ABSTRACT
Emulation, in other words, should not be confused with scholarship. The reason for emulating something may be a perception in the mind of the emulating artist that is distinct from the actual nature or intention of the thing being emulated. Eighteenth-century Roman sculpture restorers like Bartolomeo Cavaceppi and Vincenzo Pacetti were expert at both 'completing' fragmentary ancient statues and making copies; the latter could, on occasion, be mistaken for originals and become forgeries in unscrupulous hands. In fact, the line between copy and forgery, between restoration and pastiche, was hard to define in the eighteenth century. A precocious Jacques-Louis David made two failed attempts at winning the Prix de Rome before he finally triumphed in 1774. To those who know he from canonical neoclassical paintings like the Oath of the Horatii and the Death of Socrates, these earlier tries at the ultimate academic recognition are surprising.
