Papacy and Politics in Eighteenth-Century Rome
Pius VI and the Arts

A study of the last papal patron of arts in the Renaissance and Baroque tradition.

Jeffrey Collins (Author)

9780521809436, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 8 April 2004

378 pages, 186 b/w illus.
25.4 x 19.7 x 2.8 cm, 1.115 kg

'Collins's is an engrossing narrative, packed with examples of visual culture'. Journal of Ecclesiastical History

Pius VI was the last great papal patron of the arts in the Renaissance and Baroque tradition. This book presents the first synthetic study of his artistic patronage and policies in an effort to understand how he used the arts strategically, as a means of countering the growing hostility to the old order and the supremacy of the papacy. Pius' initiatives included the grand sacristy for St Peter's, the new Vatican Museum of ancient art, and the re-erection of Egyptian obelisks. These projects, along with Pius' use of prints, paintings, and performances, created Pius' public persona, and helped to anchor Rome's place as the cultural capital of Europe.

1. Politics and possibilities
2. Images of sovereignty
3. Completing St Peter's
4. The Gods' abode
5. The eternal city
6. Creating a nation.

Subject Areas: History of art & design styles: c 1400 to c 1600 [ACN], History of art: Byzantine & Medieval art c 500 CE to c 1400 [ACK]