The Calumny of Apelles

Although he probably never met Andrea Mantegna, the Venetian painter-engraver Girolamo Mocetto nevertheless based this print on a drawing (now in the British Museum, London) by the older artist. Later, Rembrandt also copied the same drawing, and may have owned it for a time. Mocetto altered the composition by placing the scene, an allegory of calumny (or false accusation), in the Campo de Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Venice, with Andrea del Verrocchio’s famous equestrian monument to Bartolomeo Colleoni in the background. This print is a unique early state before final shading was added to the basilica dome.