Pedro Machuca

Han Coray (1880–1974), Zurich (as Bramantino);
With Giuseppe Bellesi, London;
With Frederick Mont, New York, by 1965;
Anonymous sale, Lucerne, Galerie Fischer, 26 November – 2 December 1968, lot 3173, reproduced (as Andrea Sabatini);
Anonymous sale, Lucerne, Galerie Fischer, 12–13 June 1970, lot 77, unsold (as Andrea Sabatini);
Anonymous sale, Lucerne, Galerie Fischer, 21–22 June 1974, lot 73 (as Andrea Sabatini);
Acquired at the above by the father of the present owner;
Thence by inheritance.

P. Giusti and P. Leone de Castris, 'Forastieri e regnicoli'. La pittura moderna a Napoli nel primo Cinquecento, Naples 1985, p. 44 (as Machuca, circa 1518); 
N. Dacos, 'Pedro Machuca', in Andrea da Salerno nel Rinascimento meridionale, G. Previtali (ed.), exh. cat., Padua 1986, Florence 1986, p. 248 (as not by Machuca);
P. Giusti and P. Leone de Castris, Pittura del Cinquecento a Napoli, Naples 1988, pp. 37, 42 and p. 54, n. 16, reproduced in black and white p. 39, fig. 32 (as Machuca);
P. Leone de Castris in Pedro Machuca a Napoli. Due nuovi dipinti per il Museo di Capodimonte, P. Leone de Castris (ed.), exh. cat., Naples 1992, p. 30 (as Machuca, circa 1518);
R. López Guzmán and G. Espinosa Spínola, Pedro Machuca, Granada 2001, p. 71 (as not by Machuca);
P. Leone de Castris, Andrea Sabatini da Salerno. Il Raffaello di Napoli, Naples 2017, p. 126 n. 12 (as Machuca, circa 1518).

This panel is constructed of three vertical planks, it is cradled and flat; the paint surface is stable. The varnish is a little yellowed and discoloured. The vibrant red of the cloak of the Baptist, the green of God’s robes and of the grass, and the blue of the water and sky are all well preserved. There are scattered discoloured retouchings that are visible to the naked eye. Inspection under ultra violet light reveals a thick and old varnish. There are minor localised retouchings scattered throughout, and some retouchings long the aforementioned panel joins. This restoration looks old and broadly applied, and it is seems likely that they could be significantly improved. This lot is offered unframed.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Pierluigi Leone de Castris was the first to recognise this intensely idiosyncratic painting with its beautiful lakeside landscape as the work of Pedro Machuca.¹ When, in 1985, he published the Baptism of Christ for the first time, he characterised the face of Christ and the putti as typical of Machuca, comparing them to similar figures in the artist's earliest documented work in Italy, his signed and dated Madonna of Suffrage of 1517, a painting now at the Museo del Prado, Madrid.² He also found affinities with the Madonna and Child at the Galleria Sabauda, Turin.³ The plasticity of forms and frozen gestures evident in the Baptism recall Michelangelo's frescoes on the Sistine ceiling. Raphaelesque elements also surface in his work. Machuca was an associate of Raphael, and a number of frescoes in the Vatican Logge have been attributed to him. According to Leone de Castris this painting may be among Machuca's last Roman works, datable to about 1518 or 1519. It is likely that by the following year he had returned to Spain with his father, where he settled in Granada.

Recently Dott.ssa Anna Bisceglia has endorsed the attribution to Machuca on the basis of a photograph.⁴ She has suggested a Neapolitan context for the commission. We are grateful to her for her comments on the painting and to Professore Pierluigi Leone de Castris for his help in cataloguing this lot.

1. It had previously been listed in the photographic archive of the Fondazione Zeri with an attribution to Andrea Sabatini, also called Andrea da Salerno (c. 1487–1530). This in turn revised an earlier tentative attribution to Pellegrino Munari made by Federico Zeri in October 1952.
2. P02579; oil on poplar panel, 167 x 135 cm. Reproduced in colour in Norma e capriccio. Spagnoli in Italia agli esordi della 'maniera moderna', T. Mozzati and A. Natali (eds), exh. cat., Florence 2013, p. 295.
3. Reproduced in Giusti and Leone de Castris 1988, p. 38, fig. 29.
4. Written communication, 24 October 2017.