La Madonna di Castel Sant'Angelo Tempera on wood, probably 1482 69.8 x 48 cm
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The Mother of God sits in a loggia and holds the unclothed Infant Jesus on her knees. An elderly monk kneels before them with a crucifix in his adoringly held hands. In the background the view falls through a double arch onto a river landscape in which a fort rises to the left.
In all certificates, the fort and the bridge are linked to Castel Sant'Angelo and the Tiber Bridge in Rome. Roberto Longhi identified the kneeling monk as St. Giovanni Gualberto (995-1073). However, since he is depicted without a halo, it could also be another monk.
All experts consider Sandro Botticello to be the painter of the painting, only Freuler attributes it to his workshop. It was probably painted in Rome in 1482 and from there came to the Franciscan church in Montevarchi, from where it came into the possession of the Bartolini family after the 17th century. The church archives record that there was a Madonna di Castel Sant'Angelo painted by Botticelli. The Madonna up for auction here is the only surviving work by Botticelli that shows the castle in the background.
Iconographically and stylistically similar works by Botticelli are a Madonna (lot 4) auctioned at Sothebys (London) on July 3, 2019 and the so-called Rockefeller Madonna (lot 148), which was auctioned at Christie's (New York) on January 30, 2013.
Provenance: Probably: Franciscan church in Montevarchi After the 17th century: Bartolino Bartolini art collection (Montevarchi, Italy) Christies (New York), May 31, 1988, lot 111A Christies (London), July 6, 1991, lot 71 Koller Auktionen, March 27, 2009, lot 3002 (withdrawn) Private property in Switzerland
Certificates:: 1946 (?): Prof. Roberto Longhi 1965: Prof. Roberto Longhi Without year: 1. Prof. Carlo Hautmann 2. Prof. Kurt Steinbart Father Pietro Di Sestiano Prof. Stefano Bottari 1996: Technical report from ETH Zurich 1996: Technological report from the Swiss Institute of Art Science 2009: Prof. Freuler 2018: H.W. Stolz-Lölliger 2021: Dr. Bernd Noack
Lit.: https://www.aboutartonline.com/e-botticelli-lautore-della-vasariana-madonna-di-mo ntevarchi-precisazioni-e-conferme/
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