Man and Woman from the Village of Lecce in the Province of L'Aquila in Upper Abruzzo

The work is from the Neapolitan series. A similar composition in a square frame is known from the album Raccolta di Cinquanta Costumi li più interressanti delle città, terre e paesi in provincia diverse del Regno di Napoli (Collection of Fifty Most Interesting Picturesque Costumes from Cities, Towns and Villages of Different Provinces of the Kingdom of Naples) published in Rome in 1814. A similar engraving to the Lviv one but in a black-and-white version might have been issued in the albums dated 1816 and 1817. It is a foreground composition with a neutral background. Two figures are depicted in the centre. One of them is a young shepherd stopped by two of his sheep, a ram and a sheep. The ram is tickling the sheep's hair. A young girl in traditional festive clothes approached the man, pointing at the animals with her hand. The girl is dressed in a bright red and yellow dress with long sleeves and bows on the shoulders and a blue skirt with an apron with zoomorphic and floral motifs tied over it (raspberry horses, double-headed eagles, and flowers). On her head is a traditional flattop headscarf; on her feet are blue boots. The curly young man is dressed in a purple jacket and narrow yellow pants. He has a black hat on the back of his head. He put a long stick on his shoulder, looking closely at the girl. To the left and right of the figures are green plantings on hills; they are performed with blurred watercolours.

In the lower right corner, there is the author's signature Pinelli written in italics, date – 1816, and the place of performance – Roma (illegibly). In the centre of the engraving, under the image, is the work's title Uomo, e Donna del Paese di Villalago, Provincia dell'Aquila, Abruzzo Ultra. The number "49" is in the upper right corner above the plate.

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery