The first two sheets in volume 1 are a red chalk drawing by Giovanni Battista Piazzetta (1682-1752) for an engraving of "Minerva's Homage to Venice," the frontispiece for Zanetti's "Delle antiche statue greche e romane...", and a loose copy of the engraving itself.
Drawings for engravings reproduced in "Delle antiche statue greche e romane, che nell'antisala della Libreria di San Marco, e in altri luoghi pubblici di Venezia si trovano," Venice, I, 1740; II, 1743; volume 1 contains drawings mainly after portrait busts of important Roman Republican and Imperial figures, volume 2 contains drawings of sculptures depicting gods and mythological figures.
The drawings are labeled in pen, set into colored borders, and arranged in the sequence of the printed work.
The two Zanettis collaborated on "Delle antiche statue greche e romane" and all the plates are jointly signed.
Pasted onto page 2 of volume 1 is a small clipping from a book catalog seemingly unrelated to the Zanetti volumes. Below is a sheet of light blue paper on which is inscribed in pen and brown ink, "Voyage en Italie / par De La (?) Lande / Vol. VI. p. 431" // Venise / " On monte à la Bibliothéque / par un escalier assez beau quoiqu'un / peu sombre, mais bien bâti et vouté. / Elle est composèe de trois chambres. La / première, qui sert d'anti-chambre, / renferme une grande quantité d'antiques, / de marbres, bronzes, statues, vases, bustes, reliefs. x x x x x Il faut / demander au bibliothécaire le livre / des dessins des antiques, fait par / les soins du Sénateur Zanetti et / du procurateur Tiepolo, auquel on / a joint un petit livre qui met / au fait des différens antiques et / de leur sujet."; inscribed on end page, at bottom right, in graphite, "ZANETTI A.M. GIROLAMO / "[ditto mark] ANT. MARIA DI ALESSANDRO / DELLE STATUE GRECHE E ROMANE / CHE NELL'ANTISALA DELLA LIBRERIA / DI SAN MARCO E IN ALTRI LUOGHI / PUBBLICI DI VENEZIA MDCCXL - MDCCXLIII / CON PRIVILEGIO DELL'ECCELLENTISSIMO / SENATO / 100 PL. // G.A. FALDONI / G PATRINI. / G CATTINI / G ORSOLINI"; numbered in graphite, "450/2"; pasted inside front cover of Volume 2 is the bookplate of John Quantock, which features the motto, "NON IMMEMOR BENEFICII"; each sheet is inscribed with number in series and title at lower left, in pen and brown ink.
Zanetti, Antonio Maria, 1706-1778.
Piazzetta, Giovanni Battista, 1682-1754.
Quantock, John, former owner.
Gunter, Randolph, former owner.
Adams, Frederick B., Jr., comp. Ninth Report to the Fellows of the Pierpont Morgan Library, 1958 & 1959. New York : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1959, pp. 100-102.
Pierpont Morgan Library. Review of Acquisitions, 1949-1968. New York : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1969, p. 178.
Stampfle, Felice, and Jacob Bean. Drawings from New York collections. III: The eighteenth century in Italy. New York : Metropolitan Museum of Art : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1971, no. 33.