Design for the Decoration of a Spandrel Containing a Cartouche / Study for the Three Protagonists in a Composition of the Sposalizio of the Virgen
Second half of the XVI century. Wash, Grey-brown ink, Pencil, Pencil ground on yellow paper.Not on display
It is indeed possible that this good drawing could be by the Tuscan, Marco Marchetti da Faenza (before 1528-1588), who worked in the circle of Vasari. However, the style seems a little too accomplished for Marchetti and the drawing is here catalogued instead as by a follower of Vasari.
The recto study for a spandrel shows two alternatives for the same decoration: in the one on the left, a putto holds back a curtain, while two others play at the base of the cartouche; while in the one on the right, the strap-work around the cartouche is substituted by a swag of fruit, and a satyr stands to the right holding a basket of grapes on his head, as the three putti decorate the frame.
