Annibale Carracci

Drawn quickly from life in red chalk, the artist here captures the image of a monk requesting silence, looking round a door. He seems to wear an apron, knotted at the front, and he is clearly being abruptly interrupted by some undesired noise while involved in important domestic tasks.

Very typical of Annibale's wit, there is no reason to doubt the old attribution (possibly early 18th century), written on what seems to be the remains of an album page. There must have been many more sheets such as this one, done by Annibale and the other Carracci and Annibale himself, capturing so skillfully a moment and portraying a timeless, charming figure. 

The surface of the paper seems to have been rubbed with a slightly different reddish chalk to give an overall tint to the sheet, adding an attractive aspect to the drawing.