Salvator Rosa (Naples 1615-1673 Rome)

A warrior standing, holding two lances, and a subsidiary study of a young man with his arm raised

Details

Salvator Rosa (Naples 1615-1673 Rome)
A warrior standing, holding two lances, and a subsidiary study of a young man with his arm raised
red chalk, pen and brown ink, red and brown wash, watermark Orfini arms
5 5/8 x 2 7/8 in. (145 x 74 mm.)

Provenance

Probably Queen Christina of Sweden; thence by inheritance to
Cardinal Decio Azzolini; thence by descent to
Marchese Pompeo Azzolini.
Prince Livio Odescalchi; thence by descent to
Prince Ladislao Odescalchi.
Anonymous sale; Christie's, London, 6 July 1976, lot 56, where acquired by the present owner.

Literature

M. Mahoney, The Drawings of Salvator Rosa, New York, 1977, p. 438-9, no. 45.3.
R. Wallace, The Etchings of Salvator Rosa, Princeton, 1979, under no. 25a, fig. 26a.

Engraved

Etched in reverse by the artist for a plate in the Figurine series (Bartsch 35) of circa 1656-7.

Lot Essay

A preparatory study for one of the Figurine series, perhaps the most famous and widely copied of Rosa's etchings. The small format series depicted soldiers and male genre figures, and was quickly exploited as a source of staffage by later painters. The etching plate for the composition relating to this drawing is at the Calcografia Nazionale, Rome.

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