Lot Essay
This is the central fragment of a larger composition that dates from circa 1634 on the eve of Perrier's second trip to Rome. The complete composition is known from a small scale copy (121 x 97 cm.), last recorded at Finarte, Rome, 11 November 1980, lot 48, where it was attributed to an anonymous 17th Century Roman artist (Schleier, op. cit., fig. 3).
Although, the subject has so far eluded identification, Schleier tentatively proposed it to be the punishment of the mythological figure Lycurgus, who attempted to imprison Dionysus and his women followers (maenads) and was later blinded.
A preparatory drawing for the figure of the priest who, in the original composition, would have figured at the extreme left and whose cropped right hand is visible here on the left, forms part of the Mathias Polakovits donation to the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Paris.
Although, the subject has so far eluded identification, Schleier tentatively proposed it to be the punishment of the mythological figure Lycurgus, who attempted to imprison Dionysus and his women followers (maenads) and was later blinded.
A preparatory drawing for the figure of the priest who, in the original composition, would have figured at the extreme left and whose cropped right hand is visible here on the left, forms part of the Mathias Polakovits donation to the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts, Paris.