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Three Extraordinary Old Master Paintings
A rediscovered Botticelli. Rosso Fiorentino’s mastery of Mannerism. Artemisia Gentileschi’s Mary Magdalen in meditation.
H eading to the block on December 4 at Sotheby’s London, The Old Master & 19th Century Paintings Evening Auction features a remarkable selection of works led by a painting of singular beauty by Sandro Botticelli, a rediscovered masterpiece by the celebrated Florentine Mannerist artist Rosso Fiorentino once owned by Catherine the Great and a compelling portrayal of Mary Magdalen by Artemisia Gentileschi.
The Original Bidding Battle From Over a Century Ago: Botticelli Rediscovered
Sandro Botticelli’s ‘The Virgin and Child Enthroned’
The Virgin Mary with the Christ Child Enthroned belongs to an early period in Botticelli’s career when he was not yet operating with a large team of assistants, as later became common practice. Acquired by Lady Wantage in 1904, this Florentine Renaissance painting of singular beauty has remained in the same family collection until the present day. Little studied and largely known only from black-and-white photographs, the painting was lost from view, its location often listed incorrectly, and largely overlooked in more recent monographs and exhibitions. In much of the critical discourse on Botticelli, the work was generally ascribed to the artist’s workshop.
Florence's Monolithic Master of Mannerism: Rosso Fiorentino
Rosso Fiorentino’s ‘The Virgin and Child with the Infant Saint John the Baptist’
Refined, vibrant and bearing the unmistakable hallmarks of eccentricity for which the painter has long been celebrated, this rediscovered masterpiece of Florentine Mannerism is an important addition to the small corpus of extant works by Rosso Fiorentino. Known only from black-and-white photographs until very recently, the reemergence of this highly engaging painting – which is datable to 1514-17, when Rosso was still under the formative influence of Andrea del Sarto – allows for a greater appreciation of the artist’s production at a relatively early stage in his career. The work boasts impeccable early provenance, having been acquired by Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia, for the Hermitage in Saint Petersburg.
Going Under the Surface of Artemisia Gentileschi's Mary Magdalen in Meditation
Artemisia Gentileschi’s ‘Mary Magdalen in Meditation’
An incisive storyteller, Artemisia Gentileschi is known for her powerful depictions of women from history, and indeed her images of biblical heroines are among her most compelling creations. In this confidently painted work of the 1620s, a Caravaggesque realism is brought to this powerful subject. Barefoot, Mary Magdalen is depicted here in a rugged coastal setting that evokes the wilderness where she lived in solitude. With starkly contrasting areas of light and dark and showing a bold approach to the arrangement of its female subject, the picture makes reference to the saint’s sea voyage to the southern coast of France, where, according to legend, she sought refuge at Sainte-Baume in Provence. The Magdalen as protagonist is an important theme for Artemisia and one that constitutes a recurring thread in her work.
