371 - DIPINTI ANTICHI DAL XIV AL XIX SECOLO

Tommaso Bona
(Brescia 1548 - 1614)
Saint Benedict of Nursia Oil on canvas cm. 192x124. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Dr Giuseppe Sava.

The painting depicts Saint Benedict of Nursia in full figure, isolated within a broad landscape, holding the Rule and the abbatial crozier, following a traditional iconography enriched with symbols alluding to penance and monastic life, such as the rugged terrain and the raven with bread. The saint’s monumental presence, combined with the highly plastic rendering of the folds of his cowl and the careful descriptive naturalism, reveals a solid Brescian foundation.
On the basis of formal quality, compositional design, and treatment of light, the work is attributable to Tommaso Bona, active in the second half of the sixteenth century and trained within the tradition of Savoldo and Moretto. The isolated figure, controlled chromatic contrasts, and atmospheric landscape recall the artist’s early phase, still rooted in Renaissance models, in a cultural context preceding full engagement with Venetian Mannerism.

Artista attivo a Napoli, secondo quarto XVII secolo
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Saint John the Baptist Oil on canvas cm. 120,5x170 Private collection, Campania.

Valentin de Boulogne (attribuito a)
(Coulommiers 1591 - Roma 1632)
The Tribute Money Oil on canvas cm. 95x128,5. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Pierluigi Carofano.
The canvas is a high-quality replica of the work by Valentin de Boulogne, preserved in the Musée du Château, Versailles, dated around 1624.

Private collection.

Francesco Furini
(Firenze 1603 - Firenze 1646)
The sacrifice of Isaac Oil on canvas cm. 129,5x96. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertises by Prof. Sandro Bellesi and by Prof. Elisa Acanfora.

This hitherto unpublished painting depicts the Sacrifice of Isaac (Genesis 22), shown at the climactic moment when Abraham is halted by the angel before carrying out the divine command. The subject, traditionally interpreted in a Christological key, is rendered here with notable emotional restraint and psychological intensity.
On the basis of stylistic and formal evidence, the work has been convincingly attributed to Francesco Furini by Professor Sandro Bellesi and Professor Elisa Acanfora. The composition presents an uncommon and deeply participatory interpretation of the theme: the angel intervenes not through forceful action, but by gently resting his hand on Abraham’s shoulder, underscoring the patriarch’s inner conflict between faith and paternal affection.
As noted by Professor Acanfora, the powerful head of Abraham, turned heavenwards, reflects Furini’s engagement with antique models of pathos and with Florentine precedents, while the youthful Isaac, defined by smooth, luminous flesh and an elegant, slightly baroque pose, exemplifies the artist’s characteristic synthesis of sensuality and devotional subject matter. Professor Bellesi has emphasized the dense yet soft handling of paint and the atmospheric chiaroscuro, elements that align the work with Furini’s mature production.
While Professor Bellesi proposes a date in the early 1640s, consistent with Furini’s late style, Professor Acanfora suggests a slightly earlier execution, around the mid-1630s, based on comparisons with early works and related drawings. In either case, the painting stands as a refined and emotionally charged example of Furini’s interpretation of biblical narrative within seventeenth-century Florentine painting. Private collection.

Artista fiorentino, metà XVII secolo
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David with the Head of Goliath Oil on canvas cm. 118x91,5. Framed The painting is on its original canvas.

This previously unknown, high-quality painting, still unattributed, combines Caravaggesque naturalism with the classical elegance of Guido Reni, along with echoes of Lanfranco, Simon Vouet, and Claude Vignon. The refined depiction of David, lavishly dressed and mysteriously detached, contrasts with the violent act he has just committed, represented by Goliath’s severed head. The painting’s stylistic sophistication and polished execution suggest Florentine masters active between the 1640s and 1660s, such as Cesare and Vincenzo Dandini, Carlo Dolci, and Baldassare Franceschini (il Volterrano). Private collection.

Artista napoletano, secondo quarto XVII secolo
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Adoration of the Magi Oil on octagonal canvas cm. 74x96,5. Framed This previously unknown painting demonstrates clear Neapolitan roots and is attributable to a master active in the 1640s–1650s. It combines post-Caravaggesque naturalism with a classicist elegance in composition, drawing, and color. The work shows strong affinities with Bernardo Cavallino, particularly in the figures’ expressions, postures, and spatial arrangement, recalling his works such as Return of the Prodigal Son (Museo di Capodimonte, Naples) and The Holy Family on the Flight into Egypt (Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford).

