Follower of Tiziano Vecellio, called Titian

James Irvine (1759-1831), by 24 August 1827;
From whom acquired by Sir William Forbes, 7th Bt. of Pitsligo (1773-1828), by 5 November 1828.

Paint surface is showing substantial wear in the background and to a lesser extent in some of the drapery. The Madonna's blue mantle has degraded and subsequently covered in patchy restoration. Some later retouching below the Madonna's chin and older retouchings scattered throughout with a layer of yellowed varnish.
"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."

A copy, of the same dimensions, after the painting attributed to Titian in the State Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg.¹

In Irvine's letter dated 24 August 1827, sent to Sir William from Bologna, he describes a group of his own paintings that he had sent to London in the hope of selling them in the auctions that summer, but reports that 'they had been very ill attended' dissuaded him from consigning the works. Irvine writes enthusiastically of the present painting: '[...] in my opinion one of the best. I will not venture to say that it is entirely painted by Titian, but though it may have been prepared in the school (like many others), yet I firmly believe that it has been retouched by himself'; and expresses his characteristic interest in condition: 'The child and head of the Magdalene are beautifully coloured but the head of the Madonna had suffered a little from over cleaning.' 

The account evidently impressed Sir William, since over a year later, in a letter dated 5 November 1828, Irvine refers to the painting that 'I hear from my nephew you were so good as to take from my pictures in London [...].' It was at this time, in Venice, that Irvine acquired the painting of the Pesaro Boys (sold in these rooms, 7 December 2016, lot 11, £1,750,000), comparing it to the present work as the only other 'of what accord Titian's finished pictures' worthy of Sir William's attention.

1. Inv. no. 118; see T.D. Fomichova, The Hermitage Catalogue of Western European Painting. Venetian Painting. Fourteenth to Eighteenth Centuries, Moscow and Florence 1992, pp. 336-37, cat. no. 256, reproduced.