'Minerva Goddess of Wisdom Overcoming Time' (Italian, c. 1721) by Giovanni Antonio Pellegrini (1675-1741). Oil on canvas applied to plaster. From the workshop of Jules Allard et Fils, Paris. This ceiling painting depicts the helmeted goddess Minerva seated in the heavens. This artwork is installed in Alva Vanderbilt’s bedroom at Marble House. The main circular scene shows Minerva with Time asleep at her feet, with four allegorical female figures reclining before them. There are four smaller paintings that accompany this mural, each with a putto holding attributes of the arts and sciences. The ceiling painting was originally installed at the Library of the Palazzo Pisani Moretto in Venice, 1721-1722, before finding its home at Marble House. For reference, the center panel measures 9 feet in diameter, while the oval painting in the four corners of the room each measure 4 feet 8 inches by 2 feet. Marble House reopens to the public on February 17th. . . . . #NewportMansions #ItalianArt...