SÉROUX D'AGINCOURT, Jean-Baptiste - b. 1730 Beauvais, d. 1814 Roma

French art historian, collector, and author. Born in Beauvais, he was a descendant of the counts of Namur, and in his youth served as an officer in a regiment of cavalry. Finding it necessary to quit the army in order to take charge of his younger brothers who had been left orphans, he was appointed a farmer-general by Louis XV. In 1777 he visited England, Germany and the Dutch Republic; and in the following year he travelled through Italy, with the view of exploring thoroughly the remains of ancient art. He afterwards settled in Rome and devoted himself to preparing the results of his researches for publication.

He died in 1814, leaving the work, which was being issued in parts, unfinished; but it was carried on by M. Gence, and published complete under the title L’Histoire de l’art par les monuments, depuis sa décadence au quatrieme siecle jusqu’a son renouvellement au seizieme (6 vols. fol. with 325 plates, Paris, 1823).

Reproduction of the cycle in the Brancacci Chapel

This illustration from S�roux d’Agincourt’ posthumous Histoire de l’art par les monuments (published 1823, Paris) shows the bottom register of the right-hand wall in the Brancacci Chapel, Florence. The scenes Crucifixion of St Peter and Dispute with Simon Magus are attributed here to Masaccio instead of Filippino Lippi.