Pier Francesco Mola

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Pier Francesco Mola
1612-1666
Man Dictating His Will
Pen and brown ink and wash, over black chalk, on paper.
10 x 15 3/8 inches (254 x 390 mm)
Gift of Janos Scholz.
1981.97
Notes: 

Watermark: star within a circle, surmounted by a cross (similar to Heawood 3874).
The central figure in this drawing, lying in bed, gesturing to his collections, and presumably dictating his will, is Niccolò Simonelli (1611-1671). A connoisseur and collector, employed by the important Pamphilj and Chigi families in Rome, Simonelli was a supporter of Mola and other artists, although in this and many other caricatures (among them see inv. 1965.8, 1981.98, and 1985.92 at the Morgan), Mola offers comically unflattering portrayals of a man who was also his close friend. The donkey who appears in this scene likewise figures in several other caricatures: in a drawing in a private collection, Simonelli is shown riding the donkey as he returns to the Pamphilj palace, and in 1981.98, Simonelli assists as the donkey is executed by hanging.

Inscription: 

Numbered at lower right in pen and brown ink, "38"; on mount below, in graphite, "15".

Provenance: 
Possibly from the Odescalchi collection, Rome; Bolognese Caricature Album; Walter Hugelshofer, Zurich; Janos Scholz, New York (see Lugt S. 2933b).
Associated names: 

Hugelshofer, Walter, 1899- former owner.
Scholz, János, former owner.

Bibliography: 

Scholz, Janos. Italian Master Drawings, 1350-1800, from the János Scholz Collection. New York : Dover, 1976, no. 89, repr.
Ryskamp, Charles, ed. Twentieth Report to the Fellows of the Pierpont Morgan Library, 1981-1983. New York : Pierpont Morgan Library, 1984, p. 278.

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