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The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist

ca. 1515–17
Not on view
Quickly drawn in black chalk, this study was formerly part of the same sketchbook which likely also included two studies for a Madonna and Child with Infant St. John of almost the same size: one in the Museum’s collection (no. 80.3.134; black chalk, 14.3 x 11.6 cm) and the other one in The Morgan Library & Museum, New York (inv. IV,8; black chalk, 13.5 x 9.7 cm). Even though the drawings show similarities with Fra’ Bartolomeo’s shorthand and late draftsmanship, the three sketchbook sheets should be attributed to a talented member of his workshop, possibly the monk Fra’ Paolino da Pistoia (1488-1547), who inherited his master’s drawings and cartoons at his death in 1517. Visible in the background of the present composition is the trunk of a palm tree, a narrative detail indicating that the scene takes place after the Holy Family's arrival in Egypt (Matthew 2:13–23). The pyramidal structure of the three drawings and their use of blended black chalk to create atmosphere are signs of the admiration of Fra Bartolomeo and his workshop for the graphic work of Leonardo da Vinci. (Furio Rinaldi)

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Holy Family with Saint John the Baptist
  • Artist: Workshop of Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino) (Italian, Florence 1473–1517 Florence)
  • Date: ca. 1515–17
  • Medium: Black chalk
  • Dimensions: 5-7/16 x 4-3/4 in. (13.8 x 12.0 cm)
  • Classification: Drawings
  • Credit Line: Gift of Cornelius Vanderbilt, 1880
  • Object Number: 80.3.135
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

More Artwork
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The Virgin and Child, Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino) Italian, Black chalk
The Virgin and Child
Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino)
ca. 1515–17
Mother and Child, Figures Fighting (Study for the Rape of Dinah?), Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino) Italian, Red chalk with traces of black chalk
Mother and Child, Figures Fighting (Study for the Rape of Dinah?)
Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino)
1515–17
Drapery Study for a Standing Male Figure in Profile Facing Left, Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino) Italian, Black chalk, highlighted with white chalk, on tan paper
Drapery Study for a Standing Male Figure in Profile Facing Left
Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino)
1512–17
The Annunciation (recto); Faint View of Buildings (verso), Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino) Italian, Pen and brown ink (kneeling angel at left), faint black chalk (the hardly legible standing figure of the Virgin at right) (recto); faint view of buildings in pen and brown ink (verso)
The Annunciation (recto); Faint View of Buildings (verso)
Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino)
1472–1517
A Small Town on the Crest of a Slope, Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino) Italian, Pen and brown ink
A Small Town on the Crest of a Slope
Fra Bartolomeo (Bartolomeo di Paolo del Fattorino)
1504–07

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