Master Paintings Part II
Master Paintings Part II
Property from the Collection of Gerald E. Rupp
A pope saint holding a chalice
Lot Closed
January 28, 04:11 PM GMT
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
Property from the Collection of Gerald E. Rupp
Charles Mellin
Nancy circa 1600 - 1649 Rome
A pope saint holding a chalice
oil on octagonal canvas
canvas: 26 1/4 by 21 3/8 in.; 66.6 by 54.3 cm.
framed: 33 by 28 1/4 in.; 83.8 by 71.8 cm.
Identified in 1995 by Erich Schleier as the work of Charles Mellin, this octagonal painting is probably the one listed, without attribution to an artist, in the 1655 inventory of Maffeo Barberini, Gonfalonier of the Catholic Church and the grand-nephew of Pope Urban VIII. Another painting from his 1655 inventory, also of octagonal format and identical dimensions, was probably its pendant: it depicted a saint in prayer with hands folded and head raised, a favorite pose of Mellin's.
The saint depicted is difficult to identify, but the chasuble he wears shows Saints Peter and Paul, a type often worn by popes. Possibilities include Saint Gregory the Great, although this figure lacks the attributes of the dove of the Holy Spirit, book, and quill, and Saint Urban, though it is unlike Mellin's other representations of Urban. The age of the figure, chalice, and chasuble suggest a papal figure. The composition was a popular one, with at least eight copies made before the nineteenth century, including examples by Giullaume Courtous and Joseph-Marie Vien.1 The face, shown di sotto in su, is very similar to that of Mellin's St. Francis of Paola now in the Musée Lorrain, Nancy.2
1. See Malgouyres 2007, cat nos. 54a - 54g.
2. Oil on canvas, 165 by 111 cm. inv. 77.2.9.