Carlo Marchionni, Italian, 1702–1786 - A Reliquary for Three Skulls - ca. 1770 - T-Shirt

A brown wash drawing by Carlo Marchionni, made around 1770, presents a tall Rococo reliquary in which three skulls sit beneath a bishop's mitre within a theatrical canopy of figures, drapery and scrolls.

Visual Elements & Composition

The design is built in sepia brown wash over pencil on pale cream paper, with light ochre highlights giving the shapes their depth. The composition rises into a symmetrical triangular pediment and narrows into a broad, arched silhouette. At the centre, a mitred skull rests on a raised ledge, flanked by two smaller skulls on pedestals wearing plumed headdresses. Standing figures and caryatid-like terminals support the structure, while winged cherubs and swags of drapery hang between them. A scrolled cartouche and a crowned emblem crown the top.

Meaning & Symbolism

Skulls displayed in a reliquary speak of mortality and of the saints whose remains were honoured in the Church. The mitre on the central skull points to an ecclesiastical figure, and the framing of the three skulls within architecture of drapery and figures turns them into a focus for devotion and memento mori. The Rococo scrolls and playful putti soften the subject without losing its message of mortality and sanctity. Marchionni (1702–1786) was a Roman architect who worked for the papal court, and this sheet records the ornamental vocabulary that shaped church furnishings in eighteenth-century Rome.

Wearing the Drawing

Because the drawing is a full, vertical composition, the tee gives it room to read from across the room as well as up close. The arched form of the canopy sits across the chest, with the central skull at the centre of the wearer's torso. The fine pen outlines and soft wash tones carry through the printed image, so the detail of the scrollwork and figures stays legible as the shirt moves.