Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot

Duc de Narbonne-Pelet, France (by 1902)
Georges Petit, Paris 
Boussod, Valadon & Cie, Paris, no. 27608 (by May 5, 1902 and until July 29, 1903, as Le Chemin)
Henry Reinhardt & Son, New York
Dr. Leslie D. Ward, Newark, New Jersey (acquired from the above and sold, his sale, American Art Association, New York, January 13, 1911, lot 36)
Knoedler & Co., New York (acquired from the above sale as a fourth-share with Arnold & Tripp, Eugène Glaenzer and Boussod, Valadon & Cie as A Road in The Forest; Ville d’Avray)
Arnold B. Watson, Buffalo, New York (acquired from the above, 1916)
Vixseboxse Galleries, Cleveland
Private Collection (acquired from the above)
Thence by descent to the present owner

Oil on cradled panel which is slightly bowed at lower left. Recently cleaned. Very faint stable craquelure in the trees at right. Under UV: old green varnish fluoresces in some areas. A few scattered pinpoint dots of retouching in the sky and in the tree at right. Two lines of inpainting in the foreground in the trees above the standing little girl. Dashes of retouching, possibly older, fluoresce in the upper left of the right tree. A line of inpainting extends from the extreme upper left edge. The works appears to be signed twice: faint traces of Corot's original signature are visible under his present signature.
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.

Untraced for nearly a century, the present work was likely painted circa 1850-55 near Corot’s family home at Ville d’Avray, west of Paris. The home played a fundamental role in shaping his artistic vision of nature as a gentle and tranquil subject, in contrast to the turbulent Romanticism of his contemporaries (for a related work see R. 941). Here the artist captures the unique quality the first rays of the morning sun softly illuminating and shifting the green palette of the wooded path.