Catacombe di San Callisto

Black pencil drawing, mm 307x427, lower right bears the inscription Crypte de Saint Corneille, Pape et martyr, Cimitière de Sanit Calisctè…

Belongs to a collection of 127 works unearthed from a French antiquarian who, in turn, had acquired them from the heirs of publisher Henri-Désiré Charpentier (La Rochelle 1805 - Vertou 1882); they are all done in black pencil, some have white lead highlighting; they never bear the date and signature of the author, but only a brief caption relating to the subjects depicted. The drawings denote a skilled and expert hand - especially in the delineation of buildings, ruins and architecture - that restores the monuments of Rome from interesting and unusual perspective points. The reference of most of the drawings to some of the tinted lithographs by Felix and Philippe Benoist, published in the three-volume work Rome dans sa grandeur, immediately became clear. The fact that this is a large group of original drawings related to the famous work edited by Henri-Désiré Charpentier is clearly supported by the prestigious provenance; it is a part of Charpentier's heir fund, among which the material of the famous chalcographic workshop had been divided.

Rome dans sa grandeur. Vues, monument ancient et modernes was printed in Paris in 3 volumes, in 1870. The publication, illustrated by 100 lithographs, was preceded by a campaign of preparatory drawings, dating from 1864 until 1869, executed mainly by Félix Benoist and partly by Philippe Benoist. On the eve of the Concilio Ecumenico Vaticano I, on August 11, 1869, Pius IX decreed the creation of a Roman Exhibition of the works of every art executed for Catholic worship, which was inaugurated, on February 17, 1870, in the cloister of the Carthusian monastery of Santa Maria degli Angeli. On that occasion, the three folio volumes Rome dans sa grandeur were presented. The lavishly bound volumes, with the coat of arms of Pius IX stamped in the center in gold, are divided into three sections. The first volume deals with ancient Rome, the second, with Christian Rome, and the third, with the monuments and achievements of modern Rome. A valuable view of papal Rome on the eve of Rome's profound transformation into the capital of united Italy. A document that highlights the remarkable imprint left by Pius IX on the Eternal City. The work represents the French artist's masterpiece, so much so that it places Benoist among the ranks of the greatest artists of interiors and views of his time.

The sheets used for the preliminary studies vary in size (from 170 mm x 240 to 490 x 300 mm), weight and even color gradation (from beige to green).  Many of the drawings undeniably represent different preparatory stages - more or less complete - of some of the dyed lithographs illustrating the magnificent work, others of the silographic vignettes included in the text, while other sketches do not find translation in print. Belonging to this second group are both sketches relating to monuments and views of Rome and its surroundings: ancient Ostia, Grottaferrata, Olevano Romano, Anzio, Nettuno, Velletri and Vicovaro. Far beyond from Rome are drawings relating to Naples and Loreto. The suite was to form part of the entire fund, later dispersed, of preparatory studies from which the hundred intended for lithographic printing were selected.

Preparatory drawing for the plate “Cripta di S. Cornelio, Papa e Martire, Cimitero di S. Callisto presso la via Appia”.

The Catacombs of San Callisto represent the oldest and best-preserved cemetery unit on Via Appia; the complex owes its name to the martyr pope Saint Callistus (217-222), who, before his pontificate, was appointed by pope Zephyrinus (199-217) to the administration of the cemetery, considered the official burial place of the Church of Rome. The complex, where numerous popes and martyrs rest, consists of areas above ground and a series of hypogea, which can be dated as early as the end of the 2nd century AD, which, connected, form a network of galleries on different levels, that extends for about 20 km. Before entering the undergrounds of the catacomb, you can admire the two basilicas with three apses called "Tricore". The Crypt of the Popes is one of the oldest and most important areas of San Callisto, discovered in 1854 by Giovanni Battista de Rossi; the archaeologist called it "the little Vatican" since nine popes and eight bishops from the 3rd century are buried there. Inside are five original tombstones, albeit broken, of as many popes. A narrow passage leads to the Crypt of Saint Cecilia, a noble martyred around 230 AD, whose remains stayed until 821 in a sarcophagus still present in the catacomb, to be later transferred to the basilica in the Rione Trastevere. Giovanni Battista de Rossi.

De Rossi is one of the authors of Rome dans sa Grandeur and edited the section devoted to the Catacombs, opening the second volume Rome Chretienne. The article is accompanied by two lithographic plates depicting the crypts of St. Callistus and St. Cecilia. Of both we have preparatory drawings S36409 and S36410.

But let us give the floor to Mr. De Rossi who describes the discovery of the Cpryt of Saint Cornelius thus: “C'est en 1852 que la crypte de saint Corneille a été retrouvée. L'histoire de cette découverte est très-connue; elle a été répétée dans un grand nombre de livrei et de revues. Au milieu d'une vigne située à la droite de la voie Appienne,. au premier mille hors des. murs de Rome et de la porte Saint-Sébastien, j'avais remarqué, dès l'année 1849, un amas de fragments d'inscriptions, parmi lesquels je lus avec la plus vive joie les restes d'une épitaphe d'un martyr, dont le nom se terminait en nelius   MARTYR. Je crus sans aucun doute y voir l'épitaphe du pape Corneille. Dès lors je ne pouvais hésiter à chercher le cimetière de Calixte, et par conséquent les tombeaux des papes du 1110 siècle, aux environs de cette vigne, au lieu de les reconnaître dans les caveaux de la basilique de Saint-Sébastien. Je ne me trompais pas : en effet, quatre années plus tard, précisément dans les souterrains de la vigne que je 'viens d'indiquer, nous pûmes nous ouvrir l'accès à une chambre soutenue par des piliers et des constructions à arceaux de l'époque de saint Damase : elle était remplie des décombres tombés par deux lucernaires. Quatre images de saints en style byzantin, exécutées à l'époque du pieux pélerinage, décoraient deux à deux des piliers entre lesquels s'ouvrait un tombeau : à droite, une de ces images était accompagnée de l'inscription verticale SCt CORNELI PP (saneti CorneW papoe); et l'autre, qui lui était accolée, conservait à peine quelques traces du nom CIPRIANI (voir la planche intitulée Crypte de Saint-Corneille, pape et martyr, et représentant exactement. l'état actuel des lieux). Voilà donc le souvenir de saint Cyprien réuni 'à celui de saint Corneille, conformément aux indices que les itinéraires des pèlerins nous fournissaient. Devant ces images était dressé' un petit autel de forme cylindrique; à Côté d'elles, un tombeau évidemment très-important avait été anciennement orné de trois inscriptions. La première en haut et la dernière en bas étaient gravées en caractères calligraphiques damasiens ou presque damasiens; malheureusement il n'en restait que peu de débris. L'inscription du milieu, celle qtii autrefois avait fermé l'ouverture même du tombeau, était réduite aussi à peu de lettres; mais ce fragment était précisément ce qui manquait à l'épitaphe que. j'avais trouvée en1849. Les deux pierres réunies donnaient l'inscription complète : CORNELIVS MARTYR Episcopus, et étaient justement de la dimension nécessaire pour fermer la niche sépulcrale; nous étions vraiment en présence d'un des tombeaux  historiques du cimetière de Calixte” (Rome dans sa Grandeur, Rome Chrétienne, p. 11).

The last image, which is not for sale, represents the tinted lithograph included in Rome dans sa grandeur. Vues, monument ancient et modernes, and allows us to compare it with the preparatory drawing.