Roman, Imperial period, ca. 1st to 3rd century CE. An impressive fresco section depicting a gazelle, standing in profile dynamically posed, with his body facing left as he turns his head right. Delineated in hues of burnt sienna and beige, the majestic animal stands confidently with a pair of large, curved antlers rising from above his petaloid ears, round eye, and elongated snout. His thick body is supported by 4 slender legs ending in cloven hooves as a vertical stripe adorns his posterior, enveloping his perky tail. The left side of the fresco is embellished by a vertical strip and a row of minimalist palmette or vegetal motifs, granting an air of naturalism to the otherwise bare ground surrounding the animal. The gazelle is an interesting and rare animal to see depicted in Roman art, and appears more often in Egyptian art, where the animals were hunted and sometimes kept in royal game reserves. A superb example from the Ancient Roman Empire! Size of fresco: 18.5" W x 14.5" H (47 cm x 36.8 cm); of frame: 21.5" W x 17.5" H (54.6 cm x 44.4 cm)

The ancient fresco technique involved applying saturated pigments into wet lime-rich plaster, and only the wealthiest, most elite Romans adorned their houses with these elaborate wall paintings which required immense skill to create. Art historians have identified four styles of wall painting. This example aligns closest with the Second Pompeiian Style - also known as the architectural style - which was popular during the 1st century BCE. This style was characterized by illusionism whereby the walls were painted with architectural elements framing compositions that fooled the eye into believing they were real via a trompe l'oeil effects.

Another aspect of Roman wall painting to appreciate are the brilliant colors which contrast with the white hues of surviving ancient wall. Scholars have demonstrated that classical sculptures were actually originally brightly painted; however, the pigments have worn away over the ages. Thankfully, ancient wall paintings demonstrate the bold coloration that embellished ancient visual culture. What's more, while some of the most impressive artists of the Classical world were painters, sadly, many of their creations were painted on wood panels and have disappeared due to the perishable nature of this material. Thankfully, other forms of Classical art such as vase paintings, mosaics, and even a few fresco fragments like this example - many surviving from Pompeii and Herculaneum buried under the ash of a volcanic eruption in the year 79 CE - have survived the tests of time and can provide a means of understanding ancient painting techniques.

Similar frescoes of gazelles, sometimes identified instead as ibexes, goats, antelopes and deer, can be found in Villa Sant'Antonio Abate in Stabiae, the Baths of Diocletian, Villa Poppaea in Oplontis, Unit # 4 in the Yamac Houses of Ephesus in Turkey, northwest corner of Room IV in Pompeii, the large columbarium in Villa Doria Panphilj, and the Victoria and Albert Museum (accession number 127T-1873, originally found in Pozzuoli, Italy).

Provenance: East Coast collection, New York Gallery, New York City, New York, USA, acquired prior to 1990

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#176748

Portion of a larger fresco. Small chip to neck of gazelle. Fissures and craquelure throughout as shown. Otherwise, excellent with nice preservation of pigment. Set in a plaster matrix, with a wooden frame and backing for added support. Modern felt pads on verso for protection.