Has its headquarters
in the monumental Corsini Palace, situated in Via della
Lungara, opposite Villa Farnesina. The building rises on
the site of the old Riario Palace of the early 1500's,
where the Queen Christina of Sweden also lived, who
founded an academy from which came the Arcadia.
Bought by the Corsini in 1736, the building was notably
enlarged by Ferdinando Fuga, architect to the noble
Florentine family. The Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei
also has its headquarters here, with an important
library. The collection records the taste of cardinal
Neri Corsini, nephew of Clement XII. The 18th century
collection has the prize of having remained mainly
intact. The splendid park, already part of the palace,
from 1883 was used as home of the Botanical
Gardens. It extends towards the Janiculum.
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The St. John the Baptist in the
desert can be dated to the end of the Roman period (1606),
because of the intense and directional use of light.The
painting is perhaps identifiable with that of identical
subject owned by the widow of Onorio Longhi, architect
friend of the artist. The portrayal of the Baptist is one of
Caravaggio's favourites, which he did in many different
versions, who maybe identified himself with the surly
character of the saint, who left everything to retreat into
the desert. |
The painting is recorded, in
1784, in the collection of Bartolomeo Corsini in Florence
where it probably arrived for the wedding between the noble
and Maria Felice Colonna-Barberini. |
