Francesco Trevisani

Anonymous sale, New York, Doyle, 22 May 2013 (as attributed to Trevisani).

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. Although this large work is certainly in need of some attention, the condition in most areas is particularly good. It probably has not been restored since before the 20th century. The bulk of the attention has been to a complex tear which begins in the upper right near the sky and runs diagonally down to the bridge of the nose of the elder on the right side into his chest. This restoration very slightly enters into the left arm of Susannah. Another noticeable structural damage runs vertically below the white fabric on the left side. There is a diagonal scrape or break in the canvas through the waist of Susannah. The work should be cleaned. The paint layer in Susannah and in the figure on the right will be revealed to be surprisingly devoid of restorations and in very healthy state. The head, hands and upper torso of the figure in the upper left seem to be well preserved. There has been some instability in the past in the darker colors on the left side, and there will be thinness beneath some fairly significant restoration on this side of the picture. While this is certainly a picture that will require careful and serious attention from a restorer, the results should be spectacular. It is an impressive picture that will respond very well to restoration.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Four treatments of this subject by Trevisani are documented.  A payment is listed in the Chigi accounts from 1684 for a Susannah and the Elders within a Garland of Flowers now lost; another is now in the Graf von Schoenborn collection, Pommersfelden; and another in the Patrizi collection.¹   A fourth “Susanna nel bagno” is noted in Lione Pascoli’s biography of the artist, as being painted for the Marchese Pallavicini, which Karin Wolfe conjectures may indeed refer to the present painting.²

We are grateful to Karin Wolfe for endorsing an attribution of this canvas to Francesco Trevisani on the basis of photographs.

 

1.  K. Wolfe, private written communication dated 5 November 2013.
2.  L. Pascoli, Di Francesco Trevisani, foglio 91V.