Monument to William Chancellor Cowper
Medium
pen and brown ink over traces of black chalk on laid paper; partially pricked for transfer
Dimensions
overall: 62.3 x 44.3 cm (24 1/2 x 17 7/16 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of the Christian Humann Foundation
Accession Number
1996.128.17
Art Historical Context
This elegant drawing by Domenico Maria Fratta, created in 1732, serves as a preparatory design for a monument honoring William Cowper, the esteemed Lord Chancellor of England who passed away in 1723. Fratta, an accomplished 18th-century Bolognese draftsman, captures the solemn grandeur of a commemorative structure likely intended for an English setting. The work reflects the period’s fascination with classical forms and memorial art, blending Italian artistic traditions with British historical reverence. Executed in pen and brown ink over faint black chalk on laid paper, the sheet measures ab...