Pseudo-Caroselli (active in Rome, first quarter of the 17th century)

The enigmatic artist concealed behind the name of Pseudo-Caroselli was most likely a pupil of the Roman painter Angelo Caroselli (1585-1652). Possibly of French or Flemish origin, judging from the many subjects derived from etchings after paintings by Maarten Van Heemskerck, Pseudo-Caroselli has been the focus of extensive scholarship, from Roberto Longhi (‘Ter Bruggen e la parte nostra’, Vita Artistica, II, 1927, pp. 95-11) to Vittorio Sgarbi (‘Pseudo-Caroselli, La morte di Cleopatra’, Quaderni del Barocco - Dipinti inediti del Barocco Italiano da collezioni private, 16, 2012). The mysterious painter’s oeuvre now comprises of more than thirty paintings. These two canvases are very close in date to the Vanitas sold Christie’s, Rome, 4 December 1991, lot 113.