Leopoldo Cicognara
Encyclopedia
Count Leopoldo Cicognara (17 November 1767 – 5 March 1834) was an Italian
archaeologist and writer on art
.
, Italy.
He resided for some years at Rome
, where he devoted himself to painting and the study of antiquities and galleries; later he visited Naples
and Sicily
, and published at Palermo
one of his first works, a poem of no merit. After exploring the island, he betook himself to Florence
, Milan
, Bologna
and Venice
, acquiring a complete archaeological knowledge of these and other cities.
In 1795, he took up his abode at Modena
and was for twelve years engaged in politics, becoming a member of the legislative body, a councillor of state, and minister plenipotentiary of the Cisalpine Republic
at Turin
. Napoleon decorated him with the Iron Crown
; and in 1808 he was made president of the Academy of the Fine Arts at Venice, a post in which he did good work for a number of years.
In 1808, his treatise Del bello regionamenti appeared , dedicated in glowing terms to Napoleon. This was followed by his magnum opus, the Storia della scultura dal suo risorgimento in Italia al secolo di Napoleone, in the composition of which he had been encouraged and advised by Wilhelm Schlegel. The book was designed to complete the works of Winckelmann
and D'Agincourt, and is illustrated with 180 plates in outline.
In 1814, after the fall of Napoleon, Cicognara was patronized by Francis I
of Austria
, and between 1815 and 1820 published, under the auspices of that sovereign, his Fabbriche più cospicue di Venezia, two superb folios, containing some 150 plates. Charged by the Venetians with the presentation of their gifts to the empress Caroline
at Vienna
, Cicognara added to the offering an illustrated catalogue of the objects it comprised; this book, Omaggio delle Provincie Venete alla maestri Carolina Augusta, has since become of great value to the bibliophilist.
Reduced to poverty by these splendid editorial speculations, Cicognara contrived to alienate the imperial favor by his political opinions. He left Venice for Rome; his library was offered for sale; and, in 1821m he published at Pisa
a catalogue, rich in bibliographical lore, of this fine collection, the result of thirty years of loving labor, which, in 1824, was purchased en bloc by Pope Leo XII, and added to the Vatican library
. The other works of Cicognara are the Memorie storiche de litterati ed artisti Ferraresi (1811); the Vite de' più insigni pittori e scultori Ferraresi, MS.; the Memorie spettanti alla storia della calcografia (1831); and a large number of dissertations on painting, sculpture, engraving and other kindred subjects. Cicognara's work in the academy at Venice, of which he became president in 1808, had important results in the increase in number of the professors, the improvement in the courses of study, the institution of prizes, and the foundation of a gallery for the reception of Venetian pictures.
Philipp Fehl
and Raina Fehl
were the directors of The Leopoldo Cicognara Program at the University of Illinois Library, dedicated to the study and promulgation of literary sources in the history of art, 1987-2007. They cataloged the collection of work found in the Fondo Cicognara at the Vatican Library
.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
archaeologist and writer on art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
.
Biography
Cicognara was born in FerraraFerrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...
, Italy.
He resided for some years at Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, where he devoted himself to painting and the study of antiquities and galleries; later he visited Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
and Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, and published at Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
one of his first works, a poem of no merit. After exploring the island, he betook himself to Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
and Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, acquiring a complete archaeological knowledge of these and other cities.
In 1795, he took up his abode at Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
and was for twelve years engaged in politics, becoming a member of the legislative body, a councillor of state, and minister plenipotentiary of the Cisalpine Republic
Cisalpine Republic
The Cisalpine Republic was a French client republic in Northern Italy that lasted from 1797 to 1802.-Birth:After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte proceeded to organize two states: one to the south of the Po River, the Cispadane Republic, and one to the north, the Transpadane...
at Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
. Napoleon decorated him with the Iron Crown
Iron Crown of Lombardy
The Iron Crown of Lombardy is both a reliquary and one of the most ancient royal insignia of Europe. The crown became one of the symbols of the Kingdom of Lombards and later of the medieval Kingdom of Italy...
