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Lot Essay
This composition is similar to that of the picture of the same subject by Girolamo da Carpi in the National Gallery, London, no. 640. The artist has, however, made a number of subtle alterations. The sense of depth within the painting is increased through the depiction of the figures on a smaller scale, making them appear further away from the spectator, an illusion which is furthered by the smaller size of the background hill and the minute transcription of the town on its ridge. The backdrop to the Holy Family in the present work is a rural building with a flight of stairs to the entrance, whereas the backdrop in the National Gallery version is formed by foliage. Furthermore, the artist has changed some details of the figural group: the Madonna's head is cast more in profile, facing the Magus presenting an incense burner, not the Magus kneeling on the ground as in the picture in the National Gallery. There are also some minor changes to the costume of the figures: for example, the kneeling man at the right is given a hat of elaborate classical design. Particularly telling is the alteration of the foreshortened man above, whose left hand helps the black Magus to hold the chalice, which would appear to be supported by a single figure in the London version. A horse's head, held by the hand of the groom, is introduced in the middle ground, adding to the urgency of the motion expressed by the grouping of the Magi.
Mainly active in Emilia, da Carpi was called to Rome by Cardinal Ippolito d'Este in 1549, where he stayed until his return to Ferrara in 1553. The picture is most likely to have been painted during this sojourn, and in close succession to the picture in the National Gallery. This hypothesis is strengthened by Amalia Mezzetti's dating of the London picture to the late 1540s, (see A. Mezzetti, Girolamo da Ferrara detto da Carpi, Milan, 1977, pp. 90-1, no. 98, pl. 41) and by the Roman provenance of the present picture.
The Hamilton Palace catalogue states that the panel came from the Aldobrandini collection, Rome, a number of major works from which, including Titian's Bacchus and Ariadne, were sold as a result of the French invasion of Italy. It is not securely recorded in any account of the collection, but 'un quadro con la natività di N.S., copiato da Girolamo da Carpi' is listed in the 1626 inventory of Olimpia Aldobrandini (see P. dalla Pergola, Gli inventari Aldobrandini, Arte artica e moderna, 19, 1962, p. 428).
William Beckford, creator of the enormous Gothic mansion at Fonthill, was one of the great English collectors of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. His collection of pictures, furniture, books and other works of art was purchased in largely pre- and post-revolutionary France. After his death, much of Beckford's collection passed to his daughter, Susan Euphemia, who had married the 10th Duke of Hamilton.
Mainly active in Emilia, da Carpi was called to Rome by Cardinal Ippolito d'Este in 1549, where he stayed until his return to Ferrara in 1553. The picture is most likely to have been painted during this sojourn, and in close succession to the picture in the National Gallery. This hypothesis is strengthened by Amalia Mezzetti's dating of the London picture to the late 1540s, (see A. Mezzetti, Girolamo da Ferrara detto da Carpi, Milan, 1977, pp. 90-1, no. 98, pl. 41) and by the Roman provenance of the present picture.
The Hamilton Palace catalogue states that the panel came from the Aldobrandini collection, Rome, a number of major works from which, including Titian's Bacchus and Ariadne, were sold as a result of the French invasion of Italy. It is not securely recorded in any account of the collection, but 'un quadro con la natività di N.S., copiato da Girolamo da Carpi' is listed in the 1626 inventory of Olimpia Aldobrandini (see P. dalla Pergola, Gli inventari Aldobrandini, Arte artica e moderna, 19, 1962, p. 428).
William Beckford, creator of the enormous Gothic mansion at Fonthill, was one of the great English collectors of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. His collection of pictures, furniture, books and other works of art was purchased in largely pre- and post-revolutionary France. After his death, much of Beckford's collection passed to his daughter, Susan Euphemia, who had married the 10th Duke of Hamilton.