Details
AFTER DOMENICO ZENI
Portrait of Prince Alberico Barbiano di Belgiojoso d'Este (1725-1813), half-length; Portrait of Princess Anna Ricciarda Barbiano di Belgiojoso d'Este, three-quarter length, holding a fan
oil on canvas
3834 x 2858 in. (98.4 x 72.7 cm.), each
each in a north Italian giltwood and polychrome decorated frame, circa 1775, Lombardy, possibly designed by Giocondo Albertolli
a pair
Brought to you by
Joshua GlazerSpecialist, Head of Private Sales
A Christie's specialist may contact you to discuss this lot or to notify you if the condition changes prior to the sale.

Lot Essay

Prince Alberico Barbiano di Belgiojoso d'Este was a Milanese diplomat and soldier who served in the Seven Years War. He received a knighthood of the Order of the Golden Fleece in 1790 for his services to the Hapsburgs. He became a prince when he married Princess Anna Ricciarda Barbiano di Belgiojoso d'Este in 1757. The prime versions of these compositions were part of the Wolkenstein art collection and have been entrusted to the state of Trentino.

The frames were possibly designed by Giocondo Albertolli (1742-1839), a leading Italian neo-classical ornamental designer who trained in Parma where he came into contact with the French designer and architect E.-A. Petitot. Perhaps most famous for the Palazzo Reale in Milan, he was also responsible for the ceilings of the Sala degli Stucchi and the Palazzina della Meridiana in the Palazzo Pitti in Florence, as well as his influential publications of engraved designs which were inspirational sources for Maggiolini and Maffezzoli. In 1775, he was appointed Professore at the Milan Accademia di Bella Arti and directed the school of ornament there until 1812. Furthermore his ornamental designs were published in Ornamenti diversi in 1782; Alcune decorazioni di nobili sale in 1787 and Miscellanea per i giovani studiosi del disegno in 1796. He also published Corso elementare di ornamenti architettonici in Milan, in 1805.

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