Starting in the year 1828, Lucien Bonaparte, Prince of Canino, unearthed
more than 2000 Greek vases on his estate near the ancient Etruscan town
of Vulci. The vases were restored and found their way to archaeological
collections all around the world. This volume publishes 10 papers by
scholars of international repute dealing with these ceramics.
The papers were presented in 2015 at a colloquium in the National Museum
of Antiquities in Leiden, which acquired 96 vases from the Bonaparte
collection in 1839. Specialists in the fields of museum history, Greek
vase-painting, restoration and 19th century collecting practices from
the Netherlands, France, Germany, Denmark, Austria, Italy and Russia
have contributed to this volume, which offers the newest insights into
the person of Lucien Bonaparte, his excavation practices, the history of
restorations and the selling and buying of Greek ceramics in the 19th
century.
The results have helped to extend our knowledge of the collectors,
traders and scholars, who were concerned with Greek vases during the
19th century. Their activities took place in a pivotal period, in which
the black- and red figure ceramics, which had come to light in Italy
during the previous centuries, were finally assigned to Greek
craftsmanship instead of to Etruscan manufacture.
The book also contains a concise photographic catalogue illustrating the
highlights of the Leiden Canino collection.