Lot 77
  • 77

Luigi Sabatelli

Estimate
70,000 - 90,000 USD
bidding is closed

Description

  • Luigi Sabatelli
  • Five scenes from the Book of Revelation: 'et vidi mulierem sedentem...' (17:3); 'vidi quod aperuisset agnus...' (6:1); 'et vidi alium angelum fortem...' (10:1); 'et conversus vidi septem candelabra aurea...' (1;12); et vidi, et ecce nubem candidam...' (14:14)
  • Each pen and brown ink on three joined sheets, laid down on a larger sheet, the latter inscribed in Latin in pen and brown ink by the artist, with the beginning of each biblical verse

Condition

All drawn on three pieces of paper joined together and laid down on a thicker larger piece of paper. All appear to have been folded in the middle at some stage. All sheets have suffered from a slight purple mould to various degrees. One of the sheets appears to be more damaged and has several losses at the top margin (Night of the Apocalypse). Overall pen and ink very strong and the images retain their original strength and power.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

These five drawings relate to the series of six remarkable etchings illustrating The Apocalypse of St. John which Sabatelli executed in Milan between 1809-10; a complete set of these splendid prints is preserved in the Uffizi, Florence.1  As Beatrice Paolozzi Strozzi noted in the Uffizi exhibition catalogue (loc. cit., note 1), this was one of the artist's final engraved projects, most probably conceived when he was still in Florence.  The idea of a series of etchings on the theme of the Apocalypse seems to have been the suggestion of the very erudite Tommaso Puccini (1749-1811), director of the Reale Galleria Fiorentina and secretary of the florentine Accademia di Belle Arti.  Puccini was an influential figure in Sabatelli's artistic career.  In 1807, just before the artist executed the six Apocalypse engravings, he painted an altarpiece representing the Vision of St. John at Patmos for a church near Pistoia.  From the evidence of two surviving letters, it appears that Sabatelli asked and received Puccini's advice not only on the subject of that altarpiece, but also regarding a series of engravings relating to the Apocalypse.2 

Only one composition from the series of prints that Sabatelli made illustrating the Apocalypse is missing from the present group of drawings: 'Et ecce sedes posita erat in coelo...'.3  Two partial preliminary studies relating to that subject, both in the same direction as the engravings, are, however, in the Castello Sforzesco, Milan.4  The present five complete studies are close in size to the related etched works; since they are executed in the same direction, they are most probably modelli for the project.

1.  B. Paolozzi Strozzi, Luigi Sabatelli (1772-1850), Disegni e Incisioni, exhib. cat., Florence, Uffizi, 1978, pp. 63-66, cats. 62-67, figs. 65-70
2.  Ibid.,p. 63
3.  Ibid., for an image of the related etching see fig. 70
4.  Inv. nos. 2426 L 34 and 6125 C 817