Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Getty Research institute https://archive.org/detaiis/cataiogueofsuper02chri A OF The Superb, Capital, and truly Valuable COLLECTION OF CELEBRATED ITALIAN PICTURES, LATELY PURCHASED From the Colonna^ Borghese, and Corsini Palaces^ ^c. WILLIAM YOUNG OTTLEY, Esq. FORMING AN UNRIVALLED ASSEMBLAGE OF THE GENUINE AND FINEST WORKS OF THE ITALIAN SCHOOLS. toill U auction* By Mr. CHRISTIE, his Great Roomt Pall Mall^ On SATURDAY, MAY the 1 6th, 1801, at twelve O’CLOCK. May be Viewed Two Days preceding the Sale, when Catalogues may be had in Pall Mall. TO THE PUBLIC T' iL HE celebrity of many of the Pictures now exhibited, renders it unnecessary ter expatiate on their particular excellence, which has long been noted by the concurrent opiniori and judgment of those, whose fine Taste and Knowledge in Art, best qualify them to decide. But it may be proper to observe, that not only tlie Pictures are amongst the finest Works of the Masters to whom they are ascribed, but further, that, with few exceptions, they noWy for the first time, have been removed firom the Palaces fior which theys were painted, and perhaps fior the very situations in which they were placed by the Artists. To this circumstance may be attributed the extraordinary preservation in which most of these Pictures appear, having ever remained under the pure climate of Italy, so favourable to their freshness and brilliancy; unexposed to injudicious experiments of varnishes, and other methods of repair ; and carefully protected from the rude touch, of Daubers and Copyists, by the successive Princes of the great Houses of Golonna,. Borghese, and Corsini, &c. &c. whose delight, and whofe pride, rested in these Collec- tions, as conferring the Palm of Genius and of Taste on their Country, and on themselves^. It is well known, how much the great Nobles of Rome valued themselves on the possession of the Chef-d' oeuvres of Art. Some few years past, no price could have tempted; the Conftable Colonna, or Prince Borghese, to have permitted any one great Work of a great Master to be removed from their Galleries. Some few good Pictures indeed;, have from time to time been exposed to Sale from the inferior Collections in Italy ; buL imperious necessity alone could wrest from its stately palaces, the known and signal- Examples of fine Painting and Statuary, which attracted Visitors to admire, from Fetersr- burgh, from Paris, and from London. It is to the aera of fatal Revolution in Italy ; it Is to the oppressive spirit of its invaders ; it is to the fallen grandeur of the Nobles and Princes of Rome; it is to their extreme need and distress, that is to be attributed finally their parting with what they so long, possessed, and so highly valued. CONDITIONS OF SALE as USUAL, * A Catalogue, See, SATURDAY, MAY the i6th, 1801. <43 Sajoferrato Nicolo FouJJin Claude Lovaine Scarellino di Ferrara^ born 1551, died 1621. Francefco V anm PiSlures, ^^^ADONA — Head and Hands — highly finiflied:— 2 3 4 5 I foot 2 inches, by i foot LANDSCAPE and FIGURES, a Waterfall in the Center of the Pifture with a diftant View of Olevano, in L’Abruaeo? in the State of Naples, where Nicolo frequently ftudied Landfeape,—— 2 feet by i feet 9 LANDSCAPE and FIGURES — Evening— a View on the Tiber, near Rome, from the Palace Colonna ; mentioned in the printed Catalogue of the Pidlures of the Palace Colonna, [No. 378] NYMPHS AWAKED by CUPIDS a fine Example of this efteemed Painter, who