Female Allegorical Figure of Benignitas (Goodness), with Attributes of Abundance Standing in a Niche (recto); Architectural Sketches (verso)
This bold, elegantly finished drawing is a careful copy after the Allegorical figure of the virtue Goodness, entitled "Benignitas," in the fresco by Giorgio Vasari that adorns a wall of the Sala dei Cento Giorni in the Palazzo della Cancelleria in Rome. Vasari painted this large reception hall in 100 days (hence the name of the room) for Cardinal Ranuccio Farnese in 1546, and relied on the heavy collaboration of assistants. The allegorical figure in the fresco is meant to represent a sculpture, painted therefore in monochrome. This drawing had been previously attributed to the circle of Francesco Salviati by Philip Pouncey (his note on the mount of the drawing, April 1965), before the connection to Vasari's fresco had come to light. Pouncey's preliminary suggestion of attribution was a reasonable hypothesis, given the artistic reciprocities between Vasari and Salviati in the 1540s when both artists were in Rome. Pouncey had also noted the close resemblances of the drawing with Polidoro da Caravaggio's manner of designing the pattern of folds in the draperies. The watermark (Woodward "Arrows crossed C", Venice 1567) establishes a date around 1567.
Artwork Details
- Title: Female Allegorical Figure of Benignitas (Goodness), with Attributes of Abundance Standing in a Niche (recto); Architectural Sketches (verso)
- Artist: Circle of Giorgio Vasari (Italian, Arezzo 1511–1574 Florence)
- Date: 1550–70
- Medium: Pen and brown ink, brush and brown wash, over an underdrawing done with traces of black chalk, ruling, and compass-work in pen and brown ink (recto); black chalk (verso)
- Dimensions: Sheet: 16 9/16 x 9 15/16 in. (42.1 x 25.3 cm)
- Classification: Drawings
- Credit Line: Gift of Harry G. Friedman, 1958
- Object Number: 58.651.75
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Giorgio Vasari
1681
Giorgio Vasari
Cornelis Bloemaert
1681
Giorgio Vasari
1511–74
Giorgio Vasari
Jacopo Zucchi
ca. 1556–62
Giorgio Vasari
1927
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.