Follower of Guido Reni

 

The panel is very flat and without any damage to the corners. It has been well-looked after. The paint surface is thick and oily, with swirling brushtrokes still visible in the drapery and the delicately applied paint of the figures' hair and the Christ Child's face also preserved. There is no sign of flaking or loss of paint, and no craquelure. Inspection under UV light shows specks of retouching within an area of about 5 cm, in the sky upper right corner. There are four thin lines of restoraion along the lower edge, a few scattered dots on the floor and a larger repair inthe lower right corner. There is a single fleck on John the Baptist's shoulder, another on the Virgin's sleeve, a fine line at the back of her cloak and on her waist, a single speck on Christ's rigjht shoulder, and a few tiny dots in the drapery upper left corner. This lot is offered in an old, heavy wood frame, painted gold, with some very minor thinning of paint due to age, but structurally sound.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The composition is thought to derive from a painting on canvas, measuring 30 by 20.6 cm., recorded as having been in the collection of the Duke of Orléans (1674–1723), but now lost. The painting would probably have been included in the Orléans sale in London in 1778; it is next recorded in the collection of the Marquis de Marigny (1727-1781), at the Château de Menars, as by Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola, called Parmigianino. The last record of the prototype is its purchase in a sale in London in 1798 by the Earl of Carlisle. The present copper reflects a beautifully balanced composition and a harmony of colours that, according to the description of the now lost picture, are a perfect match to the prototype.

A recent exhibition in Quimper and Rennes tentatively gives the prototype to Giulio Cesare Amidano, and exhibits a second version of this picture, from the collection of the Musée des Beaux-Artes in Quimper, as by a member of Amidano's circle.¹ While the elegant design does reflect the style of the Emilian mannerist school and the influences of artists such as Parmigianino, Bartolomeo Schedoni, Annibale Caracci, and Amidano, in the absence of the prototype, an attribution of this painting to a follower of Guido Reni is more plausible.

1. See M. Allano, De Veronese a Casanova: parcours italien dans les collections de Bretagne, exhibition catalogue, Lyon 2013, p. 66, reproduced p. 67.