(1536–1614)
The Angel appearing to Zacharias in the temple, pen and brown ink, over black chalk, brown wash, on laid paper, laid down on fine Japan paper, 21,2 x 10,9 cm, tears and minor losses at lower and left margins carefully repaired, otherwise in good condition, mounted, unframed, (Sch)

Provenance:
Private collection, Germany.

The attribution to Cesare Nebbia was suggested by Prof. Dr. Herwarth Röttgen on the basis of a digital high-resolution photograph. A certificate (in copy), dated September 23, 2020 is available.

In a rotunda which resembles an aedicule in the upper left part of the sheet the Archangel Gabriel is predicting Zacharias that his highly aged wife will give birth to a son, who will be the later Saint John the Baptist. (Luke 1, 11-20). In the scene’s foreground and lower part of the sheet several men are watching the event. From there the view is directed through a wooden hill to a fortress in the background. According to Prof. Dr. Herwarth Röttgen the drawing may be stylistically ascribed to Cesar Nebbia, who was active in Rome or in Orvieto and was one of the closest pupils of Girolamo Muziano. The way how the structure of the composition is directed from the staggered figures with their accentuated profiles rendered with nervous pen strokes and their rythmic movements against each other to the main scene is a characteristic feature of the artist’s style. The drawing may have been determined for a wall decoration in the Lateran or in the Vatican palace in Rome.

We are grateful to Prof. Dr. Herwarth Röttgen for the scientific support.