Tommaso Riario Sforza, Filippo Agricola, Giovanni Regis e una lettera anonima per il restauro del Ratto d’Europa di Paolo Veronese della Pinacoteca Capitolina nel 1844
abstract
The present paper takes the cue from an anonymous letter sent in 1844 to the camerlengo Tommaso Riario Sforza to denounce the poor conservative conditions in which Veronese’s Rape of Europe, in the Pinacoteca Capitolina in Rome, was placed. Considered one of the gems of the Roman collections, as the contemporary sources attest, especially due to the scarcity of works by Venetian masters in Rome, the large canvas was important above all as a model for young artists to exercise on colouring. Following this complaint, the painting will be taken over by the under-inspector Filippo Agricola, who will make the design for a new frame and will entrust the restoration to Giovanni Regis.
Keywords: Venetian masters • Pictorial restorations • Conservation in Papal States • Roman collections • Paolo Veronese