Pier Leone Ghezzi

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Pier Leone Ghezzi
1674-1755
The Famous Castrato: Il Farinelli
1724
Pen and brown ink, over black chalk, on paper.
12 x 8 1/8 inches (305 x 207 mm)
Gift of Janos Scholz.
1985.87

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Inscription: 

Inscribed by the artist in pen and brown ink, "Farinello Napolitano / famoso cantore di Soprano che / cantò nel Teatro d'Aliberti nell'Anno 1724. / fatto da me Cavre ["re" in superscript] Ghezzi di 2 Marzo 1724"; numbered in pen and black ink at upper right corner of mount, "30"; inscriptions in two different hands on verso giving biographical information about Farinelli, the second of which was written by Edward Goddard (according to an inscription in graphite).
Watermark: Crown over letter "P" in circle.

Provenance: 
Edward Goddard, London; Dr. Max A. Goldstein, St. Louis (Lugt 2824); Janos Scholz, New York (see Lugt S. 2933b).
Watermark: 
Associated names: 

Goddard, Edward, former owner.
Goldstein, Max A. (Max Aaron), 1870-1941, former owner.
Scholz, János, former owner.

Bibliography: 

Italian Drawings from the Collection of János Scholz. London : Art Council Gallery, 1968, no. 42.
Stampfle, Felice, and Jacob Bean. Drawings from New York collections. III: The eighteenth century in Italy. New York : Metropolitan Museum of Art : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1971, no. 20, repr.
Scholz, Janos, and Dean A. Porter. János Scholz, Musician and Collector. Notre Dame : Snite Museum of Art, University of Notre Dame, 1980. no. 70.
Ryskamp, Charles, ed. Twenty-First Report to the Fellows of the Pierpont Morgan Library, 1984-1986. New York : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1989, p. 342-343.

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