Portrait of Domenico Paul, Italy, 1798

Details

Description

An Italian portrait of Domenico, son of the late Battista Paul, painted at the age of fifty-three, 1798. The half-length … Read more An Italian portrait of Domenico, son of the late Battista Paul, painted at the age of fifty-three, 1798. The half-length composition shows the sitter before a dark, undefined ground, dressed in a dark coat over a coral-red waistcoat with a white lace jabot, his long hair worn loose and swept back in the fashion of the period. He holds a quill pen poised over a partially inscribed paper, a convention typically used to denote a man of letters, a notary, or a local official.

The painted inscription at upper left reads “Domenico, di fu Batista Paul; d’anni 53, il anno 1798” — “Domenico, son of the late Battista Paul; aged 53, the year 1798” — a formula common to Italian provincial portraiture of the period, recording the sitter’s name, parentage, age, and the year the work was painted.

Materials: Oil on canvas, wood frame
Dimensions: Sight: 21½ x 27 in (54.5 x 68.5 cm); Frame: 25¼ x 30¾ in (64 x 78 cm)
Condition: The canvas has been relined and restretched. Fine craquelure throughout, particularly in the dark background, with scattered minor areas of retouching and wear. The frame shows light rubbing and minor edge losses. See less