Two Shepherds with a Donkey, surrounded by a Herd of Sheep

Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione

Genoa 1609 - Mantua 1665

Etching. Size of sheet: 24.4 x 30.5 cm. Watermark: Fleur-de-lis in a circle with a coronet. Ann Percy, Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione, Exh. Cat. Philadelphia, 1971, Cat. No. E 5. T.I.B. (Paolo Bellini), Vol. 46 (commentary), p. 43, 29, S2.

Brilliant print with fine margins all around. Deep black impression of great clarity in every detail and precisely printed. With subtle plate tone all over; traces of ink along the left plate edge. Printer's ink visible on verso. With the exception of a tear in the lower right corner very well preserved and fresh.

The first impression differs only through Castiglione's inscription. Just two examples are known, one in the print room in Parma (4053) and another, trimmed to the upper image, which had been on the London art market in 1990.

The transition from dark in the foreground to light in the background by way of the use of plate tone in particular areas, together with the sensitive etching and biting show Castiglione's virtuoso handling of the technique.

In the present quality of printing this rare print is exemplary. It is considered a masterpiece of Italian seventeenth-century etching.

Bought by a public library, North America