Italy | 'GRAND TOUR' CORK MODEL OF AN ANCIENT TEMPLE IN PAESTUM

'GRAND TOUR' CORK MODEL OF AN ANCIENT TEMPLE IN PAESTUM.

Italy.
Date: 19th c.
Technique: Cork, darkened by age. Mounted on an ebonised wooden plinth.
Measurement: Model: 15x30x17,5cm, plinth: 1x34,5x22cm.

"In the 18th century, models made of cork fuelled the imagination of those for whom the cultural sites of antiquity were inaccessible. At that time, they formed the basis for scientific studies and paved the way for the rapid development of classicism in architecture" (Freiburger/Goffin/Klotz, 2020, p.8).
At a time when travelling was reserved for the wealthy aristocracy, cork models served as visual objects of unknown cultures and offered all social classes access to ancient architecture. The first small models came into circulation through well-heeled and aristocratic Englishmen, who brought them back from their "Grand Tour" as souvenirs and mementos.