Antique Painting Signed Girolamo Forabosco Jefte And His Daughter
Oil on canvas.
The painting depicts Jephthah and his daughter, two biblical figures from the Old Testament.
The girl is shown in profile, dressed in the style of a 17th-century Venetian lady: a low-cut dress, cinched at the waist with a golden belt and featuring flowing sleeves; her blonde hair is gathered and braided with strands of pearls, and she wears dangling earrings. With one hand, she holds a cloth to her face to wipe away her tears, while with the other she holds her father’s hand.
Jefte, on the other hand, wears armor; a heavy red cloak rests on his right arm, and he appears to be pointing outside the painting; his expression is one of anguish.
The emotions expressed by the protagonists—despair bordering on madness in the figure in question, and gentle resignation in the weeping girl, who clutches the man’s hand as if to console him —clearly illustrate the tragic story of the warrior who returned victorious but was compelled by a vow to sacrifice his own daughter.
According to the analysis by art historian Dr. Ludovica Trezzani, whose expert report is attached, the painting under consideration here is a replica, differing in size and featuring a slightly closer framing, of a composition by Girolamo Forabosco, which is otherwise known by the title “Medoro and Angelica,” since the subject of the painting has always been identified as belonging to Ariosto’s epic poem.
In her analysis, Dr. Trezzani traces the sequence of hypotheses that have led to interpreting the work as depicting an Old Testament subject instead.
The expert describes the painting as “exquisite in its execution and skillful in many passages, though not quite as successful in others; it was therefore likely executed in Forabosco’s workshop, partly under his direct supervision but with significant input from one or more assistants, as was, after all, standard practice in the workshops of the time.”
The painting shows signs of previous restoration and re-gilding.
It is presented in a frame.
ARARPI0296396
The painting depicts Jephthah and his daughter, two biblical figures from the Old Testament.
The girl is shown in profile, dressed in the style of a 17th-century Venetian lady: a low-cut dress, cinched at the waist with a golden belt and featuring flowing sleeves; her blonde hair is gathered and braided with strands of pearls, and she wears dangling earrings. With one hand, she holds a cloth to her face to wipe away her tears, while with the other she holds her father’s hand.
Jefte, on the other hand, wears armor; a heavy red cloak rests on his right arm, and he appears to be pointing outside the painting; his expression is one of anguish.
The emotions expressed by the protagonists—despair bordering on madness in the figure in question, and gentle resignation in the weeping girl, who clutches the man’s hand as if to console him —clearly illustrate the tragic story of the warrior who returned victorious but was compelled by a vow to sacrifice his own daughter.
According to the analysis by art historian Dr. Ludovica Trezzani, whose expert report is attached, the painting under consideration here is a replica, differing in size and featuring a slightly closer framing, of a composition by Girolamo Forabosco, which is otherwise known by the title “Medoro and Angelica,” since the subject of the painting has always been identified as belonging to Ariosto’s epic poem.
In her analysis, Dr. Trezzani traces the sequence of hypotheses that have led to interpreting the work as depicting an Old Testament subject instead.
The expert describes the painting as “exquisite in its execution and skillful in many passages, though not quite as successful in others; it was therefore likely executed in Forabosco’s workshop, partly under his direct supervision but with significant input from one or more assistants, as was, after all, standard practice in the workshops of the time.”
The painting shows signs of previous restoration and re-gilding.
It is presented in a frame.
ARARPI0296396
14 000 €
Period: 17th century
Style: Other Style
Condition: Good condition
Material: Oil painting
Width: 150
Height: 113,5
Depth: 7
Reference (ID): 1835222
Availability: In stock
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