{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O138563"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O138563/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2017KJ8205/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2017KJ8205/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"high","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2017KJ8205","copyright":"©Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2006AC9420","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false},{"assetRef":"2017JW4774","copyright":"©Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":{"_iiif_pres":"https://iiif.vam.ac.uk/collections/O138563/manifest.json","_alt_iiif_pres":[]}},"record":{"systemNumber":"O138563","accessionNumber":"2261","objectType":"Design","titles":[{"title":"Design (plan and elevation) for a papal monument","type":"published title"}],"summaryDescription":"Design for a papal monument by Leonardo Sormani showing a free-standing monument consisting of a mortuary chapel with an effigy of the Pope on top and his sarcophagus within. A pair of angels hold the papal tiara above the Pope's head.\r\n\r\nThe drawing was part of the collection assembled by John Talman (1677-1726). Talman was the son of the celebrated architect William Talman. From about 1698 he was employed by his father to help assemble material for his extensive collection of architectural drawings, prints and books. A keen traveller, he went  to the Continent twice in search of acquisitions. He visited the northern Netherlands, France, Germany and Italy, and he made numerous watercolour copies of altarpieces and churches in Rome. \r\n\r\nTalman was back in England in 1715. He was a founder-member of the Tavern Society, London, which later became the Society of Antiquaries, and he was appointed its first director. Like his father, Talman believed in the elevating purpose of art and in the use of art collections for the public good. Although his will indicates that he had wanted his vast collection (which contained over 32,000 prints and drawings), to go to Trinity College, Cambridge, he later changed his mind and instructed that it should be sold for the benefit of his children. A portion of the collection was nonetheless given outright to the Society of Antiquaries, who acquired further items from the auction in London on 19 April 1727.","physicalDescription":"Design for a papal monument showing a free-standing monument consisting of a mortuary chapel with an effigy of the Pope on top and his sarcophagus within. A pair of angels hold the papal tiara above the Pope's head. The Medici arms have been identifed as those of Pius IV.","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Sormani, Leonardo","id":"A20016"},"association":{"text":"artist","id":"AAT25103"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"pen and ink","id":"x30618"},{"text":"wash","id":"AAT11051"},{"text":"paper","id":"x30308"}],"techniques":[{"text":"drawing","id":"AAT54196"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"Pen and ink and wash","categories":[{"text":"Designs","id":"THES48968"}],"styles":[{"text":"Italian School","id":"x31264"}],"collectionCode":{"text":"PDP","id":"THES48595"},"images":["2017KJ8205","2006AC9420","2017JW4774"],"imageResolution":"high","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"LVLH","id":"THES49654"},"free":"","case":"PD","shelf":"287","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"drawings","id":"AAT33973"}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Italy","id":"x28927"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"ca. 1565-1582","earliest":"1560-01-01","latest":"1582-12-31"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Height","value":"387","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"212","unit":"mm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"J. Talman (Lugt 2884A); Sir T. Lawrence (Lugt 2445); S. Woodburn (sale, Christie, 4-10 June 1860: bought for the Museum)","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Drawing, Design (plan and elevation) for a papal monument, by Leonardo Sormani, Italian School, pen and ink and wash, ca. 1565-1582","bibliographicReferences":[{"reference":{"text":"","id":""},"details":"","free":"Ward Jackson, Peter, <u>Italian Drawings. Volume One: 14th - 16th century</u>, London, 1979, cat. 320, p. 152-153, illus.\n\nThe following is the full text of the entry:\n\nSORMANI, LEONARDO \r\n(Sormano, Sormanno) \r\n(d. after 1589) \r\n\r\n320 \r\nDesign (plan and elevation) for a papal monument \r\nInscribed on the mount in a later hand 'Leonardo da Zarzane, Scult<sup>re</sup>.'