Portuguese, ca. 1500 Christ at the Column is copy after Del Piombo

Veritas, from Portugal, sells on 22 February 2017 a "Portugal, late15th early 16th century" Christ at the Column, a large panel (168 by 68 cm) estimated at 10,000 to 15,000 Euro.

It is an interesting, well painted work, but sadly it isn't late 15th century and not an original composition either.

The original is a 1518 fresco by Sebastiano del Piombo in the San Pietro in Montorio in Rome.

The work for sale is probably based on an engraving after the original, and painted in a rather archaic style. if it was really early 16th century, it would be a very early Renaissance painting for the region and would warrant the estimate. As a later (second half 16th century?) copy, of unknown origin, it is probably worth 3,000 to 4,000 Euro instead. Perhaps it is a work by Garcia Fernandes (died 1565)?

Note that a second work, clearly forming a pair with this one, is sold separately at the same auction. I'm always amazed that sellers and auctioneers are still willing to separate such pairs after they have been together for 400 years or more, but it's their prerogative of course. It has the same dimensions and estimate, but is less appealing to me. I can't find an immediate match for it, but it seems likely to be based on older paintings as well.

"Florentine School, 17th/18th century" is Workshop of or Copy after Sebastiano del Piombo

Deutsch, from Vienna, sells on 24 November 2015 a "Florentine School, 17th/18th century" Visitation, a large canvas (150 by 148 cm) estimated at 4,000 to 6,000 Euro.

A simple search makes it clear that it is the same work as Sebastiano Del Piombo's "Visitation" from the Louvre, though with minor differences (somewhat different colours but in the same palette, a square instead of a vertical orientation which means the removal of a few elements and more importantly the addition of a few others).

Is it a workshop version or a copy? Hard to tell, the Louvre version is very effectively painted (and well composed) but visually not that hard to copy probably (for a skilled painter, not for me). Even so, the copy is apart from a few details (especially in some of the faces) very well done, perhaps a tad more linear, more drawn than the more colour-based original. It is obviously darker, but as that is an overall effect, it probably needs just a thorough cleaning (or perhaps the Louvre one is overcleaned).

Piombo (1485-1547) has often been copied, especially his Lady with the Fur, but this work seems to be missing from the common copies. There is, apart from the Louvre version, a frankly better version of the two central heads. I have no idea where it is kept, it was exhibited a few years ago though. I'll leave that one out of my comparison, or I'll start thinking that the Louvre one is a copy as well...

The central heads in the two versions are very similar. The Louvre one has much clearer colours, but that seems largely to be due to discoloured varnish or other dirt on the painting for sale.

The figure on the top right is more complete in the version for sale. The added bit doesn't look out of pace with the rest of the painting or figure. Whether that is because it is copied from a larger version, or made by the same artist, or done by a competent copyist, is up for debate.

On the left is the main difference in the face of the right woman (with open eyes and a slightly more joyful face in the Deutsch version), and again in the minor additional elements on the far left.

All in all, based purely on these pictures, I can find very little qualitative difference between the two paintings (apart from some condition issues which probably can easily be solved by cleaning). The Louvre version looks slightly better, but I can't find a good argument to dismiss this simply as a copy (nevermind a 17th/18th century Florentine School) and would consider it (lacking better scientific research nor having a thorough knowledge of Sebastiano del Piombo) as a good version from the Workshop of Del Piombo, and accordingly worth considerably more than the estimate. If more people feel the same, this is the kind of sleeper picture that may easily go to 50,000 Euro.

UPDATE: sold for 6,500 Euro, I seem to be alone with the opinion that it might have been a workshop version.

Copy after Sebastiano del Piombo

At Il Ponte, Italian auction house, they sell a (quite damaged) Allegorical Figure by an unknown artist, estimated at 250 to 300 Euro.

It is a faithful copy of "La Fornarina", a famous painting by Sebastiano del Piombo from 1512, now in the Uffizi. A bit strange that an Italian auction hosue doesn't know this...

Perhaps it's more understandable from an American auctioneer like Susanin's, which sell on 30 May 2015 another copy, painted by Louis Bardi and estimated at $1,000 to $1,500.