Annibale Carracci

Jonathan Richardson, Senr. (formerly on his mount, with his inscription)
William, 2nd Duke of Devonshire (L.718) 
Chatsworth inventory no.461
The Dukes of Devonshire, by descent 
Sale: Christie's, London,  July 3, 1984, lot 9 (sold by Order of the Trustees of the Chatsworth Settlement)
Sale: Sotheby's, London, July 6, 1987, lot 49 
Acquired at the above sale by A. Alfred Taubman

Manchester, City Art Gallery, Old Master Drawings from Chatsworth, 1961, no. 21
Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, et al., Old Master Drawings from Chatsworth, 1962-1963, no. 16
London, Royal Academy, Old Master Drawings from Chatsworth, 1969, no. 16
Tokyo, National Museum of Western Art, Old Master Drawings from Chatsworth, 1975, no. 50 

Keith Andrews, National Gallery of Scotland, Catalogue of Italian Drawings, Cambridge, 1968, vol. I, p. 33, under D.852
James Byam Shaw, Drawings by Old Masters at Christ Church, Oxford, Oxford, 1976, vol. I, p. 249, under no. 944
Michael Jaffé, The Devonshire Collection of Italian Drawings, Bolognese and Emilian Schools, London, 1994, p. 101, no. 508

Window mounted. Lightly foxed throughout, and paper a little discoloured. Ink has sunk in very slightly, but image is still good and readable. Small thin areas, centre left edge and bottom centre edge. Sold in a carved and gilded 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.

Landscape drawing was, for Annibale, not only part of his working method, but also a genre in which he clearly took great pleasure. Indeed, those landscape drawings of his that survive exude a real sense of spontaneity, as is seen, for example, in the fluidity of the rapidly drawn sail of the boat in the present work. Likewise, the sailing boats visible on the horizon, created with fleeting strokes of the artist’s pen, are utterly unmistakeable in spite of their somewhat abstract appearance, and very similar boats feature in a sheet in the collection of the Teylers Museum, portraying a Coastal Landscape (see The Drawings of Annibale Carracci, exhibition catalogue, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1999-2000, no. 70, reproduced). The artist’s ability to create form and volume as well as light and shadow is also clearly demonstrated in his highly characteristic handling of the foliage, in which he uses a combination of curving lines and diagonal hatching to create shadow, and also exploits the white of the paper to suggest light-filled space.

Three other drawings of this composition are known: one formerly in the collection of John Nicholas Brown, Providence, Rhode Island and now in the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. (inv. no. 1991.17.1); one at Christ Church, Oxford; and one in the National Gallery of Scotland. There is also an etching of the subject in reverse and with some differences, by J. B. Corneille, published in 1754. Mr. Byam Shaw (loc. cit.) considers the present, ex-Chatsworth drawing superior to the Edinburgh and Oxford versions, and suggests that the fourth version, now in Washington, may actually be by Corneille.