Franz Ludwig Catel (German, 1778–1856)
Inside the Colosseum
INV-2192
Franz Ludwig Catel (German, 1778–1856)c. 1823
Inside the Colosseum
Franz Ludwig Catel (German, 1778–1856) →19th centurypaintingoil on canvas
Date
c. 1823
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
100.4 × 137.5 cm (39 1/2 × 58 1/4 in.); Framed: 125 × 161 cm (49 × 63 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Through prior gift of Mr. and Mrs. Chauncey B. Borland
A shaft of sunlight illuminates a group of figures dwarfed by the monumental architecture of the Colosseum, the ancient amphitheater in Rome. The building had fallen into disrepair for centuries until restorations began in 1822, the year before Franz Ludwig Catel made this painting.
In the foreground, a figure identifiable as architect Giuseppe Valadier bows slightly while presenting plans to the red-stockinged Cardinal Ercole Consalvi at left. In the background, two workers carry a sack filled with rubble from the Colosseum’s depths, visually representing the labor involved in the project.
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