Live Auction 7983500 Years Important Decorative Arts Europe
A RECTANGULAR POLYCHROME MOSAIC PANEL OF THE DEAD CHRIST
Lot 637

A RECTANGULAR POLYCHROME MOSAIC PANEL OF THE DEAD CHRIST

BY ALVISE GAETANO (D. 1631), EARLY 17TH CENTURY

Closed7 July 2011

Price Realised

GBP 15,625

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A RECTANGULAR POLYCHROME MOSAIC PANEL OF THE DEAD CHRIST
BY ALVISE GAETANO (D. 1631), EARLY 17TH CENTURY
Signed to the bottom right corner 'ALOYSIVS CAIETANUS .F.'; in a rectangular carved wood frame; losses, repairs and restorations
30 3/8 x 18 7/8 in. (77 x 48 cm.) the panel; 37¾ x 26¼ in. (96 x 67 cm.) the frame

Christie's, London, 15 December 1982, lot 103.
Per Aabel (1902-1999).
Acquired from the estate of the above by the present owner.

Specialist note

Alvise Gaetano (died 1631) was a Venetian mosaicist best known for his contributions to the interior decoration of Basilica San Marco, where he was employed from 1595 to 1631. There he produced mosaics from designs by many of the greatest painters of sixteenth century Venice, including Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Salviati, Bassano and Il Pordenone. The influence of these Venetian artists is apparent in this piece, with its painterly approach to colour, and its use of grisaille, which was commonly used to emphasize the mortality of Christ in sixteenth and seventeenth century paintings.