Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo

Bordes Collection;
with Paul Prouté, Paris, 1936;
with P.& D. Colnaghi, London

Hinged at the top corners. Slight scattered foxing on the left part of the sheet visible in the illustrated image. Drawing in good condition, pen and ink much stronger than reproduction. Slight surface dirt at the top left and right corners. Paper has slightly buckled. Sold in a modern wooden 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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This sheet was part of a series of thirty-eight drawings of the same subject, formerly in an album in the Bordes collection which, according to Byam Shaw, was dismembered and sold in London before and during the last war.¹  Pointing out that a sketch of a Hercules and Antaeus is visible under a drawing of a bullock which is related to a fresco in the Villa Tiepolo-Duodo in Zianigo,²  he suggested that the series of Hercules and Antaeus was executed at the same time and, because of the similar ledge in the animal series painted for the family villa, was also intended for that decoration.³  Byam Shaw noted that the sheets originating from the Bordes album, such as this one, were not numbered. 

1. J. Byam Shaw, The Drawings of Domenico Tiepolo, London 1962, p. 78, no. 34
2. A. Morassi, Disegni Veneti del Settecento nella collezione Paul Wallraf, exhib. cat., Venice, Fondazione Giorgio Cini, 1959, p. 70, no. 107, reproduced 
3. J. Byam Shaw, op. cit., p. 42