The Three Fates

This relief-like engraving depicts the seated figures of the Three Fates of ancient Greek mythology with their instruments for spinning. Clotho at left spins, Lachesis winds in the centre and Atropos tests tensility at right. It is after a now lost drawing related to the stucco bas-relief designed by Giulio Romano in the Sala dei Stucchi, Palazzo del Te, Mantua.

Giorgio Ghisi was a major printmaker from Mantua who is often confused with his namesake and near contemporary, Adamo Scultori, also represented in the collection, whose close association led him to be given the name Ghisi. Both artists produced engravings after their still more famous fellow artist from Mantua, Giulio Romano.

This engraving is part of the collection in the so-called King George IV album of Old Master prints, acquired by the Dominion Museum in 1910. A later state of the same work, reworked  and published by Jacques Hoervogt in Paris in the 17th century, is also in the same album (1910-0001-1/16-80).

See:  British Museum Collection online, http://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx? objectId=1466431&partId=1&searchText=ghisi+three+fates&page=1

Dr Mark Stocker    Curator, Historical International Art             March 2017