Lot 272
  • 272

Baldassare Franceschini, called Il Volterrano

Estimate
1,500 - 2,000 GBP
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Description

  • Baldassare Franceschini, called Il Volterrano
  • Recto and verso: designs for a decorative finial for the tabernacle of the ss. annunziata
  • Pen and dark brown ink over red chalk (recto);
    red chalk (verso)

Provenance

Sale, London, Sotheby's, Drawings by Baldassare Franceschini, 3 July 1980, lot 41a (catalogue by Charles McCorquodale);
sale, London, Christie's, 13 December 1984, lot 213 (2), purchased by Ralph Holland

Condition

Ink has eaten through the paper in several places, very small. Pale stain right of center. Edges crinkled probably from old glue.
"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."

Catalogue Note

These studies are for Volterrano's finial on the tabernacle which enclosed the miraculous image of the Annunciation in the church of SS. Annunziata, Florence.  As Charles McCorquodale wrote in his catalogue of the 1980 Sotheby's sale:  'Prince Mattias de'Medici was the first to conceive of adding a decorative finial to the famous tabernacle built to Michelozzo's design of 1448 ....  Only the Prince's death in 1668 appears to have prevented the execution of Balatri's scheme for a finial in marble decorated with silver gilt ornament.  Instead, Raffaello Guicciardini commissioned a design from Volterrano.  This was carried out in partly-gilded wood to the latter's specifications in 1674 by Luca Boncinetti.1  The finial is one of the most sumptuous examples of large-scale decorative sculpture of the Florentine Baroque.'

Though lacking the large putti and the shell, in certain other respects the lower drawing on the recto corresponds closely to the completed finial.  A drawing in the Kunstbibliothek, Berlin, shows approximately the same stage in the design. The drawing on the verso seems to be a slightly earlier stage in the development of the design than that on the recto

The paper bears a watermark of the Medici arms.

See lot XXXXX

1.  P. Tonini, Il Santuario della SS. Annunziata di Firenze, 1876, pp. 92-3
2.  S. Jacob, Italienische Zeichnungen der Kunstbibliothek Berlin, Berlin 1975, p. 124, fig. 547r