Macacco - Aigrette - Scattaglia / Alessandri 1775

📜 Description
Original etching from the zoological series “Animali quadrupedi dal naturale dissegnati, incisi e miniati (...)”, produced in Venice between 1771 and 1775 by Pietro Scattaglia and Innocente Alessandri, published by C. Palese. The plate depicts two primates identified by the inscription “1 Macacco 2 Aigrette”, set within a simplified natural environment composed of rocks and vegetation. The principal subject is the macaque represented in an elevated position while holding a fruit, accompanied by a second specimen shown frontally in an observant stance. The composition reflects the scientific and educational purpose characteristic of eighteenth-century Venetian natural history illustration, intended for the visual classification of animal species according to descriptive and accessible criteria aimed at collectors and scholars alike. The lower inscription identifies the represented species and directly connects the work to the encyclopedic and zoological tradition of eighteenth-century Europe. This antique print presents an essential yet balanced composition in which the animal rendering retains a clear documentary function combined with the decorative sensibility typical of late eighteenth-century Venetian illustrated publishing.

📚 Historical-Artistic Note
During the second half of the eighteenth century, Venice maintained a highly active engraving production in the field of scientific and natural history illustration. Pietro Scattaglia and Innocente Alessandri collaborated on series dedicated to the animal world, translating European naturalistic models into decorative plates intended both for educational purposes and for collectors. Venetian zoological series of the period belong to the broader Enlightenment interest in the classification of nature, developed through illustrated books and period engravings destined for libraries, scientific studies, and private collections.

🧾 Technical Sheet
Type: original etching
Author / Workshop: Pietro Scattaglia / Innocente Alessandri
Publisher / Printer: C. Palese, Venice
Place: Venice
Period: 1771-1775
Material: paper
Technique: etching
Subject / Title: “1) Macacco 2) Aigrette”
Dimensions: sheet 34.5 cm x 49 cm; plate 26.5 cm x 35 cm
Marks / Signatures / Inscriptions: plate inscription “1 MACACCO 2 AIGRETTE”; plate number “CLXXX”
Notes: from “Animali quadrupedi dal naturale dissegnati, incisi e miniati (...)”; blank verso

🔍 Condition Report
Etching in excellent overall condition. Paper well preserved with occasional minor foxing consistent with age. Clear impression with well-preserved figurative details. Margins and surface generally in good conservation condition.