Group of Standing Female Saints (the Holy Virgins)
Anonymous, Italian, 16th to 17th century Italian
Not on view
This drawing entered the Met's collection with an incorrect attribution to Sodoma, which had been scribbled on the backing of the original sheet. A new attribution has been proposed to Filippo di Benedetto Paladini (ca. 1544-ca. 1614), one of the last Tuscan Mannerist painters, who worked in Malta between 1590 and 1595 (Vita Segreto, written communication, 9/2/2012). Dr. Segreto, who is publishing this rather finished drawing in her monograph on the artist, has also suggested that it represents the rare subject of the Holy Virgins, which had special meaning in religious art commissioned by patrons connected with the Jesuit order. The style and technique of the drawing certainly agree with those of Florentine late Mannerist draftsmen.
Some of the previous ideas about the drawing's authorship have included "Lombard school, ca. 1600," as written on the mount by Willam Griswold. Some years ago, I suggested in a note on the mount, "Florentine, perhaps close to Giovanni da San Giovanni?"
(Carmen C. Bambach)
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