Pietro Berrettini, called Pietro da Cortona

Possibly Hugh Howard of Shelton (1675-1737);
by descent to Ralph Howard, 1st Earl of Wicklow;
The Countess of Wicklow

Window mounted. Overall in good condition and fresh. Tip of the left corner made up. Three small light beige spots: one near the neck of the figure, one near top right margin and a smaller one in the centre, these are not very visible. A few pin point holes and brown spots at the bottom. Sold mounted and in a carved and gilded reproduction 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. 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."

This handsome and very characteristic drawing was first attributed to Pietro da Cortona by Noël Annesley, an attribution subsequently endorsed, from an image, by Jörg Merz, who has suggested on stylistic grounds that it should be dated to the 1650s.  Merz has noted strong similarities with the mosaic pendentives after Cortona's designs, in the side chapels of St Peter's, Rome.  These were commissioned by Pope Innocent X, Pamphili, and in 1652 Cortona was already at work on the cartoons for the mosaic decoration of the first three bays, in the Basilica's right nave.  Broadly executed with strong, firm outlines and clearly indicated areas of light and shade, this sheet can be compared with several studies from the artist's late period, apparently executed on a very similar buff paper.  Three such studies, preparatory for Cortona's work in the Vatican and datable to the same period, are in the Louvre.  They represent: Christ holding a Cross; A Seated man (possibly God the Father); and a Draped old man (possibly the Prophet Isaiah).¹  

This drawing may have belonged to Hugh Howard of Shelton (1675-1737), who had studied in Rome under Carlo Maratti.  His nephew Ralph Howard went on the Grand Tour about 1750, and reached Florence in 1751, before spending time in Rome.  He extended the collection assembled by his father's elder brother.

¹ Respectively inv. nos. 528, 540, 546; B. Gady, Pietro da Cortona, Milan 2011, pp. 74-75, reproduced figs. 35, 37, 38