Andrea Casali

Madame Maria Jeritza Seery, Newark, New Jersey;
By whom sold, New York, Sotheby's, 11 June 1981, lots 56 and 57 (as Noël Nicolas Coypel);
Anonymous sale, New York, Christie's, 15 January 1985, lot 79;
Anonymous sale, London, Christie's, 9 July 1993, lot 73;
Anonymous sale ("Property of a Private Collector, Sold Without Reserve"), New York, 24 January 2002, lot 29, where purchased by the present collector.

G. Sestieri, Repertorio della Pittura Romana della Fine del Seicento e del Settecento, Turin 1993, vol. I, p. 44, vol. II, reproduced figs 222a-b.

"The following condition report has been provided by Henry Gentle, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. Bacchus and Ariadne-The original canvas is lined and the paint layer is stable. There is a restored right-angled tear through the neck of Ariadne to her finger tips and down through the winged putto. The edges of the canvas have been retouched. There is also a restored damage to the putto lower left. Dark cracking from an old stretcher mark has been reduced own the left side. A fine filigree of pale cracks caused by paint layer shrinkage is apparent and somewhat reduced. A discoloured and degraded varnish is present. Angelica and Medoro- The lining is similar to above. The paint surface is stable with no tears. There is a small restored loss to the right foot of Angelica which has discoloured. Dark cracks from old stretcher marks has been reduced. The pale craquelure is more pronounced here and there has been a greater effort made to reduce this. A similar discoloured and degraded varnish."
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

The subjects of this pair, one taken from Greek mythology and the other from an epic poem of the 16th century, are connected by their theme of impassioned love.  Aridane, daughter of King Minos of Crete, having been abandoned by Theseus on the island of Naxos, was rescued by the god Bacchus who found her weeping.  The two became lovers and Ovid (in Metamorphoses 8:176-182) tells how Bacchus took the crown from her head and flung in into the heavens where it became a constellation.  The story of Angelica and Medoro is related by Ludovico Ariosto in Orlando Furioso, one of the greatest epic poems of the 16th century.  The scene here depicted (Canto 19:36) shows the two lovers carving their intertwined intitials on trees and rocks throughout the forest.