Master Paintings & Sculpture Day Sale

Master Paintings & Sculpture Day Sale

View full screen - View 1 of Lot 235. FRANCESCO MONTELATICI, CALLED CECCO BRAVO | THESEUS ABANDONING ARIADNE .

FRANCESCO MONTELATICI, CALLED CECCO BRAVO | THESEUS ABANDONING ARIADNE

Auction Closed

January 30, 06:45 PM GMT

Estimate

40,000 - 60,000 USD

Lot Details

Description

FRANCESCO MONTELATICI, CALLED CECCO BRAVO

Florence 1607 - 1661 Innsbruck

THESEUS ABANDONING ARIADNE


oil on canvas

12⅞ by 17½ in.; 32.7 by 44.5 cm.

Defined by vivid colors and strong contrasts between light and shadows, this small canvas by Cecco Bravo dates to circa 1635, placing it early in his career. Here, the young Florentine artist displays his admiration for artists such as Titian, particularly in his nude female figure garbed in a thin linen and reclining on a rich red velvet, as well as Francesco Furini, a contemporary in Florence. Further supporting of the canvas’ early date are the notable similarities it shares with his Angelica and Ruggiero, another youthful work, datable to circa 1640.1  Both of these paintings closely compare in size, handling, and visual details, including a brightly illuminated female figure who contrasts with a male figure in shadow.


The scene most probably depicts Theseus abandoning a sleeping Ariadne on the island of Naxos with his ship prepared on stormy seas in the distance. It alternatively may depict the Trojan hero Aeneas trying to clandestinely arrange his fleet of ships and leave his beloved Dido in Carthage after receiving a message from Jupiter reminding him of his destiny in Italy. This would be the moment just before Dido realizes his plans, leading to her deep despair and ultimate death. 


We are grateful to Francesca Baldassari for endorsing the attribution on the basis of images and for her assistance in the cataloguing of the present lot. 


1. Oil on canvas, 32.4 by 44.5 cm, Smart Museum of Art, University of Chicago, inv. no. 1973.42.