Jean-Robert Ango

red chalk over indications in black chalk, squared in black chalk;

signed with the artist's initials and dated in red chalk lower centre: 'JR. A, 30 Juin MDCCLXVI. / Roma'

With Galerie Paul Prouté, Paris, cat. 59, Catalogue périodique, 1974, no. 4;
Emile Wolf, New York;
Thence by descent to the present owners.

Cambridge, Massachusetts, Fogg Art Museum/Malibu, J. Paul Getty Museum/Montreal, Museum of Fine Arts, 'Louis XIII - Louis XVI:  French Drawings from a Private Collection', 1980, pp. 145-146, no. 52;
Tampa Museum, 'Louis XIII - Louis XVI:  French Drawings from a Private Collection', 1982.

Hinge mounted in two places at the upper edge to a modern mount. There are a number of small losses and old repairs to the extremities of the sheet, though these have been sensitively restored in most instances. There is a small tear to the lower right half of the bottom edge and a further tear and two small nicks to the left half of the bottom edge. The medium itself remains very fresh throughout with the image strong and vibrant. Sold in a modern giltwood 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.

This drawing by Ango relates to the painting by Solimena, one of a set of four compositions completed by the artist in 1698 for the choir of the Abbey of Montecassino, all of which were destroyed in the bombardment of 1944.  Ango's drawing is probably in fact after a lost drawing by Francesco Solimena, known also from a copy, now in the Statens Museum for Kunst, in Copenhagen.¹ The latter is indented with a stylus and blackened on the verso for transfer, although no print of this subject is yet known.  This composition shows differences, also in the format, from the final painted version, now known only from a 'bozzetto' in Budapest,² and a drawing in the Louvre.³  

This drawing will be mentioned in the drawings section of the forthcoming publication on Francesco Solimena.⁴ 

^1. Copenhagen, Statens Museum for Kunst, inv. n. GB 426

^2. Budapest, Szépművészeti Múzeum 

^3. Paris, Musée du Louvre, inv. no. 9792

^4. See C. Romalli, in N. Spinosa et al., 'Francesco Solimena e Le Arti a Napoli', (forthcoming), Vol. II, under cat. D3