The Chariot of Aurora

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo Italian

Not on view

Aurora, in her chariot, is accompanied by the Hours and heralded by Apollo; the figure of Time is on the right. Also recognizable are Ceres, with a sheaf of wheat, and Bacchus, wearing a crown of vine leaves. The sketch may have been presented as a proposal by Tiepolo for the decoration of a ceiling in the Palacio Real in Madrid. Tiepolo was summoned to Spain in 1762 to decorate the throne room; a ceiling on this theme was painted in the queen's bedroom in 1763 by the artist's German rival, Anton Raphael Mengs.

The Chariot of Aurora, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (Italian, Venice 1696–1770 Madrid), Oil on canvas

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