The triumphant embassy of the elephant Annone
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Le immagini sono accurate, e riflettono fedelmente l'originale, ma se l'opera che vi arriva dovesse discostarsi da quanto vi aspettavate potete restituirla, ed io vi restituirò l'importo. L’opera verrà spedita con un imballaggio accurato, per evitare ammaccature. Ogni opera sarà accompagnata da una scheda tecnica firmata dall'artista dove sarà specificata la tecnica e la tiratura; Le opere stampate a mano saranno contrassegnata da un timbro a secco dell'autrice. Dal momento dell'acquisto ho bisogno di circa una settimana per confezionare l'opera e spedirla, ma cercherò di fare anche prima. All'acquisto seguirà fattura elettronica, come per legge. Mi serviranno quindi il vostro nome, cognome, indirizzo e codice fiscale, nonché una mail a cui spedire la fattura di cortesia.
The images are accurate, and faithfully reflect the original, but if the work you receive deviates from what you expected, you can return it, and I will return the amount. The images are accurate, and faithfully reflect the original, but if the work that comes to you deviates from what you expected you can return it, and I will return the amount; the work will be shipped with careful packaging, to avoid dents. Each work will be accompanied by a technical sheet signed by the artist where the technique and print run will be specified; hand-printed works will be marked with a dry stamp from the author. From the moment of purchase I need about a week to package the work and ship it, but I will try to do it even sooner.The purchase will be followed by an electronic invoice, as per law. I will then need your name, surname, address and tax code, as well as an email to send the courtesy invoice to.
When I started working on the artist’s book “The triumphal embassy of the elephant Annone”, I tried to put myself in the shoes of the commoners who in 1500 climbed on the roofs of houses to admire exotic animals that seemed to come from another planet. Today we would simply say panthers, giraffes and turkeys, but at the time it was something never seen, an inconceivable procession that walked through the streets of the city… to relive the same wonder I allowed myself to add a few legs, some antenna, a dinosaur with a tuft. It seems fair to me.
I rewrote history with the taste of the chronicles of the time, and in so much (sad) display of power and wealth I crowned king of the embassy not the Elephant Annone White that opened the procession, not the King of Portugal who ingratiated himself with the powerful to the sound of precious gifts, and not even the Pope who impatiently waited for them to redeem him… but the little mouse sitting in the place of honor, on the head of Annone, who leads him with a small wand and immense wisdom.
Annone was a rare albino elephant that the king of Portugal, Manuel D’Aviz, donated in 1514 to Pope Leo X. A voyage by ship was organized with other exotic animals, an expedition of 140 men and an important treasure: fabrics, brocades, gold objects and jewels; the ship departed from Portugal, crossed the Mediterranean, passed through Alicante and Majorca and landed in Porto Ercole, today in the Argentario promontory. The arrival of the animal sucitava everywhere admiration and curiosity, the crowd accompanied the travelers and greeted them from the roofs of the houses. The arrival in Rome was a triumph. The caravan disembarked at Porto di Ripetta and traveled the road to Castel Sant’Angelo, where the animal knelt three times before Leo X to pay homage. Then he poured water with his trunk not only the cardinals present, but also the crowd of spectators.
Soon Annone became one of the most popular characters of Renaissance Rome; its maintenance cost one hundred ducats a year and between the various assignments of Raffaello Sanzio and Piero Aretino there was to act as guardian. Unfortunately, after two years the white elephant fell ill and died; he was buried in the basement of the Vatican, where he was found in the late 1980s, by professor Silvio Bedini, professor at the Smithsonian Institute in New York.
