Defeated at the Regatta (Rotta)
In 1860 in Turin, Antonio Rotta aroused the enthusiasm and emotion of the public for the "Sorrowful Hunter who takes care of his dying dog", which remained unsold due to the high sum of 3000 lire (250 gold napoleons), the highest price of the time found throughout the Venice exhibition. The work was strongly applauded by Carlo Tenca. In "The boring page", created in sequence with "The profaned page", Risorgimento and anti-Austrian political allusions were read by a reviewer and the artist was treated as a "philosopher painter", capable of instilling noble "superior ideas" into childhood.