Follower of Guido Reni, Italian 1575-1642- The Penitent Mary Magdalene; oil on canvas, bears old wax collector's stamp, indistinctly showing a crowned, double-headed eagle, verso, 37.5 x 30 cm. Provenance: Private Collection, UK. Note: The present work appears to be influenced by Reni's dramatic depictions of Mary Magdalene, defined by their sharp contrast of light and shade, with the figure of the penitent Magdalene in the present work variously recalling Reni's paintings of the same subject, including one in the Palazzo Barberini in Rome [1437], and another in the collection of the National Gallery, London [NG177]. The indistinct collectors' seal on the reverse appears to show the outline of a double-headed eagle with a coronet above, which may relate to the crest of the Habsburg family, a royal dynasty of prolific art collectors.

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