PIETRO NOVELLI DIT IL MONREALESE | Christ on the Column

Collection in the south of France since the 19^th Century.

À l’œil nu : Le tableau apparaît dans un état de conservation moyennement satisfaisant. L’œuvre n’a pas été touchée depuis certainement près d’un siècle. Il est sous un vernis extrêmement sale. On note de nombreux manques (visibles sur la photographie du catalogue), dont une ligne de manques verticale courant tout le long de la couture de la toile. On remarque plusieurs petites zones de repeints dans le ciel et dans les carnations. On remarque une déchirure de la toile de 30 cm. de long, horizontale sur le torse et les bras du Christ au centre. À la lampe U.V. : Le tableau apparaît sous un vernis vert uniforme. On remarque plusieurs reprises ponctuelles dans le ciel, dans les bras et les corps des anges, ainsi que dans la chevelure de l’ange au centre. On note plusieurs petits points de restauration dans le corps du Christ, ainsi qu’une restauration sur sa joue et sur sa chevelure. Par ailleurs, on remarque une restauration sur la déchirure sur le corps du Christ (déjà signalée). En outre, on remarque une restauration sur l’abdomen et la jambe du Christ. Enfin on note plusieurs reprises dans le coin inférieur droit. To the naked eye: The painting appears in a moderately satisfactory condition. It has not been touched since certainly about a century. It is under a very dirty varnish. We notice many losses (visible on the catalogue's picture) among which a vertical line of losses all along the seam of the canvas. We also notice several little retouching areas in the sky and on the flesh. Besides, we notice a horizontal 30 cm. long tear of the canvas, on the Christ’s chest, on the centre. Under U.V. light: The painting appears under a green uniform varnish. We notice some scattered retouching on the sky, the angels’ arms and bodies as well as on the middle angel’s hair. We also notice several little spots of restoration on the Christ’s body, as well as a restoration on his cheek and hair. We also notice a restoration on the tear in the Christ’s chest (already mentioned). We notice a restoration on the Christ’s abdomen and leg. Finally, we notice several spots of retouching on the upper right corner.
"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."

We are grateful to Dr. Nicola Spinosa for proposing the attribution on the basis of photographs, and for his help in the writing of this catalogue note.


The painting we are presenting here constitutes a new discovery in Pietro Novelli's oeuvre. Christ, considerably weakened, is still tied to the column, the site of his flagellation. Only his wrists, tightly bound, prevent his exhausted body from tottering. The precarious support of his knees on the base of the column reinforces the general impression of frailty. The light, coming from the left, and the play of light and dark showcase Christ's body, his arms outstretched and the life fading from his face. At left, a man busies himself cutting the bonds with a knife, while angels fly toward him with despairing expressions.

Pietro Novelli was indisputably the most important and influential artist of the Sicilian Seicento. Trained in the workshop of his father, Pietro Antonio Novelli, in Monreale, he showed a remarkable capacity for renewing and reinventing his own style over the course of travels in Italy, notably to Rome, where he had the chance to study the greatest artists of the Renaissance and to meet the disciples of the Carracci and of Caravaggio. Another trip to Naples allowed him to be in contact with naturalist artists.

Upon his return to Sicily, he painted numerous canvases in which his Neapolitan and Roman experiences merged in an original manner (Saint Benedict distributing bread, Monreale Monastery). Having reached artistic maturity in the 1630s, he received important commissions from viceroys, aristocrats, the bourgeoisie, monasteries, and churches in Palermo and in other Sicilian and Italian centres. His appointment, in the last years of his life, to the post of architect of the Senate of Palermo, was the final accolade for his talent and his fame.

The treatment of the little angels at upper right is symptomatic of the influence of Van Dyck, who briefly visited Palermo in 1624 and who sent his Madonna of the Rosary there in 1628. In this work, the treatment of the cherubs is very similar to those in our painting and represents a compelling example of the Flemish master's influence on Novelli. Thanks to his Rubensian exuberance and his Venetian tonality, Van Dyck undeniably breathed new and original life into Novelli's art. From that point forward, the brown tones and elegant forms remained a constant in the Sicilian painter's work. That influence is here combined with his knowledge of the art of Ribera as well as that of Neapolitan naturalists like Battistello Caracciolo, Massimo Stanzione or Francesco Fracanzani, which he had the opportunity to see during his brief stay in Naples from 1630 to 1631.