The Persian Sibyl

The Expertise

Beautiful painting, clearly under the control of Guercino, excellent state of preservation. Correct the hypothesis according to which when the donor Rondinelli was about to give the original work to Pio di Savoia (painted and paid for in 1647) he wished to possess a copy of it. When the Pio di Savoia Collection was acquired by the Bolognese Benedict XIV Lambertini, also the painting of Guercino became part of the Capitoline Picture Gallery, passed into the property of the people of Rome. The painting may be of interest also as a model of a copy. It would be interesting to see how would both the Capitoline Museums and the Picture Gallery of Cento react to an eventual acquisition. (16th July 2009 - Andrea Emiliani)