A Marble Horse on the Quirinal Hill [recto]

This drawing depicts a monumental horse in profile, capturing its powerful anatomy and spirited expression. The figure is overlaid with a network of fine lines and numerical notations, recording the specific measurements of the ancient sculpture. The artist uses soft red chalk to model the musculature while maintaining the precision required for a technical study of classical form.

This study reflects the Renaissance humanist effort to decode the 'canon' of classical beauty through empirical measurement. It aligns with Neoplatonic theories of the era, such as those of Luca Pacioli, which posited that mathematical proportion was a reflection of divine order in both the macrocosm and the human (or animal) form.