Luca Signorelli

Private collection, United Kingdom;

Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 29 January 1954, lot 146, for 35 guineas to Agnew;

With Thomas Agnew & Sons, London;

Acquired the same year by the David Koetser Gallery, Zurich;

From whom acquired in 1960.

London, National Gallery, Signorelli in British Collections, 11 November-31 January 1999, no. 27;

Perugia, Galleria Nazionale dell'Umbria, Luca Signorelli, 21 April-26 August 2012, no. 59.

T.F.K. Henry, 'The Career of Luca Signorelli in the 1490s', unpublished Ph.D dissertation, University of London, 1996, vol. I, p. 133, vol. II, p. 375, cat. no. 33, reproduced fig. 88 (as datable 1491-93);

L.B. Kanter and T.F.K. Henry, Luca Signorelli: The Complete Paintings, London 2001, p. 228, cat. no. 97 and p. 160, reproduced p. 228;

F. Marcello in F. De Chirico et al (eds.), Luca Signorelli, exhibition catalogue, Cinisello Balsamo 2012, pp 233, cat. no. 59, and p. 20, reproduced in colour p. 233, fig. 59 (as datable 1495-1500);

T.F.K. Henry, The Life and Art of Luca Signorelli, New Haven and London 2012, pp. 233 and 384, note 136, reproduced in colour p. 23, fig. 224 (as datable 1510).

The following condition report is provided by Sarah Walden who is an external specialist and not an employee of Sotheby's: This painting has been thinned, backed and cradled quite recently, with a major restoration at the same period. It appears likely to have been brought to Britain through the grand tour, only emerging publically in the 1950's, since when much appears to have happened. It is now firm and secure behind, with the original craquelure of the poplar panel visible in various areas, although the original joints are hard to trace. Panels towards the end of the fifteenth century were not as carefully selected as even a decade or two into the sixteenth, with knots and warping cuts quite often involved. This presumably explains the rather fraught present surface of the panel, where old flaking losses and probable worm damage had undermined the wood in places, since filled and restored. It was a period of dramatic transition towards oil from tempera as well, with its deeper, richer potential colour, visible here. The change in flesh painting from the delicate touches built up in water based tempera colour to the evenly glazed effect of oil is clearly visible in the head of the Child for instance and in the profile of the Madonna, both of which are well preserved original areas of the picture. Away from her profile the cheek of the Madonna and much of her neck and chest have been repaired and retouched during the restoration. Her lower hand is less damaged than her upper hand, and much of her hair and the back of her neck remain intact. Under ultra violet light much of the fine blue upper pleats of her drapery can also be seen to be unretouched original, as are the legs of the Child generally, with His raised hand and patterned wrapping. The lower part of the panel has suffered rather more. However Signorelli's intrinsic concept and draughtsmanship binds the magnificent original areas together despite serious damage from the past. This report was not done under laboratory condition
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

This tender scene was painted around 1510 by Luca Signorelli, one of the protagonists of the Italian Renaissance. Despite Luca's origins in Cortona, and thus outside the more established artistic centres, he achieved fame from an early date and was called to work with Pietro Perugino on the fresco cycle on the side walls of the Sistine Chapel in Rome. His most famous work, however, is the set of frescoes from 1500-03 in the chapel of the Assumption in Orvieto Cathedral which depict The End of the World.

The artist has taken great care with the details, especially the highlights of the hair and the decoration of the fabric of the Mother's headdress and the Child's drape. The strong earthy colours, particularly the green and the burgundy are characteristic of Signorelli's palette, and are in this instance accentuated by the dark background. The legs and body of the Child recall the Corsini tondo in Florence from circa 1491-93, as well as the slightly earlier Holy Family in the National Gallery, London.¹ The present work was at times considered to date from the 1490s but a later dating is more plausible on the basis of style .


1. See Henry and Kanter, under Literature, pp. 181-82, cat. no. 30, reproduced and pp. 166-67, cat. no. 9, respectively.