CLAUDE VIGNON (TOURS 1593-PARIS 1670)
The Virgin surrounded by the Apostles
Brown wash and red chalk.
42 x 36 cm
We can compare our composition with the engraving made by Jerome David, from a lost drawing by Claude Vignon (see P. Pacht Bassani, Claude Vignon 1593-1670, Paris, 1992, n° 351 G, reproduced). The engraving shows some variations in the figures of the Apostles surrounding the Virgin. On our drawing, the entire upper part presenting the Holy Spirit is missing.
According to Mariette, who knew only five of them, this engraving was part of a set of ten vignettes, intended to illustrate a breviary. Paola Pacht Bassani dates them to around 1640.
