Recreating of Ancient Architecture in Renaissance Graphics: Sources and Visual Tradition
Keywords:
Renaissance, humanism, the study of antiquities, imaginary reconstructions, ekphrastic architecture, epigraphic sources, numismatics, Pirro Ligorio, Jacques Androuet Du CerceauAbstract
This article continues the author’s research on the phenomenon of “imaginary reconstructions” of ancient architecture in Renaissance drawings and engravings. These images represent monuments known from historical records in forms that are far from the original architectural tradition. They gained popularity from the second half of the 15th century until the end of the 16th century. The author explores the reasons for this phenomenon, which she sees primarily as a gap between verbal and visual perceptions of antiquity. She identifies the main sources that contributed to the emergence of these images: ekphrastic descriptions from ancient and medieval texts, inscriptions, numismatic data, and examples of ancient Roman paintings and sculptures. The paper examines the main stages in the development of this tradition, as well as the most prominent architects and draftsmen involved in it, such as Pirro Ligorio and Jacques Androuet Du Сerceau. As a result, the author concludes that these reconstructions were not a local or marginal phenomenon, but rather they were closely connected to the overall development of Renaissance humanistic and antiquarian studies. It was an essential part of the Renaissance’s perception of antiquity, which had an artistic nature.
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