Giuseppe Bottani

The support is stable and in good condition. The paint surface is secure. Inspection under UV reveals extensive scattered retouching to the background in the sky and water and further infilled losses in the cliff face to the right. Offered in a carved gilt wood frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present canvas represents Athena Appearing to Odysseus to Reveal the Island of Ithaca, a story told by Homer in The Odyssey (Books: 13-16), and a scene which is quite rarely represented in Italian painting. It appears to be a study for a larger, more highly finished picture of 1775 which is signed and dated by Bottani, now in the Museo Civico, Pavia (see M. Gregori, Pittura a Mantova dal Romanico al Settecento, Milan 1989, p. 267, reproduced, p. 202). That painting was one of a pair of pictures, together with an Athena Transforming Odysseus into a Beggar, both of which appear to have been painted for Giovanni Alessandro Brambilla, doctor to the Austrian emperor and a native of Pavia.