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Ornamental head of a man with mouth wide open

Maker

(artist)
1499-1546

Title

Date of Production

(circa) 1525 - 1530

Medium

pen and brown ink on laid paper, the upper corners cut, laid down on an historic mount (with 1212-1214); seems to be pen and ink lines showing through from verso but they disappear under IR so are likely the same bistre media as the recto

Dimensions

Height: 6.6 cm
Width: 8.3 cm

Accession Number

D.1952.RW.1215

Mode of Acquisition

Robert Clermont Witt, bequest, 1952

Credit

The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

Copyright

Work in the public domain

Location

Not currently on display

Keywords

Label Text

This freely-drawn design for a grotesque head by Giulio Romano is mounted alongside several drawings of similar motifs from the same period (all of which were at one point also attributed to Giulio). An early owner of the drawing was the artist Peter Lely; the drawing later entered the collection of the painter Sir Joshua Reynolds, who numbered and mounted such drawings several to a page in an album, grouped by subject or theme. The wash line mounts are typical of those used by contemporary collectors.

Provenance

Sir Peter Lely, London (1618-1680), L.2092; Thomas Hudson, London (1701-1779), L.2432; possibly any number of lots (described very vaguely but several list drawings by Giulio Romano) at his estate sale, Langford (Covent Garden), 15-27 March 1779; Sir Joshua Reynolds, London (1723-1792), L.2364; his sale, H. Phillips (London), 5 - 22 March 1798, lot 682, L.3016a; E. Parsons & Sons (London); purchased there by Sir Robert Witt, London (1872-1952), L.2228b, n.d. (£4, including RW.1212-1214); Witt Bequest 1952

Exhibition History

Special Display - Peter Lely - The Draughtsman and his Collection, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 24/09/2012-13/01/2013

Inscriptions

Watermark: Watermark: unable to check due to thickness of mount.

Inscription: 268.

Inscription: 12 / 13 14 / 15 //

Inscription: Giulio Romano

Inscription: 6/5 442 / Plato [?] //

Inscription: ?

Collector's mark: lot 682 in Sir Joshua Reynolds' sale (L.3016a)

Collector's mark: collector's mark of Sir Robert Witt (L.2228b)

Collector's mark: collector's mark of Thomas Hudson (L.2432)

Collector's mark: collector's mark of Sir Joshua Reynolds (L.2364)

Collector's mark: collector's mark of Sir Peter Lely (L.2092)

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