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1 of 253523 objects
Study for the Sacrifice of Polyxena c. 1720-30
Pen and ink and wash | 11.3 x 12.0 cm (sheet of paper) | RCIN 907041

Sebastiano Ricci (Belluno 1659-Venice 1734)
Study for the Sacrifice of Polyxena c. 1720-30
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A pen and ink and wash drawing of a kneeling woman about to be stabbed in the breast. Inscribed on the verso: No. 65 JS. The drawing is a preparatory study for the central group in The Sacrifice of Polyxena, painted for Consul Joseph Smith (RCIN 404763) and influenced by Pietro da Cortona's painting of the same subject in Rome and by Veronese's Martyrdom of S. Giustina in S. Giustina, Padua, a church for which Ricci also painted a fresco (God the Father surrounded by angels, c. 1700-01). The drawing is one of several in which Ricci worked out the arrangement of the central group. Others are RCINs 907042, 907040, 907039 and a drawing in an album in the Accademia in Venice (page 92).
Provenance
Consul Joseph Smith; acquired by George III in 1762
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Medium and techniques
Pen and ink and wash
Measurements
11.3 x 12.0 cm (sheet of paper)
Category
Object type(s)