united in a high Degree the Venetian Colour with the Grace and clear Obfeure of the Lombard School, and was filled the Paulo of Lombardy-- ■ i foot yj, by ifoot 4f THE REPOSE in jEGYPT ; one of the befi cabinet Pidlures of this Mafier, who was the moft fuccefsful follower of rocci, and Head of the Sienefe School at the Period in which he lived zfeet 4^ by zfeet 10 ( 4 : ) SoiJorna, died at Siena 1554, aged 75 Michael Angelo Buonaroti Raffaele d'U rhino //r Titian Raffaele TUrhino Mazzolino di Ferrara^ died aged 49, about 1530 N..:- Benvenuto Carofch 6 MADONA with the INFANT CHRIST and St, JOHNr probably the only Picture in England of this great Mailer, t, t who was the firft of the Sienefe School, and a worthy con- current of Raffaele : His Cabinet Piftures . are extremely rare even in his own Country,-—— i foot b by x feet 2 7 THE SAMARITAN WOMAN at the WELL; the prepara- tion for a Pidture, perhaps intended to have been finillied by himfelf.. Mie. Angelo is generally believed to have painted , only two or three Piftures in Oil; thofe fmall ones we fo frequently fee afcribed to him, are all painted by his Scho- lars, from his Defigns ; many have been painted ' from this Drawing, which formerly had a place in the colledlion of the King of Naples, atCapo di Monte boardj i foot i\\by 7. foot 7 8 CARTOON for the Horfes Head in the Frefco of Heliodorus in the Vatican ; much finer than in the Pidlure which was executed by Raffaele' s Scholars ; from the Palace Allani 9 HOLY FAMILY with SAINTS ; a finely preferred Example of the Mailer, whofe Piflures of this Cabinet Size are very rarely met with'—— i foot 92 by i foot 6 10 MARTYRDOM of SAINTS, a very early Picture of this Prince of Painters, executed before he left the School of his mafier Perugino ; from the Palace Borghefe i foot 4^, by 10 inches ! I CHRIST DISPUTING with the DOCTORS— The Piftures of this Mailer, who was fellow Difciple with Benvenuto Ca<-o- folo, under Lorenzo Cofa, are, as may be fuppofed from the Circumitance of ' their extraodi nary Finilliing, extremely fcarce. This Pidlure is^ particularly mentioned by the Abbe Lanzi in his Storia Pittorica, as one of the finefl; of the very few Examples of them to be met with : From the Villa Aldohrandini, for a Cardinal of which name, this Pidure was painted by board, i fool by i foot 5I 12 HOLY FAMILY with SAINTS, a highly preferved Pidure in the finefl; Manner of the Mailer, eafily^to be diflinguiflied from the many Pieces painted by others in his School, which generally pafs as Garofolo's ovjn Performances ; from the Coknna Palace ■ board, 1 foot 4’- by i foot i (■ 5 )' ■ 0 /^o Titian tT‘ Kicok PouJJi n —• CiU:-tO Kent — T-iIjv'.co Cr.racci 2 So S cidone Aiinibale Carracci ■ — ^9 Q C.orregh 2^0 a, tfpar T ouJ]in 13 THE DAUGHTER of HERODIAS, with the Head of' St. John the Baptift, a highly coloured Picture of the Mafier ; in his Giorgione Manner from the Guarda Roba of the Palace Doria, Rome 2 feet ^ by z feet lo 14 A LANDSCAPE with the diftant View of an ancient Town, and Figures reclining in the Fore Ground, after Sun-fet: A Moment "iTicolo frequently preferred as agreeing with the Idea of Soletnrnty, which is the firft CharadleriEic of his Land- fcapes — ifctt 't, by 1 foot 3 15 St. JEROME — Head and Hands — from the Albani Palace \ an extraordinary Proof of the Powers of Pencil, which this Artift is univerfally acknowledged to have poflelTed in his latter Time, in a Degree furpalTing every other Italian Painter 1 foot