A Pair Of Sicilian Views From The Grand Tour—antonio Senape (rome, 1788–naples, 1850)

• Artist: Antonio Senape (Rome, 1788 – Naples, 1850)
  
  
• Title / Subjects: Pair of Sicilian Views from the Grand Tour (Pair)
  
  
• View of the Palermo Harbor with Mount Pellegrino
  
  
• Panoramic view of Messina and the Strait with the San Raineri Peninsula
  
  
• Period / Date: First half of the 19th century (ca. 1820–1840)
• dimension cm 41,5 x 56
• Technique: Ink / pen-and-ink on paper
  
  
• Condition: Very good; paper naturally and slightly browned by age.
  
  
• Framing: Framed as a pair in matching period or period-style frames, finely crafted with a marbled/briar effect and mat.
  
  

Narrative and Description of the Works

This refined pair of drawings represents a rare and fascinating visual record of the Grand Tour in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Executed in pen with extraordinary miniaturist skill, the two sheets immortalize two of the most celebrated panoramas among 19th-century travelers:

• Palermo and Mount Pellegrino: The first work depicts the famous promenade along Palermo’s Marina (today the Foro Italico). On the left, noble palaces line the street, while the viewer’s gaze is guided along the curve of the gulf toward the silhouette of Monte Pellegrino, described by Goethe as “the most beautiful promontory in the world.” Genre figures, carriages, and sailboats enliven the scene, lending it life and proportion.
  
  
• Messina and the Strait: The second view offers an aerial glimpse of extraordinary historical value. Taken from the hills, it shows the city before the devastating 1908 earthquake, with the harbor’s characteristic sickle shape (the San Raineri peninsula), the lighthouse, and the Calabrian coastline in the background. In the foreground, a traveler with a donkey and a female figure in period dress are walking along a dirt road.
  
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• Note on the Artist and Historical Context

Antonio Senape (1788–1850) was one of the most celebrated and original landscape artists of the Grand Tour. Unlike his contemporaries from the Posillipo School or artists who used the camera obscura, Senape distinguished himself through his masterful and precise use of the freehand pen, creating entire chiaroscuro landscapes with minute strokes of ink. Although his body of work related to Naples and Campania is extensive, his views of Sicily are considerably rarer and particularly sought after by international collectors.