; and in 1808 he was made president of the Academy of the Fine Arts at Venice, a post in which he did good work for a number of years.
In 1808, his treatise Del bello regionamenti appeared , dedicated in glowing terms to Napoleon. This was followed by his magnum opus, the Storia della scultura dal suo risorgimento in Italia al secolo di Napoleone, in the composition of which he had been encouraged and advised by Wilhelm Schlegel. The book was designed to complete the works of Winckelmann
Johann Joachim Winckelmann
Johann Joachim Winckelmann was a German art historian and archaeologist. He was a pioneering Hellenist who first articulated the difference between Greek, Greco-Roman and Roman art...
and D'Agincourt, and is illustrated with 180 plates in outline.
In 1814, after the fall of Napoleon, Cicognara was patronized by Francis I
Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor
Francis II was the last Holy Roman Emperor, ruling from 1792 until 6 August 1806, when he dissolved the Empire after the disastrous defeat of the Third Coalition by Napoleon at the Battle of Austerlitz...
of Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, and between 1815 and 1820 published, under the auspices of that sovereign, his Fabbriche più cospicue di Venezia, two superb folios, containing some 150 plates. Charged by the Venetians with the presentation of their gifts to the empress Caroline
Caroline
-People:*Caroline , a feminine given name*Caroline of Ansbach , queen consort of George II of Great Britain*Caroline of Brunswick , queen consort of George IV of the United Kingdom...
at Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Cicognara added to the offering an illustrated catalogue of the objects it comprised; this book, Omaggio delle Provincie Venete alla maestri Carolina Augusta, has since become of great value to the bibliophilist.
Reduced to poverty by these splendid editorial speculations, Cicognara contrived to alienate the imperial favor by his political opinions. He left Venice for Rome; his library was offered for sale; and, in 1821m he published at Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
a catalogue, rich in bibliographical lore, of this fine collection, the result of thirty years of loving labor, which, in 1824, was purchased en bloc by Pope Leo XII, and added to the Vatican library
Vatican Library
The Vatican Library is the library of the Holy See, currently located in Vatican City. It is one of the oldest libraries in the world and contains one of the most significant collections of historical texts. Formally established in 1475, though in fact much older, it has 75,000 codices from...
. The other works of Cicognara are the Memorie storiche de litterati ed artisti Ferraresi (1811); the Vite de' più insigni pittori e scultori Ferraresi, MS.; the Memorie spettanti alla storia della calcografia (1831); and a large number of dissertations on painting, sculpture, engraving and other kindred subjects. Cicognara's work in the academy at Venice, of which he became president in 1808, had important results in the increase in number of the professors, the improvement in the courses of study, the institution of prizes, and the foundation of a gallery for the reception of Venetian pictures.
Philipp Fehl
Philipp Fehl
Philipp Fehl was an Austrian artist and art historian. He emigrated to the United States in 1941, and became an artist, author and lecturer at several universities. He retired as Professor Emeritus from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana in 1990...
and Raina Fehl
Raina Fehl
Raina Fehl was an Austrian-born American classicist, writer and editor. Immigrated into the United states, 1939. United States citizen since 1944. U.S. Army Service 1945-1946, Psychiatric Social Worker, U.S. War Department, Research Analyst, Nuremberg War Crimes Trials, 1946-1947. Married...
were the directors of The Leopoldo Cicognara Program at the University of Illinois Library, dedicated to the study and promulgation of literary sources in the history of art, 1987-2007. They cataloged the collection of work found in the Fondo Cicognara at the Vatican Library
Vatican Library
The Vatican Library is the library of the Holy See, currently located in Vatican City. It is one of the oldest libraries in the world and contains one of the most significant collections of historical texts. Formally established in 1475, though in fact much older, it has 75,000 codices from...
.