italian, Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, highlighted with white gouache, over black chalk — The Pentecost (The Descent of the Holy Spirit)
Cesare Nebbia
ca. 1576

Moses and Other Figures, Cesare Nebbia Italian, Pen and brown ink, over traces of leadpoint or black chalk — Moses and Other Figures
Cesare Nebbia
1570–80

An Ecclesiastic (Pope?) Blessing a Book before the Sacred College, Cesare Nebbia Italian, Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over black chalk; traces of framing lines in pen and brown ink — An Ecclesiastic (Pope?) Blessing a Book before the Sacred College
Cesare Nebbia
1580–90

The Contest Between Athena and Poseidon for the Possession of Athens, Cesare Nebbia Italian, Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over traces of leadpoint or black chalk; squared in red chalk; traces of framing lines in pen and darker brown ink — The Contest Between Athena and Poseidon for the Possession of Athens
Cesare Nebbia
1570s

Standing Figure of a Warrior King, Cesare Nebbia Italian, Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over black chalk — Standing Figure of a Warrior King
Cesare Nebbia
1536–1614

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