159 - BARTOLOMEO PASSANTE (1618–1648), attributed

BARTOLOMEO PASSANTE (1618–1648), attributed The Stoning of the High Priest Zechariah, Naples, c. 1640 Large oil on canvas. Restoration and signs of wear; in a gilded frame Dimensions: 78 x 103 cm Provenance: Millon Auction, Paris 2024; Bertolami, 2025 This painting depicts a rarely portrayed biblical episode: the stoning of Zechariah, son of the high priest Jehoiada, an execution ordered by King Joash after the prophet denounced the people’s unfaithfulness to God (2 Chronicles 24:20–22). The composition contrasts the physical violence of the executioner—bare-chested, with his arm outstretched in the very act of throwing a stone—with the figure of Zechariah, dressed in orange priestly robes, lying on his back with his gaze raised toward the heavens in a final plea. In the background, a scene of worship unfolds near an altar, anchoring the drama within its religious context. The work is in the style of the group of painters active in Naples between 1620 and 1650, Bartolomeo Passante, Pietro Beato, and Juan Do—whose works, long grouped under the conventional designation “Maestro degli Annunci ai pastori,” carry on the Caravaggian legacy through a powerful naturalism: robust, frontal anatomy; pronounced chiaroscuro; dense and expressive brushwork; and a penchant for rugged, everyday figures drawn from the common people. This style, following in the wake of Ribera, constantly blends the sacred with everyday life, lending the biblical scene an almost documentary-like dramatic intensity. Key Bibliography: N. Spinosa, *Il Maestro degli Annunci ai pastori e i pittori dal “tremendo impasto”* (Naples 1625–1650), Ugo Bozzi Editore, 2021. V. Farina, “Bartolomeo Bassante or Passante, Pietro Beato, Joan Do: More on the Master of the Annunciations to the Shepherds,” *Storia dell’arte in tempo reale*. The attribution “to the Master of the Annunciations to the Shepherds, alias Pietro Beato, and/or to Bartolomeo Passante” was suggested by Professor Nicola Spinosa during the Millon auction in Paris, based on the photograph, as well as by Professor Viviana Farina, also based on the photograph, who compared the style of the work to that of the group of works by the Maestro di Bovino (Bartolomeo Passante). Dr. Angelo Loda, for his part, was responsible for identifying the subject of the work.