The Samian Sibyl

Details

After Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, il Guercino
The Samian Sibyl
oil on canvas
29 x 23 in. (73.7 x 58.5 cm.)

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 17.5% will be added to the buyer's premium, which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis. This lot will be removed to an off-site warehouse at the close of business on the day of sale - 2 weeks free storage

Lot Essay

The composition derives from the picture of 1651 (private collection; see L. Salerno, I Dipinti del Guercino, Rome, 1988, pp. 356-7, no. 287, illustrated and pl. 29). In the original, the mantle worn over the Sibyl's shoulder is blue, whilst the lining of her gown is pink. The colours in the present work show that it must have been copied from the version in the Palatine Gallery, Florence (inv. no. P. 788), long considered an autograph work until catalogued by Salerno as a studio copy (loc. cit.).

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