For the decoration of the Risorgimento Room in the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena, assigned in 1883 to the artists who had studied under Luigi Mussini, Aldi was charged with illustrating the episodes of the meeting of Victor Emanuel, the day after he was proclaimed king, with the Austrian marshal Radetzky to negotiate an armistice after his army’s defeat at Novara, and the meeting of the king and Giuseppe Garibaldi at Teano. This highly demanding work kept Aldi busy with making numerous drawings, studies, and oil sketches until its conclusion in October 1886. Displayed here are some pieces that bear witness to his meticulous attention to historical reconstruction, from the portrait of the king to life studies of horses and the first draft of The Meeting at Vignale.

Still undetermined, on the other hand, is the destination of the oil sketch of The Apotheosis of Victor Emanuel II Crowned by the Fatherland, signed and dated 1878, the year of the king’s death; it was probably prepared for a public ceremony held in Rome.