Latin Inscription, after Ruskin

Artists

Description

This is copied from a drawing by John Ruskin; see photocopy in curatorial file. The drawing is no. 9 in his Rudimentary Series of 1878 at Oxford, and is described as "Italian engraved writing of the Lombardic School." The inscription is carved into one of the foundation stones of the Duomo of Lucca, which dates to 1060. It translates as "Hoc opus cepit", or "[so-and-so] started this work" and would probably have been used for a work by more than one artisan.

Dimensions

21.6 x 31.9 cm (8 1/2 x 12 9/16 in.) mount: 24.4 x 31.5 cm (9 5/8 x 12 3/8 in.) Graphite border drawn around image.: 8.8 x 19.9 cm (3 7/16 x 7 13/16 in.)

Provenance

Fine Arts Department, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA; transferred to Fogg Art Museum, 1926.