Pseudo Salini

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. This work could be hung in its current condition, although it seems to be quite dirty. The canvas has an old lining which is still good. Under ultraviolet light, there is an opaque and fluorescent varnish that obscures any retouches. While there presumably are a few in the darkest browns, a close visual examination of this work does not reveal any damage or weakness except in the upper center in the background, a diagonal line across the upper left corner, and in an area to the left of the pigeon in the basket in the background. All of these are minor, and this work is clearly in wonderful condition.
"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."

"Pseudo Salini" is the moniker ascribed to a group of paintings that mirror the style of Roman Caravaggist, Tommaso Salini.  Many of the paintings now grouped under that attribution had formerly been erroneously ascribed to Salini himself until the 1980s when Victoria Markova reexamined the painter's oeuvre.¹  The paintings ascribed to the so-called Pseudo Salini not all by the same hand and while many are likely to be Roman and tend to derive from works by Salini and Caravaggio.  This painting is likely by the same hand as the Boy Playing with a Dog and Other Animals, which sold at Sotheby's London in 2011.²  Not only is the boy depicted remarkable similar physiologically to that in the present painting, the artist has again included a wooden bat and red and white leather covered ball.

1.  V. Markova, "Alcune nuove proposte per Tommaso Salini'" in Paragone, 40, no. 475, 1989.
2.  Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, 5 July 2011, lot 140.