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1 of 253523 objects
Venice: San Marco and the Piazza, looking east c.1723-4
Pen and ink, over traces of free pencil | 18.1 x 23.4 cm (sheet of paper) | RCIN 907429
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A drawing of a view in Piazza San Marco, Venice. In the centre is San Marco, and it its right the Campanile. On the far right is part of the Palazzo Ducale, and the Procuratie Nuove. On the left is the Torre dell'Orologio and Procuratie Vecchie.
The view is obtained by standing before the first column from the south along the west range of the Piazza. At the centre is the basilica of San Marco, drawn narrower and taller than in reality, and with its northern dome shifted to the left; the flagpoles have also been heightened and bunched up to the left. The end of the Procuratie Vecchie (the offices of the Procurators of San Marco) and the Torre dell'Orologio (clocktower) run down the left of the composition, and the Procuratie Nuove in shadow and steep perspective down the right. Beyond the base of the Campanile, with traders' awnings set up against its base, is the sunlit façade of the Palazzo Ducale, reduced in size - it should be level with the cusp of the upper central arch of San Marco. As the basilica has been heightened, the Campanile appears to be less tall than in reality, and Canaletto has radically slimmed its proportions to prevent it dominating the composition. The shadow of the Campanile falls across the flagpoles and the east end of the Procuratie, identifying the time as just before noon.
The painting of the same scene, which is in the Royal Collection (RCIN 405934), follows the drawing closely, the only major difference being the Piazza itself. By raising his viewpoint a little Canaletto increased the importance of the foreground, though this may also be due to an effect of the large figures, who are barely indicated in the drawing.
Catalogue entry adapted from Canaletto in Venice, London, 2005Provenance
Purchased by George III from Consul Joseph Smith, 1762
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Medium and techniques
Pen and ink, over traces of free pencil
Measurements
18.1 x 23.4 cm (sheet of paper)
Object type(s)
Other number(s)
RL 7429