Saint Benedict Exorcising Demons from a Young Woman, 17th century
Bequest of Professor Alfred Moirexpand_more 2012.58.76
Not on Viewexpand_more
Many early collectors of drawings stamped the works in their possession with a personal collector’s stamp. This anonymous Italian drawing passed through at least five different collections in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (see provenance below). Collectors often annotated their drawings with inventory numbers, price codes, and the name of the artist they thought drew the work. Artists rarely signed drawings before the eighteenth century, certainly not informal sketches like the present sheet. The attribution of this drawing to the Sienese painter Ventura Salimbeni (1568–1613), which is inscribed on both the mount and the drawing, was made by a later owner. That this work was in an Italian collection of primarily Florentine sixteenth and seventeenth-century drawings suggests that it may be Florentine instead. There are many repairs and extensive restorations throughout the sheet, making it difficult to identify its original author. It was in England by the mid-17th century, perhaps as early as 1657, if the star stamp in the lower right corner can be identified with Jerome Lanier, who died that year [see Jeremy Woods 2003]. It was certainly in England before Nicholas Lanier's death in 1666.
The co-existence of Lugt 2736 and 2885 would seem to establish a terminus ante quem of perhaps 1657, or more securely 1666, for the dissolution of the unidentified Florentine collection. Every mark on this mount is unclear or rubbed, and condition issues leave open the possibility that this drawing was laid down into an unrelated mount.
Details
- Title
- Saint Benedict Exorcising Demons from a Young Woman
- Artist Life
- Italian (Siena), 1568 - 1613
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2012.58.76
- Provenance
- Unidentified collector, Lugt 2736, Italian (Florence), 17th century, associated with the Brandini family. "JB", unidentified collector [of Florentine drawings], Lugt 4528. unidentified collector, Lugt 2898, probably English, 17th century ('Jerome Lanier, d. 1657); Nicholas Lanier, Lugt 2885 (1588-1666), London. William Gibson, Lugt 5216 (1644'-d. 1703), London. Nathaniel Hone, Lugt 2793 (1718-1784), London. Sale, Christie's, London, July 4, 2000, no. 92, as attributed to Ventura Salimbeni, St. Francis exorcising demons," for £6,462, to Moir; Alfred Moir, Santa Barbara (2000-d.2010; bequeathed to Mia)
- Curator Approved
This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know
Zoom in on the left to the detail you'd like to save. Click 'Save detail' and wait until the image updates. Right click the image to 'save image as' or copy link, or click the image to open in a new tab.