Saint John the Baptist
(Pesaro 1612 - Verona 1648)
The painting, purchased in 1783 by Gavin Hamilton, reveals Simone Cantarini’s gradual transition toward the style of the Bolognese school, particularly the works of Guido Reni, his teacher in Bologna. Particularly noteworthy are the references to classicism, which the painter from Pesaro later developed during his stay in Rome.
The canvas depicts the biblical prophet John the Baptist, portrayed lying languidly on a rock with his classic iconographic attributes: the long staff, surmounted by a cross wrapped by a cartouche that bears the inscription 'Ecce Agnus Dei'; the red cloak, a sign of his martyrdom; and the bowl, used by the saint to draw water during the baptism of Christ.
Object details
Inventory
Location
Date
Classification
Period
Medium
Dimensions
Frame
Salvator Rosa, 61 x 74 x 7 cm
Provenance
Rome, Borghese Collection, 1783 (purchased through Gavin Hamilton; Della Pergola 1955); Inventario Fidecommissario Borghese 1833, p. 34. Purchased by the Italian State, 1902.
Commentary
As reported by Paola della Pergola (1955), this painting entered the Borghese collection in 1783, purchased with the intercession of Gavin Hamilton who received sixty scudi, which was “the price agreed upon by H.E. the Prince and said Painter for two paintings with their gilded frames, one depicting an old woman by the Artist Giacomo Bassani, and the other depicting Saint John, by the Artist Simone da Pesaro, both of said paintings placed on the ground floor Gallery of the Palace in Rome.” Simone Cantarini’s name, first mentioned in this document, was conclusively reiterated in the Fidecommisso of 1833, and later by Giovanni Piancastelli (1891), Adolfo Venturi (1893), Roberto Longhi (1928), Paola della Pergola (1955), and finally Mario Mancigotti, who in 1975 confirmed the attribution to the painter from Pesaro, placing the painting in 1625-35, a period in which the painter preserved a classical style and a carefully harmonious drawing.
This canvas depicts John the Baptist in a rigid, unnatural pose, totally immersed in the landscape. The Saint is portrayed with his traditional iconographic attributes: the long staff surmounted by a cross, with a cartouche wrapped around it bearing the inscription “Ecce Agnus Dei”; the red cloak that is the symbol of his martyrdom; and the bowl used to draw water from the Jordan for the baptism of Christ. The scene is constructed on two planes, divided by a rock that visually separates the foreground, where we see the figure of John the Baptist, from the background, occupied by a sprawling landscape. This solution was adopted by the painter in many previous instances, and yet in our canvas the stratagem seems weak and all too simple, in the almost naïve use of light, as well as in the not very precise or detailed rendition of certain elements, such as the folds in the garments, the figure’s features, and the landscape in the background.
A similar version painted on panel is part of a private collection in Rome.
Antonio Iommelli
Bibliography
- G. Piancastelli, Catalogo dei quadri della Galleria Borghese, in Archivio Galleria Borghese, 1891, p. 211;
- A. Venturi, Il Museo e la Galleria Borghese, Roma 1893, p. 174;
- R. Longhi, Precisioni nelle Gallerie Italiane, I, La R. Galleria Borghese, Roma 1928, p. 211;
- P. della Pergola, Itinerario della Galleria Borghese, Roma 1951, p. 34;
- P. della Pergola, La Galleria Borghese. I Dipinti, I, Roma 1955, p. 18, n. 10;
- R. Longhi, Saggi e ricerche 1925-28. Precisioni nelle gallerie italiane. La Galleria Borghese, Firenze 1967, p. 350;
- M. Mancigotti, Simone Cantarini il Pesarese, Pesaro 1975, p. 30;
- C. Stefani, in P. Moreno, C. Stefani, Galleria Borghese, Milano 2000, p. 372;
- K. Herrmann Fiore, Galleria Borghese Roma scopre un tesoro. Dalla pinacoteca ai depositi un museo che non ha più segreti, San Giuliano Milanese 2006, p. 118.