Guido Reni (e aiuti)
(Bologna 1575 - 1642)
Joseph and Potiphar’s wife Oil on canvas cm. 211x190. Framed The painting is accompanied by the expertises of Prof. Federico Zeri, Prof. Mina Gregori and Prof. Stephen Pepper.

The painting is presented under temporary export arrangements. Count Luigi Tadini Collection (?), Lovere; Count Soncini Collection; Princess Tina Soncini Massari Collection; private collection, Rome.

Jusepe de Ribera (attribuito a)
(Xàtiva 1591 - Napoli 1652)
Lut player or Allegory of Hearing Oil on canvas cm. 96,5x75,5. Framed This remarkable painting belongs to the complex Roman period of the young Ribera and his Five Senses series, commissioned around 1615 by Pietro Cussida, the Spanish king Philip III’s diplomatic representative to the Holy See. Long considered the highest-quality contemporary copy of the lost original, it was definitively identified by Gianni Papi with the work now in the Koelliker collection. Our painting stands out among known versions for its exceptional quality and refined execution, particularly in the delicate depiction of the lute and hands, and in the caricatured, grottesque expression of the figure, enhanced by the virtuoso rendering of the teeth and the contrasting white ruff. Cleaning is expected to further reveal its masterful details.  O'Connor Lynch Collection, New York; private collection, Pully; private collection, Italy.

Luca Giordano
(Napoli 1634 - 1705)
Penitent Saint Jerome Oil on canvas cm. 98x136,5. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Stefano Causa. Private collection, Marche.

Antonio De Bellis
(attivo a Napoli tra il 1630 ed il 1660 ca.)
Sacrifice of Isaac Oil on canvas cm. 65x50. Framed The painting has been confirmed as the work of Antonio de Bellis by Prof. Nicola Spinosa and Prof. Stefano Causa.

This refined Sacrifice of Isaac replaces the subject’s customary drama with a stylized, almost abstract elegance of pose and may be attributed to Antonio De Bellis. The attribution is supported by close comparisons with securely related works, including examples in Houston, Budapest, and Bitonto. The vivid chromaticism and luminous flesh tones reflect De Bellis’s mid-seventeenth-century neo-Venetian turn, revealing affinities with Bernardo Cavallino and a synthesis of classical grace and post-Caravaggesque naturalism. Galerie Canesso, Paris; private collection, Italy.

Mattia Preti
(Taverna 1613 - La Valletta 1699)
Head of an old man in prayer Oil on canvas cm. 43x53. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Nicola Spinosa.

This Head of an Old Man has been attributed to Mattia Preti by Professor Nicola Spinosa. Lacking precise iconographic attributes, the work focuses on the intensely expressive, suffering face of a mature man, rendered with dense, dark tonalities and vigorous, bituminous brushwork.
Stylistically, the painting relates to Preti’s production between his Roman and early Neapolitan periods, showing affinities with works such as the Blind Homer (Venice, Gallerie dell’Accademia) and the Presentation of Christ in the Temple in Taverna. The canvas exemplifies Preti’s powerful synthesis of naturalism and painterly expressiveness. Private collection.

Luca Giordano
(Napoli 1634 - 1705)
Saint Jerome Penitent Oil on canvas cm. 94,5x75,5. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Nicola Spinosa.

This Saint Jerome Penitent depicts the saint in meditation before the Crucifix, striking his chest with a stone and holding a skull, in accordance with established devotional iconography. The painting has been attributed to Luca Giordano by Professor Nicola Spinosa, who recognizes its secure autograph status on the basis of its formal coherence and intense naturalistic expression. The work belongs to the early phase of the Neapolitan master’s career, datable to circa 1650–55, when his language still reflects Ribera’s influence, reinterpreted with growing independence. As noted by Spinosa, the composition shows close stylistic and typological affinities with Giordano’s early works, including the Saint Onuphrius in Naples, the Saint Jerome in Prayer in Asolo, and the Death of Seneca in Munich. The pronounced riberesque lighting and sculptural force of the figure are tempered by a refined handling of expression, anatomy and drapery, attesting to Giordano’s precocious pictorial maturity. Private collection.

Andrea Belvedere (attribuito a)
(Napoli 1652 ca. - 1732)
Bouquet of flowers in a vase near a fountain Oil on canvas cm. 76x103. Framed Private collection, Campania.

