Gaspard Dughet

Goulet Estate (from old handwriting on the reverse);
With Duveen Brothers (from old handwriting on the reverse);
Rev. Leon P. Harris, San Francisco;
Acquired from his estate by the present owner.

M. H. de Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco, on loan (from a label on the reverse).

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This canvas has been lined yet the lining is not sufficiently supporting the paint layer, as is clearly visible throughout where the canvas is unstable and the paint layer is flaking in areas. However, the picture itself seems to be in quite rugged and healthy condition. The varnish has bloomed and the paint layer is quite dirty. There seems to be some fairly broad re-glazing in the lower sky and in the blue mountains beyond. A diagonal crack in the sky in the upper left could be restored and most likely there are a few spots here and there in the foreground. This picture will improve dramatically with restoration and the amount of actual retouching necessary will be very slim. Overall the condition is very good.
"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."

Together with Salvator Rosa, Dughet was one of the most distinguished landscape painters working in Rome in the 17th century.  Between 1631 and 1635 he was apprenticed to his brother-in-law, Nicolas Poussin, by whose surname Dughet also came to be known.  In the late 1640s Dughet began the project that would establish his reputation: he painted sixteen frescoes depicting scenes from the Life of the Prophet Elijah and Elisha commissioned by the Prior Giovanni Antoni Filippini, for the Carmelite Church of San Martino ai Monte, Rome.  For the rest of his career, Dughet was patronized by some of the most influential families in Rome, including the Pamphilij and Colonna, in whose ancestral palaces the artist's works are still displayed.