Wednesday, February 15, 2012, 18.00
Lecture: Andrea Galdy
The great collections of antiquities in early modern Europe are usually associated with male collectors, such as Roman cardinals. Isabella d'Este is probably the best known female collector of anticaglie in renaissance Italy, but she is often seen as the exception that proves the rule. There were in fact many other female collectors of ancient art in Italy and elsewhere in Europe and, while their efforts did not always have the same results as those of their male relatives, their desire to possess precious objects from the past was at least as strong. This illustrated talk looks at some of the less familiar female collectors, the objects they wished to own, and the rooms and pieces of furniture they used for display.