Lot 102: Niccolò Codazzi (Naples c. 1642-1693 Genoa)

A capriccio of classical ruins with elegant figures promenading
oil on canvas
38 1/8 x 49 3/4 in. (96.9 x 126.4 cm.)

We are grateful to Professor David Marshall for confirming the attribution on the basis of transparencies. He considers the painting to be of an exceptionally high quality and dates it to perhaps the end of the Roman period, around 1681, on the basis that the hills in the background seem to recall the Roman campagna. However, there are also similarities with more mature works by the artist, such as the monogrammed Capriccio with triumphal arch (Bergamo, Private collection; see D.R. Marshall, Viviano and Niccolò Codazzi and the Baroque Architectural Fantasy, Rome, 1993, p. 369, NC 29). Both capricci share similar architectural details, as well as similar elegant strolling figures, which were possibly executed by the same as yet unidentified hand.

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