Central Italian School, circa 1600

Cardinal Cesare Gherardi (1577–1623);
With William Thuillier, London, from whom acquired by the present owner.

This Adoration of the Magi derives from the 1585 engraving by Jan Sadeler after Marten de Vos. That the composition was popular with artists of the time is demonstrated by the other painted versions after it that have come down to us, such as that at Speke Hall, Liverpool.

The arms at the lower right belong to Cesare Gherardi. Born in Fossato di Vico in 1577, he graduated in 1602 from the University of Perugia, going on to hold professorial posts in canon law there and later at Fermo. A meteoric career began in 1618, when his name was put forward to Scipione Borghese, then in need of a magistrate in Rome. By 1621 he had been chosen as a cardinal by Paul V, the uncle of Scipione, to the amazement of the Curia, and the following year under the pontificate of Gregory XV he was elected bishop of Camerino. An agile diplomat, Gherardi was able to offer his unwavering support to the Borghese family without making enemies of their adversaries. He was sparing with his income, preferring a more academic lifestyle. He promoted the restoration of the cathedral of Camerino, endowing it with a new pulpit. At his death in 1623 he left 1,500 crowns to his grandson and was entombed in San Francesco a Ripa, Rome.