Studio of Raphael

Possibly Jonathan Richardson, Snr.;
sale, London, Bonham's, 17 November 1965, part of lot 21;
Timothy Clifford,
his sale, London, Sotheby's, 3 July 3 1989, lot 9 (as Studio of Raphael, before 1530)

Kendal, Abbot Hall Art Gallery, 16th and 17th Century Italian Drawings, 1981, no. 7

C. Hope, The Scuola Nuova Tapestries, M.A. Thesis, Courtauld Institute, London 1968, p. 31;
N. Dacos, "Tommaso Vincidor, un élève de Raphael aux Pays Bas," Études d'Histoire de l'art publiées par L'Institut Historique Belge de Rome, vol. 4, 1980, p. 82;
T. Clifford, Review of "Drawings by Old Masters at Christ Church, Oxford," The Burlington Magazine, January 1983, pp. 33-34, fig. 30

Laid down. Colors remain very strong. The sheet is fragmented and at the lower margin a strip of paper has been added. There is also a vertical strip of paper that has been added running down the left hand side of the sheet cutting through the back of the Mother's head and through the Child's cheek. There are a number of tears in the sheet and cracks in the paper. Also losses in the medium where you can see the color of the paper beneath.
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.

This is a fragment of the original cartoon for the tapestry The Massacre of the Innocents, one of the so-called Scuola Nuova series woven for the Vatican.  The exact date of the commission is not known, but it seems likely that the designs were produced, soon after Raphael's death, by his studio under the direction of Giulio Romano.  It is almost impossible to make a more definite attribution, although the names of Penni, Tommaso Vincidor, and others have been proposed.  The tapestries were woven in Brussels, in the workshop of Pieter Coecke van Aelst, between 1524 and 1531.  Other fragments of this cartoon are in the British Museum, Christ Church, Oxford, and other collections.¹  Two engravings after the tapestry are known.²  For a discussion of the Scuola Nuova tapestries, see Rome, Vatican, Raffaello in Vaticano, 1984-5, pp. 326-331.

1.  P. Pouncey and J.A. Gere, Italian Drawings...Raphael and His Circle, London 1962, vol. I, pp. 80-81, nos. 137, 138, reproduced vol. II, pl. 111; J. Byam Shaw, Drawings by Old Masters at Christ Church, Oxford, Oxford 1976, vol. I, pp.135-136, no. 457, reproduced vol. II, pl. 249
2.  G.B. Pezzini et al., Raphael Invenit, Rome 1985, p. 139, reproduced p. 587