Ornament Containing a Nude Male with Pipes Framed by Two Dogs 1775 - 1825

This drawing in pen and brown ink depicts an ornament containing a nude male with pipes framed by two dogs. Although the artist is unknown, the iconography in the image creates meaning through visual codes, cultural references, and historical associations. Created in a European context, the image of a nude male playing pipes evokes the classical world and an image of idealized masculinity. The inclusion of the dogs on either side of the figure evokes the place of hunting within the cultural life of a specific social class. The drawing may have been a study for a larger work, such as a fresco, or perhaps a sketch for the decoration of a specific building. As historians, we must look to a wide variety of sources to attempt to reconstruct the social milieu in which this drawing was made. These might include inventories of artists' studios, architectural plans, and social histories of sport and leisure. Only by doing so can we better understand the place of art within the societies of the past.