Carolina Galletti
Print
1841 (printed and published)
1841 (printed and published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Carolina Rosati was one of the great dramatic dancers of the mid 19th century, appearing in Paris, London and St Petersburg. Her career proves that talent alone is no guarantee of immortality; a performer also needs the luck to be born at the right time. As her talents matured in the 1850s, ballet was no longer as popular nor as fashionable as it had been in the great days of Taglioni, Elssler and Grisi in the previous decade. So, while they are remembered and immortalised in much sought-after lithographs, Rosati is almost forgotten.
Rosati excelled in quick, precise movements, a difficult style to capture in a still image, but prints give some idea of her considerable spirit and vivacious elegance. They suggest why she was, at the time and for a long time afterwards, the highest paid dancer ever at the Paris Opera.
Rosati excelled in quick, precise movements, a difficult style to capture in a still image, but prints give some idea of her considerable spirit and vivacious elegance. They suggest why she was, at the time and for a long time afterwards, the highest paid dancer ever at the Paris Opera.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Carolina Galletti (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Lithograph coloured by hand |
| Brief description | Carolina Rosati (Galletti). Lithograph, 1841. |
| Physical description | Female dancer standing on her left leg, right pointed to the side, head inclined to her left and looking at the viewer; her arms are flexed and the hands behind the back. Her hair is centrally parted and severely dressed, with a rose over her left ear. She wears an off the shoulder, knee length dress; the fitted bodice has a scalloped, lace-trimmed collar falling into a central point; the short sleeves are cut to reveal white puffed sleeves beneath; the skirt is two tiered, each tier with a single gold band towards the hem. Beneath the image are the words: Al merito della Prima Ballerina Denzante Carolina Galletti ned nobile Teatro di Apollo in Roma Carnevale 1841. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | 'Al merito della Prima Ballerina Denzante Carolina Galletti ned nobile Teatro di Apollo in Roma Carnevale 1841.' |
| Credit line | Bequeathed by Lady Mary Evans |
| Object history | According to the inscription, this lithograph of the Italian dancer Carolina Rosati was issued to commemorate her performances at the Teatro di Apollo in Rome during the Roman Carnival of 1841, when she was only 15. She was born Galletti, and danced as Carolina Galletti until she married and took the name of her husband, Francesco Rosati. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Carolina Rosati was one of the great dramatic dancers of the mid 19th century, appearing in Paris, London and St Petersburg. Her career proves that talent alone is no guarantee of immortality; a performer also needs the luck to be born at the right time. As her talents matured in the 1850s, ballet was no longer as popular nor as fashionable as it had been in the great days of Taglioni, Elssler and Grisi in the previous decade. So, while they are remembered and immortalised in much sought-after lithographs, Rosati is almost forgotten. Rosati excelled in quick, precise movements, a difficult style to capture in a still image, but prints give some idea of her considerable spirit and vivacious elegance. They suggest why she was, at the time and for a long time afterwards, the highest paid dancer ever at the Paris Opera. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.2596-1986 |
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| Record created | August 25, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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