Dr. Stephen Pepper pointed out that the inscription may refer to Bartolo di Villa San Germano, who Malvasia records as commissioning from Reni a picture of the Madonna. Pepper suggested that the date 1609 on the drawing may be correct, as the defined contours suggest that it might be a preparatory study for a fresco and his most frequent use of this medium dates from this period. A related, although later study was sold at Sotheby's, 3 July 1980, lot 46. Dr. Catherine Johnston confirmed the attribution, comparing the handling of chalk in the study of Holofernes of the mid 1620s in the Metropolitan Museum to that of the present drawing, V. Birke, Guido Reni Zeichnungen, Vienna, 1981, no. 112, illustrated