Early 19th century oil on board painting after the ceiling fresco titled ‘L’Aurora (Aurora)’ by Guido Reni, which was originally painted in 1614 for the Casino dell’Aurora. The painting depicts – right to left – Aurora (Dawn) in a golden billowing dress with her garlands flies over a dim-lit landscape, leading a blond Apollo in his horse-drawn chariot, surrounded by a chain of female “hours” or the Horae, goddesses of the Seasons – bringing light to the world. It could also be described as the Triumph of Apollo led by the Aurora. Above the quadriga, in the sky, flies the putto Phosphorus with a torch. One interpretation of the work is that the incorporated heraldic symbols were meant to link the patron Scipione with Apollo, his patronage bringing “light to the darkness”. It may have served to uphold the ravenous Borghese accumulation of classical antiquities.
Casino dell’Aurora
The casino and the paintings were commissioned by the Cardinal Scipione Borghese, a prominent art patron, and designed by Giorgio Vasanzio and Carlo Maderno, and the rear overlooks the Piazza del Quirinale in Rome.
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