Follower of Guido Reni

The composition of the present work derives from a painting by Guido Reni of 1627 in Rome, Doria-Pamphilj Gallery, which was much copied by his studio (D.S. Pepper, Guido Reni a complete catalogue of his works, Oxford, 1984, no. 115). The present work departs from Reni's model, for example by placing the Virgin's hand accross her chest instead of being joined in prayer, and in the pose of the sleeping Christ.