Carlo Dolci

(Italian, 1616-1686)

The Holy Family with God the Father and the Holy Spirit above: a Sacra Conversazione

oil on copper

Please note this lot will be on view at Freeman's | Hindman Manhattan galleries, located at 32 E. 67th St, from October 20th to November 1st (10am-5pm).

11 1/2 x 9 1/2 in. (29.2 x 24.1cm)

Property from a Private Collection

This lot is located in New York.

Francesca Baldessari previously assisted with cataloguing the present lot, which is now included in her catalogue raisonné on the artist.

Provenance:

Possibly mentioned in the 1727 inventory of Gian Gualberto Guicciardini (inherited by his son-in-law Marchese Rinuccini the following year, as sacra conversazione in figure intere piccole, con cornice intagliata e dorata di Carlino Dolci)

Antinori Family Collection, Italy

Sold: Sotheby's, New York, January 27, 2005, Lot 153

Jean-Luc Baroni Ltd., London

Acquired from the above by the present owner, 2006

Literature:

Francesca Baldessari, Carlo Dolci: Complete Catalogue of the Paintings, Florence, 2015, no. 11, pp. 88-89, illus.

Lot Essay:

This exquisitely finished small copper, unpublished until now, dates to around 1630 and marks a significant early work by Carlo Dolci. Created when the artist was still a teenager, it reflects the formative influence of his master, Jacopo Vignali. Early paintings by Dolci are extremely rare, making the rediscovery of this piece an important addition to his oeuvre.

The subject is an unusual variation on the Sacra Conversazione, a long-standing Florentine theme. Here, the mature Christ is positioned between the Virgin and Saint Joseph, with the Holy Spirit above and God the Father above that, uniting both the Terrestrial and Celestial Trinities in a single composition. This highly theological interpretation reflects the intellectual seriousness that would define Dolci’s career, even at such a young age.

Stylistically, the painting relates closely to Dolci’s early works, such as The Adoration of the Shepherds (formerly Wengraf, Ltd., and Burghley House), with similar facial types, strong overhead lighting, and a restrained palette. Baldessari notes direct borrowings from Vignali’s Baptism of Christ (1627, Villa Strozzi), particularly in the figure of God the Father, setting a post-1627 date for the work. Influences from Matteo Rosselli are also seen in the simplicity of the composition and the Virgin’s delicate profile.

The painting may be identified with a sacra conversazione listed in the 1727 inventory of Gian Gualberto Guicciardini and later in the Antinori collection, both of whom owned works by Dolci (see Baldassari, Carlo Dolci, 1995, pp. 33–34, 168–169, 197).