io\ by 2 feet 3 16 THE ENTOMBING of CHRIST, Pile of Coreggio) manage- ment of the efifedl moft extraordinary board, 1 foot by i foot 41 17 THE REPOSE in EG\TT with Angeis, a Cabinet Pidl’lire of thishlafter, perhaps unique, giving upon a fmall fcale, an Idea of his large works at Copo di Monte ; from the Colonna Palace, [Cat, N®. ic63] oval, board, i foot i, by i foot 5I 18 A MAGDALEN, one of the moft ftudied and highly finifhed Pictures of this great IMaftei' ; engraved the fame fize in the celebrated work of the Scuola Italica, publifhed in Rome by the late Mr. Ganjin Hamilton ; from the Borghefe Palace > copper, I foot I I, by \o\ inches 19 VIPvGIN and CHILD, an early performance of the Mafler, upon a Gold Ground, in which the native Grace of Coreggio is not loft by its participating a little of the Stile of his Matter, Andrea Mantegna : engraved by board, 1 foot 1 1, by I foot 3 20 LANDSCAPE with FIGURES — the Entrance to UArriccia, near Rome. This Picture and its Companion, when in the Cerfni Palace, were efteemed the fineft fmall Examples of the Mafler in Rome*— —2 feet 2, by i foot 72 I , ryt ( 6 ,) 21,0 Ditto — — 21 32o Domenichino — 22 Claude Lorrraine — 23 /$6 N’lcot cfcufn — ■ 24 -‘-’I , it 20 Giorgione — 25 220 Mazzolino de Ferara — 26 2/0 Raffaele d'Urbino — 27 /OO Alhano — — - 28 S$c Guido Beni — 29 Annibale Carracci 30 The Companion to the Former, a Woody Scene, a Shepherd leading his Flock;— of the Pi 3 ure—/triking • 2 feet 2, hy ifoot 7 1 A REPOSE in EGYPT, in a Landfcape, extremely rare . — Domenichino Painted fo few Landfcapes, that this may be con- lidered almoft unique \ from the Corfni Palace • ■ i foot iy ifoot LANDSCAPE,' with Paftoral Figures, Afternoon., View on the Tiber, in his finefl; manner, and in the higheft Prefer- vation ; a Cabinet Pidlure, from the Corfni Palace » < i foot (), by 1 foot 4 A large LANDSCAPE with FIGURES, in his great ftile; from the Falconieri Palace— 5 feet 9, by i^feet i HOLY FAMILY and SAINTS, a Capital Pifture, the Colour- ing even richer than Titian-, from the private Apartment of the Prince Colonna, [Cat. N“. 380] board, 2 feet 8, by a feet t ECCE HOMO— Chef d’CEuvre of the Mafter, from the Villa Aldobrandini——~—i foot by x foot 9 \ A WARRIOR SLEEPING, and two Allegorical Female Figures ; a moft exquifte and finijhed Production of the Mafter, at an early Period ; from the Borghefe Palace — ■ 6| inches, hy 6 | VENUS ATTIRED by the GRACES, a Capital Pidfure of the Mailer, and very remarkable for its Piefervation, his Works in general having turned black — from the Palace Corf ni—--^ feet by 'ifeet 6 St. PETER — Head and Hands — in his flrong Manner. Painted at the fame Period as his celebrated Piftiire of St. Peter and St. Paul, at Bologna, which is juflly eftcemed Guido's Chef d' oeuvre ; from the Aldobrar.dini Apartment, Borghefe Palace, 2 feet 92 by 2 feet i g • SUSANNA and the ELDERS; a Capital Picture, n.oith the Name of the Mafier, and in his grandell Style ; from the Villa Aldohrandini—~f%e ‘^feet by ^feet 3 Claude Ltrraine ^00 G^fpar: PouJJtn / i, 2 o Giacomo Bajfano — Francifco Parmegiam — 'uer china }%D‘ uido Renl 3 1 A^LANDSCAPE ; the Compofition remarkably Fine— Scene before Sun>Rife in the Spring, with the Story of Jfcanius killing Silvials Stag, On the back of the Pifture is inferibed “ ^jtadro per VElmo, et excellmo, Sig. Contefiahile Colonna quejlo di ** 5 OttohrCy i68i”. On the Face., Claudio invf, Romce “ i68a. Come Afeanio saetta il Cervo di Sihvia, Jigliuola