Overview
The Venetian admiral Agostino Barbarigo was killed at the naval battle of Lepanto in October 1571, when he was shot in the left eye by a Turkish arrow. He was immediately proclaimed to be a heroic martyr who had played a central role in achieving victory for the allied Christian fleet. In a posthumous portrait of the admiral, Veronese accordingly showed him in armor, displaying the instrument of his death like a saint with an attribute.
It is easy to imagine that in the years and decades following the battle there was considerable demand among Barbarigo’s family and admirers for replicas of the portrait. This work is believed to be one of those replicas based upon stylistic differences from Veronese and an underdrawing uncharacteristic of the master. The painting was probably executed by a later follower, possibly in the 17th century.
Entry
The critical consensus that this is a copy, of inferior quality, of
The sitter of the Cleveland portrait was convincingly identified as the Venetian admiral Agostino Barbarigo (1516–1571) by Gyorgy Gombosi in 1928 and independently by Francis M. Kelly in 1931.
Peter Humfrey
March 21, 2019
Provenance
Henry Doetsch [1839-1894], London; (his estate sale, Christie, Manson & Woods, London, 22 and 24-25 June 1895, no. 43, as by Tintoretto); David L. Einstein [1839-1909], London;[1] his son, Lewis D. Einstein [1877-1967]; gift 1957 to NGA.
Associated Names
Christie, Manson & Woods, Ltd.Doetsch, Henry
Einstein, David L.
Einstein, Lewis D.
Technical Summary
The relatively coarse fabric support has been lined, and the tacking margins have been removed. The x-radiographs reveal slight cusping only on the left edge, indicating that the painting has been cropped on all four sides, but the left side is probably closest to the original edge of the composition. A vertical seam 7 centimeters from the right edge forms part of the original support. The smaller section of fabric on the right is made up of two pieces of fabric joined with a horizontal seam.
The canvas was prepared with an off-white ground, covered with a transparent brown imprimatura. Infrared reflectography at 1.1 to 2.4 microns
The paint surface has been badly abraded by overcleaning in the past, and the appearance of the picture is also severely compromised by extensive and insensitive retouching of tears in the original canvas.
Peter Humfrey and Joanna Dunn based on the examination reports by Michael Swicklik and Ina Slama
March 21, 2019
Bibliography
- 1965
- Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965: 136, as School of Veronese.
- 1968
- National Gallery of Art. European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations. Washington, 1968: 123, repro., as School of Veronese.
- 1972
- Fredericksen, Burton B., and Federico Zeri. Census of Pre-Nineteenth Century Italian Paintings in North American Public Collections. Cambridge, Mass., 1972: 40, 510, 647.
- 1975
- European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 364, repro., as School of Veronese.
- 1976
- Pignatti, Terisio. Veronese. 2 vols. Venice, 1976: 1:135.
- 1979
- Shapley, Fern Rusk. Catalogue of the Italian Paintings. 2 vols. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1979: 1:531; 2:pl. 369, as Veronese Studio.
- 1985
- European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 424, repro.
- 1988
- Rearick, W. R. The Art of Paolo Veronese, 1528-1588. Exh. cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Cambridge, 1988: 108.
- 1991
- Pignatti, Terisio, and Filippo Pedrocco. Veronese: Catalogo completo dei dipinti. Florence, 1991: 92.
- 1995
- Pignatti, Terisio, and Filippo Pedrocco. Veronese. 2 vols. Milan, 1995: 1:284.
- 2008
- Garton, John. Grace and Grandeur: The Portraiture of Paolo Veronese. London and Turnhout, 2008: 99, 204.
- 2009
- Ilchman, Frederick, et al. Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese: Rivals in Renaissance Venice. Exh. cat. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Musée du Louvre, Paris. Boston, 2009: 284 n. 72.
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