Drawing In Red Pencil Or Red Chalk On Fine-grained Paper. 17th-century Italian School

Red pencil or red chalk drawing on paperwith a fine grain
Dimensions: 20 cm x 24 cm
17th-century Italian school.This red pencil drawing depicts several figures;on the right, a naked young man, kneeling, with his back slightly turned, his left armoutstretched to signal the possible presence of a scorpion on the central tree ofthe composition. He holds a cloak in his right hand. 
To the left of the drawing are two male figures, a youngman and a middle-aged man, richly dressed in 17th-century fashion. Oneof them, the older man, has his hand resting on the other’s shoulder. In the background is awooded landscape, and in the upper right corner, a city with its towersand ramparts is visible. The scene thus takes place outside the city.
Although it has not been possible to link this drawing to aknown work, many drawings are technically similarto this study and can be dated to the 17th century.
Given the work’s provenance—namely, Parma—onecan associate this study with the School of Parma, which, as early as the 17th century,drew inspiration from the effects of light and color in Correggio’s drawings, oftenexecuted in red chalk.
Red chalk allows for more precise definition,in which forms take on depth thanks to “tratteggio”:parallel or intersecting lines that, when drawn closer or farther apart, reproducelights and shadows. Italian drawing is organized into regional schools, such asthe School of Parma