Title: Letter Rack

Artist: Vittore Carpaccio

Letter Rack About 1490–95 Vittore Carpaccio Italian, Venice about 1460–Venice 1526 Oil on panel The grooves of hinges, clearly visible at the upper left and right, suggest that this double-sided panel once functioned as a folding shutter or small door. In this early example of trompe l'oeil (literally "deceives the eye") painting, Carpaccio playfully depicted illusionistic letters arranged along a ribbon against a decorative backboard resembling marble. At the time, letters were not sent in envelopes but folded several times and sealed with wax.