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| | | EMBASSY COACH to POPE CLEMENT XI – of the Oceans
| | | | | | |  | | 18th Century (1716)
Triumphal vehicle.
Italian work, made in Rome.
Inv. nº 11
Dim: 720x255x337 cm
It comprised part of the group of five thematic coaches and ten accompanying coaches that were in the procession of the Embassy sent to the Pope in 1716 by King João V as the high point of the ostentation of Royal Power from someone that dominated a vast empire.
It has an open body in the so-called Roman style that is covered with red silk velvet with appliqués embroidered with golden thread, while the interior is lined with gold brocade.
The rear sculptural group has a magnificent gilt carved woodwork, probably projected by Portuguese artists or by a foreign artist who had lived in Portugal, and it represents an episode in Portuguese maritime history, the connection of the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean, discovered by Portuguese navigators in 15th Century and glorified by Apollo.
On each side of him are figures of Spring and Summer, while at his feet are two Old Men who, in a gesture of great beauty, shake hands, symbolizing the connection by sea between the two worlds at the Cape of Good Hope.
From 1995 to 1999 the coach was significantly restored. The project, using techniques of the period, was carried out on the woods (sculptures, wheels and small central bench), on the gilding, on the textiles (velvet, embroidery, silk, curtains, pillows), on the leather and on the metal.
The book by the Italian Luca Chracas from 1716, which minutely described the event, the vehicles and their equipment, helped in making the restoration faithful. | | |  | |
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