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ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS | Study of legs for "The Adoration of the Shepherds"
Estimate
7,000 - 9,000 USD
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Description
- Attributed to Anton Raphael Mengs (After Raphael)
- Study of legs for "The Adoration of the Shepherds"
- Red chalk over traces of black chalk
- 297 by 247 mm; 11 3/4 by 9 3/4 in
Provenance
The Swetzoff Gallery, Boston,
from whom acquired by the present owners in 1968
from whom acquired by the present owners in 1968
Exhibited
Hartford, Wadsworth Atheneum; Hanover, Dartmouth College, Hopkins Center Art Galleries; Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, One Hundred Master Drawings from New England Private Collections, 1973-74, no. 39
Condition
Laid down on a slightly cropped old album page, which has in turn been hinge mounted to a modern decorative mount. There are four studio(?) stains to the upper half of the left edge and another to the centre of the lower edge. There is an old pin prick hole to the upper centre of the sheet and minor surface dirt throughout. The red chalk media remains in very fine condition throughout. Sold in a modern giltwood 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.
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.
Catalogue Note
This carefully executed study of legs is preparatory for the figure of the shepherd striding towards Christ, in Mengs' painting of the Adoration of the Shepherds, executed in 1771-72, and now in the Prado (fig.1).1 Very few drawings by Mengs appear to survive for this particular project, with the most notable being an elaborate compositional sheet in the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Weimar.2 The present drawing can, however, be compared on stylistic grounds to the manner in which Mengs frequently handled red chalk, with a notable emphasis placed on tight areas of hatching and cross-hatching, to create form. A particularly fine example of these techniques can also be seen in Mengs' red chalk copy of the Farnese Hercules, today in the collection of The Albertina, Vienna.3
1. See S. Roettgen, Anton Raphael Mengs 1725–1779, Munich 1999, vol. I, pp. 49-50, no. 19, reproduced
2. Roettgen, op. cit., pp. 50-51, no. VZ 5, reproduced
3. Ibid., p. 465, no. Z 120, reproduced
1. See S. Roettgen, Anton Raphael Mengs 1725–1779, Munich 1999, vol. I, pp. 49-50, no. 19, reproduced
2. Roettgen, op. cit., pp. 50-51, no. VZ 5, reproduced
3. Ibid., p. 465, no. Z 120, reproduced