Forbes, James, 1749-1819, Travels in Italy, Germany, and Switzerland, in 1796 and 1797, 1796 1799
- Call Number:
- Folio A 2023 69
- Holdings:
- [Request]
- Creator:
- Forbes, James, 1749-1819
- Title(s):
- Travels in Italy, Germany, and Switzerland, in 1796 and 1797
- Date:
- 1796 1799
- Extent:
- 2 volumes
- Classification:
- Archives and Manuscripts
- Series:
- Series II: Travels in Italy, Germany, and Switzerland, in 1796 and 1797
- Part of Collection:
- volume 14 | volume 15
- Provenance:
- Yale Center for British Art, Paul Mellon Collection
- Conditions Governing Access:
- The materials are open for research.
- Conditions Governing Use:
- The collection is the physical property of the Yale Center for British Art. Literary rights, including copyright, belong to the authors or their legal heirs and assigns. For further information, consult the Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts.
- Scope and Content:
- Manuscript diary describing the travels of James Forbes, primarily in Italy, as part of a larger Grand Tour of Germany, Italy, and Switzerland in 1796 and 1797. The fair copy text is illustrated with 75 drawings (most with wash), seven manuscript maps, 18 engravings, and five vignettes. The diary begins on August 31, 1796, as Forbes departs Vienna for Trieste. Forbes makes extended stays at Venice, Rome, Naples, and Florence. Entries include descriptions of local scenery, antiquities, art, and inhabitants. Many entries are accompanied by excerpts of 18th-century texts related to given locations. In Rome, Forbes especially enjoys the company of Ellis Cornelia Knight. Her writings and drawings accompany some of the entries. Volume 2 concludes with an "Addenda in 1799," in which Forbes rues Napoleon's invasion of Italy and the removal of Italian art to Paris. The two volumes were part of "The Forbes Collection" (in 50 volumes) in the library of St. Mary's College, Oscott. The collection was presented to Oscott by Charles Forbes, comte de Montalembert, upon the death of his mother, Eliza Rosée, the "absent daughter" named on the manuscript title page. At Oscott, and in the Sotheby's sale in 1966 (lot 275), the present diary occupied 14 volumes, containing 255 watercolors, 80 wash drawings, and 340 engravings. When it was sold again, in 1973, it had been condensed to two volumes. In this condensed version, almost all of the text appears to be retained, along with most of the wash drawings. Most of the watercolor drawings and engravings were removed.
- Genre:
- Diaries, Travel literature, Travel sketches, Drawings (visual works), Watercolors (paintings), Manuscript maps, Botanical illustrations, Ornithological illustrations, Maps, Engravings (prints), and Portraits
- Subject Terms:
- Description and travelForbes, James, 1749-1819. Descriptive letters and drawingsForbes, James, 1749-1819. Oriental memoirsGrand tours (Education)
- Associated Places:
- AustriaEnglandFlorence (Italy)ItalyNaples (Italy)Rome (Italy)ScotlandVenice (Italy)Wales
- Associated People/Groups:
- Forbes, James, 1749-1819Knight, Ellis Cornelia, 1757-1837
- Finding Aid Title:
- James Forbes archive
- Collection PDF:
- https://ead-pdfs.library.yale.edu/11734.pdf
- Archival Object:
- https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/3/archival_objects/3866459
- Metadata Cloud URL:
- https://metadata-api.library.yale.edu/metadatacloud/api/aspace/repositories/3/archival_objects/3866459?mediaType=json&include-notes=1&include-all-subjects=1