\r\nPen and ink and wash \r\n15 ¼ x 8 ¼ (387 x 212) \t\t\t\t2261 \r\nPROVENANCE J. Talman (Lugt 2884A); Sir T. Lawrence (Lugt 2445); S. Woodburn (sale, Christie, 4-10 June 1860: bought for the Museum) \r\nLITERATURE F. Gregorovius <i>Le Tombe dei Papi</i>, 2nd (Italian) edition, revised by C. HueIsen, Rome, 1931, p. x, no. 70 and pI. 70; Siebenhuner, p. 251 and pl. 13 \r\n\r\nThe Medici arms must be those of Pius IV. He died in 1565 and was buried in St Peter's, but his tomb was moved to S. Maria degIi Angeli in 1583. Alessandro Cioli carved his monument there, the contract for the work being dated 1582. It is a more modest memorial than the ambitious scheme shown in our drawing. This scheme, which was never executed, was a revival of a favourite but abortive project of Gugidmo della Porta, that plan for a colossal free-standing monument to Paul III that is discussed here in nos. 252, 253 and 256. The drawing shows that, as in della Porta's plan, the monument was to consist of a mortuary chapel with an effigy of the pope on top and his sarcophagus within. The artist has followed della Porta in certain details as well as in the general design. The papal effigy on top of the tomb seems to have been copied from a design by him in one of the two Dusseldorf sketch-books (W. Gramberg, <i>Die Diisseldorfer Skizzenbiicher des Guglielmo della Porta</i>, Berlin, 1964, no. 135, where the pope is identified as Paul IV, Carafa.) In both drawings the effigy of the pope has the same profile, with his head lowered, his right arm raised and his right thigh visible above his left knee; and in both drawings a pair of angels holds a papal tiara above his head. Nor does the resemblance to della Porta end here. The handling of the pen is like him, so are the spindly figures. It is possible, in view of these likenesses, that the drawing may be by him, a last attempt at the end of his life to revive a cherished idea. If not, it must be by an artist who was under his influence and knew his drawings. The attribution to Sormani is recorded in a 19th century inscription, but may be older. His drawings are not known, nor is it recorded that he designed a tomb for Pius IV or that he was in touch with della Porta; but neither supposition is improbable, considering that he was working in Rome, largely on papal commissions, between 1551 and 1589. The attribution to him is retained for reasons of convenience, the drawing being known to scholars under that name. \r\nThe dating of so unusual a design is a matter of some interest. The <i>terminus ante quem</i> is 1582, when the existing tomb of Pius was commissioned. If the design is by della Porta, then the <i>terminus ante quem</i> must be brought back to 1577, the year of his death. But within these limits it seems desirable to date the drawing as late as possible, for stylistic reasons. In the bas¬relief on the front of the monument representing the coronation of the pope the artist has introduced into the foreground a row of half-length figures pressed up against the bottom of the relief as against a window sill. This compositional device is hardly to be found in Italian sculpture before about 1580. A typical example is to be seen in Pietro Bernini's relief of a similar subject, carved in 1613, on the tomb of Clement VIII in the Cappella Paolina in S. Maria Maggiore (Venturi, 10, part 3, p. 912, fig. 798). \r\nNo scale is given on our drawing, and it is difficult to establish one. The carefully worked out plan of the chapel, showing the position of the altar and of eighteen engaged columns, looks as though it were drawn to scale and to the same scale as the elevation; but if the width of the door is taken to be 3 ft, and it could hardly be much less, the consequences are startling. The chapel will be 27 ft long and 21 ft wide; the figure of the pope will be 15 ft high (as compared to 9 ft in della Porta's bronze portrait of Paul Ill); and the height of the whole monument from the tip of the papal tiara to the floor will be 50 ft. These colossal dimensions are hardly credible. A rather more reasonable size is obtained if the sarcophagus in the chapel is taken to be 8 ft long. The chapel will then measure 21 x 14 ft; the statue of the pope will be 11 ft high; and the total height of the monument will be about 40 ft. The door opening, however, will only be 2 ft, which is rather too narrow. The drawing is obviously not strictly to scale, but the proportions are such that the monument, if executed, would hardly have been smaller than the second set of figures show; that is to say it would have been roughly of about the same size as the monument in della Porta's original design for the tomb of Paul III (see Siebenhuner, pp. 231-33).\r\n"},{"reference":{"text":"Franklin, David, Carlo Gasparri, Ingrid D. Rowland, Sebastian Schütze, <i>From Raphael to Carracci: The Art of Papal Rome</i>, Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada, 2009.","id":"AUTH348170"},"details":"","free":""}],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"Unique","id":"THES48864"},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["2261"],"accessionNumberNum":"2261","accessionNumberPrefix":"","accessionYear":null,"otherNumbers":[{"type":{"text":"Ward Jackson Catalogue Number","id":"THES57260"},"number":"PWJ 320"}],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2025-04-16","recordCreationDate":"2007-08-17","availableToBook":false}}