Venetian Glimpse Inkwell on Paper Italy XVIII Century - Architectural Capriccio with Figures

Oil painting on canvas. The composition places some musical elements in the centre, a mandolin and a musical score, accompanied by other closed volumes, a copper vase with flowers on the left, while on the right there is a richly worked ceramic and embossed metal teapot, in front of a plate of figs. The composition is completed by some fabrics, arranged both on the support surface and as a curtain in the background. The rich composition of different elements was meant to be a sort of extension of the rooms in which the work was placed. The painting has been restored and relined. It is presented in a period frame, with defects.

Mixed technique on paper, applied on cardboard. Italian school. The name of Londonio is proposed on the back: the delicate piece certainly recalls the subject and manner of the work of Francesco Londonio (1723-1783), the Milanese artist who specialized in the animal and pastoral genre. It can be considered a work inspired by Londonio, by an artist close to his field.

Oil on canvas. The face of the Virgin reminds of the style of representation of Giovanni Battista Salvi, also known as Sassoferrato (1609-1685), whose style was often revived in 18th and 19th century. There is a cartouche on the back of the painting with the inventory number (N. 193) and the name of the collector Giuseppe Bertarelli (1804-1875), merchant and philanthropist from Milan, known for his important art donations to the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana. The painting is in its first canvas; needs restorations for small paint losses and two small holes. It is presented in a coeval frame.

Ink and watercolor on paper. Flemish School. On the back there is a lebel of a importantant private collection. The scketched drawing shows a view of a valley from a path on a hill that leads to a wood. Displayed in a revival frame.

Oil on canvas. Northern Italian school of the seventeenth century. The young man is portrayed posing with books by his side and in his hand, indicating his propensity for study; the heraldic coat of arms of the noble family to which the young man belongs is depicted on the top right. Restored and relined, the painting is presented in a period frame.

Oil on board. The scene takes place in a wide desert landscepe with a cave where Magdalene was living praying and meditating; the Saint is in the center of the scene and she is in extasis in font of the crucified Chris and a skull placed on a rock outside the wide cave. The painting had been restored and displayed in frame.

Tempera on paper on etching. French school from about 1750-1770. Refined colouring of a coeval French print. The oriental subject is a young Chinese man who hints at some dance steps on an outdoor trail, under a plant of exotic fruit. The quality of the piece reminds of the French Rococo production, like those of François Boucher (1703-1770) or Jean Pillement (1728-1808), who both contributed to the spreading of the liking for Chinese representations in Europe. Pillement was the author of numerous drawings and etchings of Chinese taste, collected in two volumes (1767-71) and widely spread in Europe as models. The drawing needs cleaning and restoration. It is mounted on cardboard and comes with a frame.

The Birth Of Venus

Pen and brown ink drawing on paper. Writing on the back from the early '900 that describes the drawing as preparatory for decors and glass windows. There is also a paper label from a historic private collection. It is one of the first preparatory sketches for the scene of "The Birth of Venus", of which we know later sketches, expanded and enriched with more details. The sketch is presented in a XIX century frame.

The Triumph Of Minerva

Watercolor on paper, oval format. The bill of acquisition from a Finarte auction from 13/12/1971 is attached on the back with an attribution to the Carlo Carloni circle. There is also a paper label of origin from an important private collection. The watercolor is a preparatory sketch, probably for one of the many decorative frescoes executed by Carlo Carloni, a painter from Como, in the European courts. The drawing, mounted on cardboard, is presented in a frame.

Oil painting on canvas. Lombard school of the seventeenth century. First canvas and mounted on original frame. The painting, in particular octagonal shape, probably forming part of a series of sacred scenes, proposes the mystical contemplation of the Crucifix by two saints. The Cross, placed on a marble altar, is mounted on a richly worked bronze base, with the statue of St. Sebastian pierced by arrows in the center and two little angels on the sides, bearing the palm of martyrdom and other arrows. On the sides of the Cross, suspended on two clouds, because they are part of the mystical vision, the figures of Mary and John, as narrated by the Gospel. On the sides the two saints who contemplate: on the left Sant'Ambrogio, recognizable by the bishop's clothes but above all by the scourge on his feet, an unmistakable attribute, which he, according to tradition, waved threatening against the enemies of the faith, to defend from any attack that people who was entrusted to him. On the right is St. Francis Xavier, the young Jesuit who shared the foundation of the Society of Jesus with Ignatius of Loyola and was a missionary in the East, who is dressed in a priestly habit, a hat and a pilgrim; at his feet you can see a stick, presumably that of the pilgrim. The painting needs cleaning and restoration for some small cuts.

Oil painting on canvas. Lombard school of the seventeenth century. First canvas and mounted on original frame. Set in a prison, the scene features Sant'Ambrogio bishop who directs the person on his right to the sky, a soldier with the Cross around his neck, identifiable as San Vittore, a Roman soldier originally from Mauritania, who served in Milan at the time. of Maximian, and who was martyred for his Christian faith. It was the Milanese bishop who recounted the life and martyrdom of the saint in one of his writings and who spread the cult. On the left is another probable martyr of the faith, who witnesses the proclamation of beatitude by his cellmate; around, numerous other figures of condemned. The octagonal painting probably belongs to a series dedicated to the cult of the Holy Bishop of Milan. The canvas needs restoration and cleaning, presenting several stains and cuts (a tear in the center, others minor on the sides).

Oil painting on canvas. Northern Italian school of the 18th century. A priest, kneeling in front of the altar, while celebrating or preparing to celebrate Holy Mass assisted by an altar boy on the left and a nun on the right, addresses his prayer to two saints, who appear above his head as a representation of his meditation and interior prayer. On the altar stands the fresco dedicated to Mary enthroned with the Child Jesus, angels and saints. The work has different color losses and is proposed in a gilded frame from the end of the 19th century, with shortcomings.