Marco Ricci

George Proctor, Langley Park, Norfolk (1742);
by inheritance to his nephew William Beauchamp;
Sir Thomas Beauchamp-Proctor;
by descent to Sir Christopher Beauchamp, Bt., London,
by whom sold, London, Christie's, 26-27 November 1974, lot 119

A. Scarpa Sonino, Marco Ricci, Milan 1991, p. 145, no. 15, reproduced p. 315, fig. 278

Laid down and nailed on the original wooden board. Media fresh and overall in quite good condition. A tear lower right near the figure of the man and another smaller with losses at the same level toward the left edge on the vegetation. Some rubbing along the edges and towards top corner and towards lower left corner. Tiny foxing and few scattered small losses of pigment. Sold in the original English 18th Century frame
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.

This subject must have been very popular among Marco Ricci's capricci, as he seems to have used it, with variations, in several works.  It is closely related to two other known drawings by him, respectively in the British Museum and at Windsor Castle.¹  The stylus indentation on the British Museum drawing suggests that it was used to trace a guideline for the version at Windsor Castle.  The composition is also repeated, in reverse with some variations mostly relating to the figures, in Ricci's etching, Bartsch XXI, 2.²  These drawings must have been used as inspiration for the painted version at Windsor Castle³ and the present work.  The main difference between the latter and the other known versions is the format, which in the present tempera appears extended and characterized by a more rectangular shape, and the foreground appears closer to the viewer.  The figure of a man climbing out of the water in the left foreground, also in Ricci's etching, occurs in the painting with another standing figure nearby.
The Windsor drawing was engraved by Bartolozzi when in the collection of Consul Smith.⁴

This and the following lot were part of a group of five tempere by Marco Ricci which came from the collection at Langley Park, Norfolk.  Annalisa Scarpa Sonino has suggested a dating for them between the second and third decades of the 18th century.

See also the following lot.

1.  Respectively inv. nos. 1857, 1114.29 and R.L. 01142;  A. Blunt and E. Croft-Murray, Venetian Drawings of the XVII & XVIII Centuries...at Windsor Castle, London 1957,  p. 35, no. 81, reproduced pl. 62
2.  A. Scarpa Sonino, op. cit., reproduced p. 315, fig. 279
3.  Ibid., reproduced p. 314, fig. 275
4.  Ibid., reproduced p. 315, fig. 280