Mercury and Argus
Artist/Maker
DatesMade: Made 18th century
Material / Technique
Dimensionsh x w: Mått 72,5 x 48 cm
Inventory numberNM 7145
AcqusitionTransferred 2014 from Kongl. Museum
Other titlesTitle (sv): Merkurius och Argos Title (en): Mercury and Argus
DescriptionCatalogue raisonné: Description in Italian Paintings: Three Centuries of Collecting, Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, 2015, cat.no. 82: FORMER INV. NOS.: 314 (M. 1796–97); 156 (M. 1798); 325 (M. 1804); KM 54. TECHNICAL NOTES: Inscriptions: on back: “325”; paper labels “KM 54”; “(Ko)fr: Malmö”; “Salv. Rosa. Argo, e Mercurio. Mart. 325”; “KM 54 Ny No 48 Salvator Rosa Mercurius som söfver Argus”; on front, paper label “National Museum No 54.” The support consists of a single piece of thin, densely woven, plain-weave linen fabric. The painting is lined with glue and mounted with staples on a strainer. This was probably done in Italy prior to shipping to Sweden. The ground is white and covers the whole support. There are many paint losses and a tendency to flaking. There are no retouches and the varnish is partly broken down. In the KM inventory of 1861 the painting is described as “somewhat damaged”. PROVENANCE: Martelli 1804. BIBLIOGRAPHY: Sander 1872–76, III, p. 123, no. 325. This painting is listed under “Salvator. Rosa. Manière” in Fredenheim’s catalogue.¹ It was weeded out in the 1860s and only recently received its NM inventory number. The painting is a smaller copy of Rosa’s painting of Mercury and Argus, which in turn is known in two almost identical works, one in a private collection in Rome and the other in the Nationalmuseum (NM 159, cat. no. 81).² The present work is about half the size of these paintings, and has a somewhat crude finish. Although it is quite faithful to the original in terms of colour and the interplay of light and shadow, it is all very summarily executed. The painting is in all probability a later copy executed specifically for the Roman art collectors’ market in the 18th century. It must certainly have entered Martelli’s collection before he managed to acquire NM 159. dp 1 NM Archives, Kongl. Museum, F:1, Catalogue du Cabinet de Martelli (à Rome). 2 Salerno 1975, p. 101, cat. no. 204; Cassini 2008, pp. 160–161, cat. no. 37. [End]
Motif categoryReligion/Mythology
Collection
Geographical origin
TechniquePainting
Object category
Keyword