GIANNICOLA DI PAOLO | The Entombment of Christ, with the Virgin, Mary Magdalene, Nicodemus, Saint John the Evangelist, and other saints

The Conti Robilant, Venice, by 1933; By descent at Palazzo Mocenigo, Venice, to Conte Andrea Robilant;

By whom sold, London, Christie’s, 29 June 1962, lot 68, for 1,900 guineas to Chance (as Perugino);

Anonymous sale ('The Property of a Lady'), London, Christie's, 10 July 1987, lot 103 (as Giovan Battista Caporali).

C. Castellaneta and E. Camesasca, L’opera completa del Perugino, Milan 1969, p. 123, cat. no. 282, reproduced (as attributed to Perugino); F. Todini, La Pittura Umbra: dal duecento al primo cinquecento, Milan 1989, vol. I, p. 79 (as Giannicola di Paolo).

The following condition report is provided by Henry Gentle who is an external specialist and not an employee of Sotheby's: Giannicola di Paolo The Entombment of Christ Oil on panel, in ornate gilt wood in good condition. The support is poplar wood. It was not possible to assess the back of the panel. The front of the panel has obvious planar deformation. This is the result of a central vertical repaired split running top to bottom and one to the left of the composition, also running full length. Further minor vertical fractures, between 10 and 20 cm in length, from the top edge down and the bottom edge up are also apparent. Minor paint loss only is visible along the smaller fractures. The paint layer is in a well preserved condition. Under UV light a scattering of tight restorations can be discerned to the white shroud beneath Christ, through his torso and left shoulder where the central fracture exists, a minor scattering to Christ's face and to the face of the saint in red lower left, to the face of the saint holding Christ's hand and to Mary Magdalene. Other areas are in good original condition with well preserved paint and textured highlights. There is the remains of original gilding to the hems and necklines of the garments and the colours remain strong and vibrant. Tonal nuances to the flesh tones remain and the removal of the residue of an older varnish would improve tonality.
"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."

Long considered to be by the great Perugino, this panel is in fact a mature work, datable to circa 1520, by Giannicola di Paolo, one of the foremost painters in Perugia in the early Cinquecento. The artist was employed in Perugino's workshop and is known to have collaborated on numerous works, including the Last Supper in the church of Sant’Onofrio, Florence. Later, as an independent painter, he set up a workshop in Piazza del Sopramura, in the same square as his former master, and his style remained heavily influenced by the latter throughout his career.¹  Evidence of pouncing in the execution of some paintings, such as the Annunciation attributed to Giannicola in the National Gallery, London (inv. no. NG1104), suggest that Perugino’s cartoons were freely accessible to him.²  However, rather than directly copying Perugino’s paintings, the artist likely made his own drawings from his master’s modelli while working in his studio. For example, the design of Giannicola’s impressive Ognissanti altarpiece of 1506, now in the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, Perugia (inv. no. 323), derives from Perugino’s San Pietro Ascension composition, though the figures are different, suggesting they are of his own invention.  

We are grateful to Professor Filippo Todini for re-endorsing the attribution on the basis of digital images.

¹ C. Higgitt, M. Spring, A. Reeve and L. Syson, 'Working with Perugino: The Technique of an Annunciation attributed to Giannicola di Paolo,' in National Gallery Technical Bulletin, Renaissance Siena and Perugia 1490–1510, vol. 27, 2006, p. 99.
² Higgitt, Spring, Reeve and Syson 2006, p. 99.