Giovanni Battista Ricci

Bears unidentified mark on the verso (L.491a);
sale, London, Sotheby's, 18 April 1994, lot 81, purchased by Ralph Holland

Laid down on an old mount . Overall in good condition, pen and ink very fresh. Some defects in the paper, which appear as creases, to the bottom margin and to the right, towards the upper corner.
"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."

The style of this drawing and the generous use of wash can be closely associated with two studies by Giovanni Battista Ricci now respectively in the Louvre and the Teyler Museum.¹  Both these drawings, which represent The Adoration of the Magi and The Adoration of the Shepherds, were first attributed to Ricci by Philip Pouncey and John Gere and are preparatory for frescoes in the Cappella Griffoni, in San Marcello al Corso, Rome, which date from the 1590s, shortly after the restoration of the church.

According to Baglione, Ricci came to Rome during the pontificate of Sixtus V (1585-90) and participated in the numerous decorative schemes and enterprises of those years.  He assisted Guerra and Nebbia with the decoration of the Scala Santa in the Lateran Palace and the Vatican Library, and was responsible for many frescoes in Roman churches, including in the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

1.  Paris, Musée du Louvre, inv. no. 9991; Haarlem, Teyler Museum, inv. no. K.II 61.  See: L'oeil du connoisseur, exhib. cat., Paris, Louvre, 1992, reproduced p. 109; C. van Tuyll van Serooskerken, The Italian Drawings of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries in the Teyler Museum, Haarlem 2000, reproduced p. 293, fig. 278