Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- c. 1750s-1773 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
1 bound manuscript
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Italian late Baroque sculptor. Born, Rome 1700. Died, Rome 1773. Among his most prominent works are the colossal Oceanus (or Neptune) of the Trevi Fountain and the sculptures of four funerary monuments in Rome: the tomb of Pope Benedict XIII in the Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, the tomb of Pope Benedict XIV in the Basilica of Saint Peter, the tomb of Maria Clementina Sobieski, wife of ‘The Old Pretender’ James Francis Edward Stuart, also in the Vatican, and the tomb of Cardinal Giuseppe Renato Imperiali in the Basilica of Sant’Agostino. He is also renowned for a group of busts and a significant number of drawings which are now dispersed among numerous museums and collections around the world, including the Canadian Centre for Architecture and the Musée des Beaux-Arts, both in Montreal, and the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. According to historical inventories, he was also author of several manuscripts, most of them now lost, on a variety of subjects, including architecture, military engineering and sundials.
Archival history
Purchased by Monsignor Antonio Bonclerici (1801-1843) from Bracci’s heirs in Rome. After Bonclerici’s death, bought by the Aquari brothers (mid to second half of 19th century) in Rome. Later in the possession of Sir Alan H. Gardiner, who subsequently presented it to the former Ashmolean Museum Library (now Sackler Library). Thence transferred to the department of Egyptian Antiquities, Ashmolean Museum.
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Received at the Griffith Institute from Mr Liam McNamara, Keeper of Egyptian Antiquities, Ashmolean Museum, 9th December 2011. Oficially transferred to the Griffith Institute by Dr Graham Piddock, Sackler Librarian, 12th June 2012.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Bound manuscript on Egyptian hieroglyphs and related topics (Roman obelisks, Iseum in Rome, Isiac pomp described by Apuleius, Egyptian rites, mummies, etc.). Left unfinished.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Kept as received.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Property of the Griffith Institute. No restrictions.
Conditions governing reproduction
Copyright Griffith Institute, Oxford.
Language of material
Italian
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
No problems.
Finding aids
None.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
This is the original.
Existence and location of copies
None.
Related units of description
Publication note
-Not published.
-Preliminary note on the Griffith Institute website: I Geroglifici ed Obelischi Eggizzi, 'opera postuma inedita di Pietro Bracci', 1767 (http://www.griffith.ox.ac.uk/bracci-special/).
-For a first analysis of the manuscript, see Bencini, Gaia 2018. The fascination for ancient Egypt and the interpretation of hieroglyphs in 18th century Rome: Pietro Bracci’s unpublished manuscript ‘I Geroglifici ed Obelischi Eggizzi’ (MPhil thesis, University of Oxford) (http://www.griffith.ox.ac.uk/gri/Gaia_Bencini_MPhil_thesis.pdf).