Transporting the Body of Saint Restituta
XVIII century. Pencil, Grey-brown wash on laid paper.Not on display
The composition is cut out in a mixtilinear arch form as if it were a ceiling medallion. In the lower register, the body of Saint Restituta lies in a boat, transported by angels. In the upper register, Saint Januarius, in glory, prays to the Virgin and Child that the body of the Saint may remain in Naples.
It is an inverted copy –via an engraving– of the canvas by Luca Giordano on the ceiling of the chapel of Saint Restituta in Naples Cathedral, painted in 1692 and inaugurated when Giordano was already in Spain. A drawing of the lower register, which is in the same direction as the canvas and which is probably a copy, is kept in the Biblioteca Nacional (Spanish National Library).
Pérez Sánchez, Alfonso E., Catálogo de Dibujos. Vol. III. Dibujos Españoles Siglo XVIII. C-Z, Madrid, Ministerio de Cultura, 1977, p.133