di “ Thro. Lib, 7”. This is fuppofed to be the laft Picture painted by this great Mailer, who died at the advanced Age of 82 Years, December 9th, i68a; from the Colonna Palace, [Cat. No. 153] Ji%e 4 feet ii^, by ^ feet ii. The Original Drawing of the Pifture with the fame Date, is in the Poffeffion of the Rt. Hon, Lord Vifeount P almerfton, 32 LANDSCAPE and FIGURES — a View of Nemi, near Rome, capital, from the Colonna Palace, [Cat. No. 159] -ficc^ 5 feet 6|, by a feet 6 33 TFIE JOURNEY of JACOB and HIS FAMILY, a molt remarkable example of the Mailer, both as to Subject and' Execution — Colouring equal to Titian— —% feet cq, by t, feet 5, 34 HIS OWN PORTRAIT — fo always called when in the cele- brated Colleftion of the King of Naples,- at Capo di Monte — Elfedt prodigious. N.B. afmall Copy of this Piflure in a Circle, k Ihewn in- the Gallery of Florence, as Parmegiano's own Portrait. — — board z feet 2, by z feet 1 1 55 A WARRIOR in Armour, faid to reprefent Scanderberg\ a capital Piiflure, in his mod finilhed Manner, and in the highell Prefervation, late one of the mod edeemed in the Albani Palace——'}, feet 5, by }feet ii 36 MADONNA DOLORATO — a Head — in the Painting ol which, Guido has exerted all his Powers, to render it worthy a place in the Clofet of Pope Paul the c,th, where it formerly hung, Borghefe Palace— QOfVQC, i foot 3I, by 1 fo'tp\ ( 8 ) Paulo Veronefe ■ 1 T’itian Salsvalor Ro/a Claude Lorraine I I \ t kl 37 THE MARRIAGE of the VIRGIN. This Pidure, if not . confidered with refpeft to its Size, but to the Study and - i ’ 'Excellence displayed in every Part, added to the Beauty of the Subjeft and Compofition, may in Truth be deemed one of Paul’s moft important Works, and is certainly of his Cabinet Piftures the Chef d’OEuvre, from the Corjtni Palace^ — 2 feet by 1 feet 7J. .-PAULO VERONESE has introduced his own Portrait in the Figure on the right hand of the Pidfure — 38 THE HOLY FAMILY, with the Shepherd’s Offering, in his Giorgione Manner ; a capital Picture, from the Borghefe Palace^ painted at the fame Period with the celebrated Pi£lure of Profane and Divine Love, ftill remaining in the Borghefe Colleflkn =~4 feet 8, by “^feet — 39 A LANDSCAPE— -a rocky Scene, with a diftant View of a Volcano; — in the foreground are Figures reprefenting the Finding of Mofes^ by Pharoal/s Daughter This Piffure whether we confider the grandeur of Conception, power of -execution, or unparalleled Prefervation, may juftly be deemed one of the moft wonderful Efforts of the Pencil; from the Palace Colonna^ [N°. 155, Colonna Catalogue]'^— 6 feet 7 by 4 feet 1 — 40 DIDO and iENEAS, with a View of the Port of Carthage. On the bach of the Piffure is this Infcription “ a di 27 Marzo^ 1675, quadro per L’Ill'"° et Ecc^° Contefiabile Colonna”, On the face “ Carthago — ^neas et Dido Claudio inns : f, Romes ib'jb” . We have here the Frefhnefs of the Sea-Breeze, happily com- bined with that Purity of the Italian Atmofphere, which Claude^ and Claude ofdy, knenv honjo to give', and it is fo exquifitely finifhed in all its Parts that a near and repeated con- templation of it can alone imprefs a juft idea of its excellence ; from the Colonna Palace^ [Cat. N°. 