A study of three heads

The original composition, in the Detroit Institute of Arts (Inv. no.26.107) was painted c.1510, and is thought to have been a collaborative work between Titian, Giorgione and Sebastiano del Piombo, with each artist being responsible for one head: Titian the left, Giorgione the middle and Sebastiano the right. The positions of the heads in the present lot vary slightly from the original. It has been suggested that it depicts Hercules between Vice and Virtue, or Charitas, Humanitas and Amor, though these theories have not gained widespread acceptance (see M. Lucco, Sebastiano del Piombo 1485-1547, Palazzo Venezia, Rome, 8 February-18 May 2008, pp. 110-111, no. 8).