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Near Porta Pinti, Florence by James Giles
Near Porta Pinti, Florence
Near Porta Pinti, Florence by James Giles
Near Porta Pinti, Florence by James Giles

Near Porta Pinti, Florence

Artist (Aberdeen, Scotland, 1801 - 1870)
Date1824
Mediumpencil and colour wash on paper
ClassificationsPaintings And Drawings
DimensionsOverall: Height: 26.6 cm, Width: 18.1 cm
AcquisitionBequeathed in 1995 by Miss Mary B Herdman.
CopyrightOut of copyright - CC0
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDAG010845
Keywords
About MeIn this scene just outside Florence, rather than focus on the monument of one of the City Gates - Porta Pinti, which we see in the background - Giles' eye sought out the natural beauty of the cypress trees.

A few hundred yards from Porta Pinti is the Protestant Cemetery, principally the burial place of the British. In the Mediterranean, the cypress tree is often found next to cemeteries - possibly for the aroma of its aromatic resin. Giles was endlessly fascinated with the natural world - his many sketchbooks are filled mainly with rapid, on the spot sketches of animals and trees and here he does seem to divest the study of the cypress with a certain pathos and sensitivity to atmosphere.



More About Me

Giles was endlessly fascinated with the natural world - his many sketchbooks are filled mainly with rapid, on the spot sketches. Here he focuses on the cypress trees.