Andrea Belvedere (attribuito a)
(Napoli 1652 ca. - 1732)
Bouquet of flowers in a vase with a basket Oil on canvas cm. 76x103. Framed Private collection, Campania.

Gaspar van Wittel (attribuito a)
(Amersfoort 1653 - Roma 1736)
View of Tivoli Oil on canvas cm. 60x75. Framed The painting depicts one of Gaspar van Wittel’s favored views of Tivoli, taken from the left bank of the Aniene before the old waterfall. The composition is characterized by the row of houses along the right bank reflected in the calm river, the town in the background dominated by the Temple of the Sibyl, and the clear, luminous atmosphere animated by small staffage figures in the foreground, all elements typical of the artist’s work. Private collection, Rome.

Luca Giordano
(Napoli 1634 - 1705)
The banquet of Herod with Salome and the Head of Saint John Oil on canvas cm. 80x103. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Nicola Spinosa.

This previously unpublished painting depicts a biblical subject traditionally interpreted as an allegory of lust and the corruption of power. As observed by Nicola Spinosa, the composition reflects the influence of Peter Paul Rubens’s celebrated version formerly in the Neapolitan collection of Gaspar Roomer, known in Naples from the 1640s and crucial to Luca Giordano’s shift toward a Neo-Venetian idiom around 1660. The canvas belongs to the group of works datable between the late 1650s and early 1660s documenting this phase, while adopting iconographic solutions independent of the Rubens model. It is recognized as an autograph replica of the version in the Museo di Capodimonte, Naples, painted as a pendant to the Wedding at Cana. Both versions may be dated between 1659 and 1663–64.

Gaspard Dughet (attribuito a)
(Roma 1615 - Roma 1675)
Landscape with a small waterfall, figures, and a castle Oil on canvas cm. 49,5x64,5. Framed Private collection, Lazio.

Giacinto Brandi
(Roma 1621 - 1691)
Bust of an Apostle or a Prophet Oil on canvas cm. 66x50. Framed

Michelangelo Pace Del Campidoglio
(Roma 1610 - 1670)
Still life of fruits in a landsacpe Oil on canvas cm. 68x89 The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Giancarlo Sestieri.

This Still Life with Fruit in a Landscape, arranged on stone ledges outdoors and enlivened by a restrained assortment of fruit, a snail and a small bird, is attributed to Michelangelo Pace, known as Michelangelo da Campidoglio, by Professor Giancarlo Sestieri.
The work belongs to mid-seventeenth-century Rome, reflecting an early Baroque sensibility in its fluid, dynamic composition, while retaining a firm grounding in Caravaggesque naturalism, with strong plasticity and vivid colour. Datable to around the mid-1640s, the painting constitutes a significant early example within Pace’s oeuvre, documenting his role in the transition from early Roman still life to the mature Baroque idiom. Private collection, Campania.

Luca Giordano
(Napoli 1634 - 1705)
Holy Family with Saint John Oil on canvas cm. 100x75. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Nicola Spinosa.

Previously unpublished, this painting has been attributed to Luca Giordano by Professor Nicola Spinosa, who dates it to the late 1660s or early 1670s. The Holy Family is depicted as an intimate domestic scene, animated by tender exchanges among the figures and enriched by refined still-life details. The luminous palette, balanced composition and softened emotional tone relate closely to Giordano’s mature production of the period. Stylistic comparisons may be drawn with works such as the Christ Deposed in Venice and the signed Madonna of the Rosary (1672) in Crispano. The painting exemplifies Giordano’s synthesis of naturalism and neo-Venetian classicism.

Donato Mascagni detto Fra' Arsenio
(Firenze 1579 - 1637)
Job mocked by his wife Oil on canvas cm. 99x21 The painting bears a brush inscription with signature and illegible date at the lower left: "DONATO MASCAGNI FACEVA 1[...]".

Another version of the painting, attributed to the artist, is preserved in the Palazzo dei Priori, Volterra.

Antonio Tempesta
(1555 - 1630)
Cavalry battle between Christians and Turks Oil on canvas cm. 39x62. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Giancarlo Sestieri. Private collection, Campania.

Francesco Dal Ponte detto Francesco Bassano
(Bassano del Grappa 1549 - Venezia 1592)
The animals entering Noah’s Ark Oil on canvas cm. 100x134. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Rodolfo Pallucchini, dated 8 November 1944. Private collection, Rome.

Artista attivo in Emilia, seconda metà XVI secolo
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Holy Family Oil on panel cm. 31x24. Framed