The beheading of John the Baptist.

Giuseppe Caletti or Calletti (c. 1595 - c. 1660) was an Italian painter and engraver of the Baroque period, active in Ferrara and Cremona. He often painted religious themes in genre like dress and surroundings, including the theme of Bacchanalia, like Titian.

Born in Cremona, he was also called 'Il Cremonese'. He is described by Camillo Laderchi, 19th century historian of Ferrarese artists, as 'masterless, and of irregular life, always in trouble... disquieted, and untameable'. Like Dosso Dossi, his figures are generally smaller than life, and often placed in fantastic locales such as 'wild boars in the sea, and dolphins in the forests'. He painted the Four Doctors of the Church, and the Miracle of St. Mark, both for the church of San Benedetto at Ferrara. He made 24 recorded etchings, characterised by a peculiar manner of treatment, using bold parallel strokes without any cross-hatching. Among the more important are David, whole-length, with the head of Goliath, David, half-length, with the same, <em>Samson and Delilah </em>and <em>The Beheading of St. John the Baptist, </em>the theme of this etching. Caletti befriended Antonio Randa, a Bolognese painter, but became involved in brawls and had to flee Bologna. Some of his works are found in churches of Ferrara, including the church of St. John the Baptist, where he collaborated with Francesco Naselli.

This etching is plate 12 of Caletti's series <em>Esemplari per facilitar gli amatori del disegno </em>(Specimens to make drawing for enthusiasts easier) and corresponds to a booklet of thirteen, dedicated to he marchese Roberto Canonici. While its intention was supposedly didactic, almost certainly Caletti mainly intended it to show off his skills and to help gain him commissions for paintings. etching

Our etching depicts an ugly and brutal executioner - almost certainly influenced by earlier German 'Little Master' printmakers - holding up the head of St John the Baptist to the beautifully dressed, rather stiffly posed Salome, who holds a metal charger to accommodate it. Even in a grim scene like this, there is conscious humour presesent  - the executioner's pose is directly inspired by Benveneto Cellini's incomparably more elegant <em>Perseus with the Head of Medusa</em>(Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence, 1545-54). The etching is based on a painting by Caletti which has survived in a private collection in Ferrara.

Sources: 

Galleria Cortona, http://www.galleriacortona.com/pubblicazioni.html, See also Valeria Barboni and Enrico Cortona, 'A Booklet of Etchings by Giuseppe Caletti', <em>Print Quarterly, </em>Vol. XX, No. 2, June 1996, pp. 127-135.

Wikipedia, 'Giuseppe Caletti', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giuseppe_Caletti

Dr Mar Stocker   Curator, Historical International Art   March 2019