The Thorvaldsens Museum Archives

Comment on 4.10.1801

In his letter dated 3.12.1799, Abildgaard asked for three volumes of the catalogue of the part of the Vatican collections in the so-called Museo Pio-Clementino, established by Clement XIV (1769-1774) and Pius VI (1775-1799). The title of the catalogue is: Il Museo Pio-Clementino, descritto da Giambattista e Ennio Qvirino Visconti, T. I-VI, Roma 1782-96, (copy in Thorvaldsens Museum, M134).
In two letters dated 4.4.1800 and 24.10.1800, Thorvaldsen had written that he could not afford to buy the three volumes. Here, Abildgaard has obviously forgotten this or chosen to ignore it.
In the end, however, Thorvaldsen bought the catalogues and sent them to Copenhagen by ship from Leghorn, which he told Abildgaard in his answer dated 20.3.1802. See also the related article about Transportation of Thorvaldsen’s Artworks 1798 and 1802.

Last updated 15.01.2018