Attributed to Mirabello Cavalori (Salincorno 1535 – 1572), Portrait of a gentleman, three quarter length, holding a letter. Photo Sotheby's

dated on the letter lower left:1558; oil on panel; 45 1/2 by 33 3/4 in.; 115.5 by 85.6 cm. Lot 10. Estimate 100,000-150,000 USD

PROVENANCE: French Private Collection, until 1959;
Private Collection, New York by 1992.

LITERATURE: L. Mortari, Francesco Salviati, Rome 1992, p. 161, no. 189 (as Attributed to Francesco Salviati)

CATALOGUE NOTE: When Mortari published this work in 1992 she praised the high quality of the portrait and called it attributed to Salviati, on account of the disparity between the date on the letter, 1558 (which she read as 1553 or 1559) and the style of the composition, being more in keeping of that artist in the period between 1543 and 1548. An affinity has since been suggested with the hand of Mirabello Cavalori and, though somewhat larger in scale for that artist, there is a distinct similarity in handling, notably the deliberate exposure of underpaint in the flesh tones.

Sotheby's. Old Master Paintings. New York | 06 Jun 2012, 10:00 AM www.sothebys.com