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Apollo and the Muses Awakened by the Call of Fame
About the Artwork
Here a barely visible Apollo, sleeping in the upper left background, and the nine muses are roused by the allegorical figure of Fame, who flies overhead with a trumpet. This dynamic scene signifies a reawakening of the arts. The loosely arranged clusters of figures and natural forms also suggest a harmonious relationship between humanity and the environment. This drawing, with its heavily subdued details and attention to the overall impact of contrast and design, is characteristic of Venetian draftsmanship in the late 1500s, and was valued by the small circle of Venetian intellectuals for whom Palma produced many similar mythological works.
Inscriptions
RECTO OF SECONDARY SUPPORT, lower center, in brown ink: Palma giovan . ; VERSO OF SECONDARY SUPPORT, lower center, in graphite: Ex Coll: Jonathan Richardson ; lower center, in graphite: 23 [circled]
Provenance
Jonathan Richardson Sr (1667-1745), London (Lugt 2183, lower center, in black ink) William Mayor (died 1874), London (Lugt 2799, lower right, in black ink). -1912: John Postle Heseltine (1843-1929), London (Lugt 1507, verso of secondary support, lower right, in black ink); sold to Colnaghi 1912: With P. & D. Colnaghi & Obach, London (according to departmental cataloguing sheet). 1926: With Knoedler & Co., New York, (verso of secondary support, stamped in red ink: M. K. & CO. / W. C. No. 1246 [traced in black ink]) 1926: Purchased by the Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Exhibition history
Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 28-December 9, 1937). Drawings from the Collection of Sir Robert Witt, London. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (September 30-October 30, 1938). Old Master Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 4-March 26, 1939). Drawings by Old Italian Masters. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 5, 1940-February 25, 1941). Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 4-April 27, 1941). Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 22-October 26, 1941). Drawings from the Museum Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 17-August 24, 1942). The Venetian Tradition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (November 8, 1956-January 1, 1957). Water Color. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 6-August 27, 1962). Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 11-September 10, 1963). Old Master Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 10-31, 1964). Drawings: France, Italy, Netherlands. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 1-March 24, 1965). Prints and Drawings from the Cleveland Museum of Art Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 6-September 9, 1965). Italian Prints and Drawings. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 30-March 26, 1968). The Draftsman's Eye: Late Italian Renaissance Schools and Styles. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 6-April 22, 1979). Connoisseurship in Italian Figural Compositions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 21, 1980-February 15, 1981). Italian Drawings from the Permanent Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 16, 1986-March 1, 1987). Concept, Dogma and Feeling: Italian Drawings 1550-1650. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 27-October 20, 1991).
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Jacopo Palma il Giovane (Italian, c. 1548–1628)
- Date
- 1590s
- Medium
- pen and brown ink and brush and brown wash over graphite
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 20.4 x 26.1 cm (8 1/16 x 10 1/4 in.); Secondary Support: 26.3 x 31.9 cm (10 3/8 x 12 9/16 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- Dudley P. Allen Fund
- Accession no.
- 1926.265
More by Jacopo Palma il Giovane in museum collections
Study for Venice Receiving Homage and Gifts from Brescia, Udine, Padua, and Verona, with Doge Francesco Venier Presenting Them
Jacopo Palma il Giovanec. 1593 · Drawing
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Open-access museum record · AT-00011028
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