Return from the Ottobrata excursion 

Achille Pinelli rendered this watercolor and etching print depicting a joyous return from an Ottobrata excursion. The most striking motif is the carriage itself, bursting with figures in revelry, emblematic of a mobile feast. The carriage, here, is not merely a vehicle. Think of it as a ‘triumphal chariot,’ a motif tracing back to ancient Roman processions. In antiquity, it was linked with conquest and victory. Yet, here, it carries not warriors but merrymakers. Note the evolution from martial triumph to festive exuberance. The spirit remains—a public display of communal joy—but the context shifts. The echoes of Dionysian processions resonate. Recall the god of wine and ecstasy, whose followers moved in frenzied revelry. This energy resurfaces. The carriage, a vessel of delight, carries forward this primal need for communal ecstasy, reminding us that even in the trappings of modern life, ancient impulses endure, transformed yet eternally present.