Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

Prince Alexis Orloff,
his sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, 29-30 April 1920, lot 112 (Ffr.11.500),
possibly purchased by Paul Freiherr von Pechmann,
his wife Edith Freifrau von Pechmann, née Schütte (1902-1999),
by whom bequeathed to Gustav Leonhardt in 1999

G. Knox, 'The Orloff Album of Tiepolo Drawings', The Burlington Magazine, vol., CIII, no. 699, June 1961, p. 274, not illustrated

Window mounted with Japan paper. Part of top right corner missing. Circular brown stains along the upper margin and along the upper right margin. Light staining around the edges of the sheet. Faint marks in the four corners from where the sheet was previously laid down. A diagonal crease towards the upper right corner. Medium remains extremely fresh and overall image powerful. Sold framed.
"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."

There appear to be very few known drawings by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo depicting Mary Magdalene, two other studies portraying Mary Magdalene being carried to heaven by angels were also in the Orloff Collection, lots 113 and 114 in the 1920 sale (see Provenance).  These three drawings, all stylistically similar, must be related to the same project. In the other two studies, the Magdalene is represented in a more upright position and the drawings both include a skull in the lower foreground of the sheet.  The present study portrays Mary Magdalene with her head tilted backwards, a cross in her hand.  It has not been possible to link this study to any known painting by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, however this sheet must be viewed alongside the other drawings from the Orloff Collection which undoubtedly show the artist developing his ideas for a project that was perhaps never completed.

Knox, in his 1961 article, discusses the provenance of the Orloff album, which contained a collection of drawings by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (see Literature).  It is not known exactly how the album was acquired by the Orloff family but there seem to be two possibilities.  It has been proposed that the album may have been purchased by Prince Alexis Orloff in a sale in 1885, when aged only 18.  However, an alternative suggestion is that the album may have been part of the family collection, to quote Knox, ‘almost certainly descended from a certain Gregory Vladimirovitch Orloff (1777-1826); this gentleman was the son of Vladimir Grigorievitch Orloff who in 1766 became President of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, and his four uncles (as well as his father) were prominent men in the Russia of Catherine the Great.’¹  Knox is of the opinion that the latter suggestion is the most likely line of provenance.

1.  G. Knox, 'The Orloff Album of Tiepolo Drawings', The Burlington Magazine, vol., CIII, no. 699, June 1961, p.269