153] 4 feet lo, by ifeet 10 ( 9 ) 7^0 Sajfoferrata 7 ( 7 ^ / Annibale Caracci //^O fitian 7 / 60 ^ Caracci /t7(7 F-armegiano 41 VIRGIN and CHILD, with CHERUBS : this Pifture, univer- fally confidered as the chef d’Qiuvre of the Mafter, is not lefs remarkable for the extreme Brilliancy of Coloring, than the moft extraordinary Delicacy with which it is finiftied; and was probably painted for a private Chapel. Its EfFedf by Candle-light furpafles that of perhaps any other Picture ; from the Corjini Palace — ■ 2 feet by 1 feet 75 THE INFANT JESUS SLEEPING, attended by ^Angels, one of the rareft and moft finiftied Produflions of this great Mafter, in his Roman manner; from the Borghefe Palace I foot 8 2 feet % 43 MADONA and CHILD, and St. CATHERINE, painted at a Period, when the bold Pencil of Titian produced with a few touches that Truth of BffeB^ which the united Efforts of all fucceeding Artifts have in vain endeavoured to rival ; from the Borghefe Palace— — — feet g, by ^feet 44 CHRIST CROWNED WITH THORNS: In this moft extraordinary Pifture the Painter feems to have difplayed the whole Powers of his Mind and Pencil, in depicfting the Agony, Refignation and Dignity of the Divine Sufferer, Confidered as a work of Art, we fliall find united in this Piifture the Corredtnefs of Outline of the Roman School ; the Delicacy and Finifliing of Da Vinci ; with the Clear Obfcure and Harmony of the fublime Corregio-, from the celebrated Collcftion of the King of Nagles, at Capo di Monte — — ih h “I 45 THE MARRIAGE of ST. CATHERINE. This Picture undoubtedly ranks the highejl of the few Cabinet Pictures of this celebrated Painter, and as fuch, was felecfted by the late learned and much efteemed Connoiffeur and Artift Mr. Ganjin Hamilton, for his celebrated work of the Scuola Italica. The lovers of Art muft lament, that fo few Piftures of this rare Mafter exift, he having dedicated the greater Portion of his fliort Life to Drawing and Alchymy; from the Borghefe Palace-— ifoot iof, by ^feet 5I ( 10 ) IHi Salvator Ro/a Benvenuto Garofolo /3oo Nkolo PouJJin Uc Titian 46 A LANDSCAPE, reprefenting a folemn woody Scene, witli Water beneath, in which are introduced the Figures of cury and the Woodman, Salvator in this Pidlure feems to have reached the Summit of the Sublime in Landfcape, His chef d’CEuvre. From the Colonna Palace, [Gat. No. 155] 6 feet T by \ feet i ^ 47 THE VISION of St. AUGUSTIN, with the Madona and Choir of Angels in the Clouds. The Majefty and Sweetnefs of the Virgin, the Variety and exquifite Beauty of the celeftial Group, contrafted with the dignified Severity of the St. Auguftin; to which may be added -the richnefs of Colouring, and delicacy of Finifhing, render this juftly- lleemed Pidlure the very fineft Produdtion of Garofolo ; from the Corfini Palace 2 feet by z feet if 48 NOAH’s SACRIFICE, after he quitted the Ark. It is almoft needlefs to expatiate on the Merits of this celebrated Pidlure, which has ever been confidered as the fined; of Nicolo'% Italian Piftures, and the Head of the Corfni Colledtion e In it he has united the majeftic Grandeur of Mkh. Angelo, the Colouring of Titian with that judicious Difiribution of his Figures, which was Nkolo's exclufive Excellence : En- graved formerly by Giacomo Freij, and recently by Volpato ;■ From the Corfni Palace \feet f by 2 feet 3f 49 DANAE, mentioned by Vafari, Edit di Firenzi, tom. 3, as feen whild: painting, and much praifed by Michael Angelo and Vafari. This Pifture was purchafed at 1750, by the late Sir W, Young, Grandfather to the Proprietor of the prefent Colledlion, and has never to this Time been out of the Family. It is the only Pifture in this Catalogue not brought from Italy in the late Revolution. FINIS. Printed by J, Smeeton, 148, St, Lane, 2 A: 2 a i'A. 2/'Z.