Resumen de Stefano della Bella fra scienza e caricatura
Among the hundreds of autograph drawings attributed to Stefano della Bella in Florence´s Biblioteca Marucelliana, bequeathed by Francesco di Ruberto Marucelli in 1783, are three curious red chalk studies of a praying mantis � viewed from the front, back and left side, respectively, and set within an original oval outline, also in red chalk � whose purpose remains unknown. While the traditional attribution to Stefano was overlooked until now, given the rarity of technique and subject within his graphic oeuvre, the artist´s authorship is here reconsidered in light of his connections with the scientific culture of his time, characterized as always by a sensitivity to nature but often, too, by a subtle penchant for caricature, and also bearing in mind his many recently-studied red chalk drawings in the collection of the Kunsthalle, Hamburg. A fourth sheet, also in the Marucelliana, and with the same provenance and attributional history, is added to the three published here: a black chalk drawing of a bird wearing large glasses on its beak, probably a caricature of Ippolito Francini, known as "Tordo occhialaio", a celebrated maker of lenses and spyglasses in the Florence of the Accademia del Cimento.
