SCHOOL OF MALTA, CIRCA 1700.
SCHOOL OF MALTA, CIRCA 1700. A View of Valletta Harbour , inscribed with a key in French, oil on canvas, framed, 31 x 48 inches (78.7 x 123.2cm). A fine and historically important painting of a view of Valletta, Malta. The harbour and the city with its extensive fortifications is captured from an aerial perspective. The anonymous artist, working in Malta, was clearly inspired by the works of Matteo Perez d'Aleccio (1547-1616), who painted a series of thirteen in sitù frescos commemorating key events of the Great Siege of Malta of 1565 in the Sala del Maggior Consiglio of the Grand Master's Palace in Valletta (1576-81). Perhaps modelos for these larger works, D'Aleccio also painted these scenes in oil on canvas, eight of which are now at the Queen's House in Greenwich. As with D'Aleccio's masterpieces, this painting provides a cartographic panorama of the city, but in this case, during a time of relative peace. In the centre foreground is the great fort of St.Elmo, and behind it and on the peninsulas to the left, the walled city with its many churches. The flag of the Order of the Knights of St.John, adorned with the Maltese Cross, appears throughout the picture, and the presence of a warship flying the Spanish standard alludes to fact that Malta was then under the suzerainty of the Viceroy of Naples. A detailed legend, written in French, appears at the bottom and identifies key sites throughout the composition, and also alludes to the French origin of many members of the Knights of Malta, and is perhaps a clue to the identity of the individual who may have commissioned this piece. The painting has been considerably restored, with some surface loss, especially to the legend.
SCHOOL OF MALTA, CIRCA 1700.
SCHOOL OF MALTA, CIRCA 1700. A View of Valletta Harbour , inscribed with a key in French, oil on canvas, framed, 31 x 48 inches (78.7 x 123.2cm). A fine and historically important painting of a view of Valletta, Malta. The harbour and the city with its extensive fortifications is captured from an aerial perspective. The anonymous artist, working in Malta, was clearly inspired by the works of Matteo Perez d'Aleccio (1547-1616), who painted a series of thirteen in sitù frescos commemorating key events of the Great Siege of Malta of 1565 in the Sala del Maggior Consiglio of the Grand Master's Palace in Valletta (1576-81). Perhaps modelos for these larger works, D'Aleccio also painted these scenes in oil on canvas, eight of which are now at the Queen's House in Greenwich. As with D'Aleccio's masterpieces, this painting provides a cartographic panorama of the city, but in this case, during a time of relative peace. In the centre foreground is the great fort of St.Elmo, and behind it and on the peninsulas to the left, the walled city with its many churches. The flag of the Order of the Knights of St.John, adorned with the Maltese Cross, appears throughout the picture, and the presence of a warship flying the Spanish standard alludes to fact that Malta was then under the suzerainty of the Viceroy of Naples. A detailed legend, written in French, appears at the bottom and identifies key sites throughout the composition, and also alludes to the French origin of many members of the Knights of Malta, and is perhaps a clue to the identity of the individual who may have commissioned this piece. The painting has been considerably restored, with some surface loss, especially to the legend.
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
