CIRCLE OF JUSEPE DE RIBERA, CALLED LO SPAGNOLETTO (XATIVA 1591-1652 NAPLES)
A scholar or philosopher
Initialled R (entwined, lower right).
oil on canvas
117.5 x 100 cm

Although the precise identity of the subject has yet to be resolved, a plausible suggestion with the inclusion of the compass indicates he is presumably a philosopher or scholar.

Paintings of philosophers occupy a special position in Ribera's productive career. He produced the renowned series of philosophers for the Duke of Alcalà, together with many images of saints, in states of penitence and ecstasy.

The style and overall type of the painting point to its likely execution during the 17th century. The work can be compared on stylistic and compositional grounds to treatments of the subject by Caravaggio's followers such as Luca Giordano and notibly Ribera. The remarkable popularity of Ribera’s inventions suggest his influence in the present work. The treatment of light and tenebrism with fluid brushwork ranging from finely detailed passages to bold, expressive strokes with rich impasto, especailly to the facial features and hands, giving a a sense of depth to the charicturisation of the figure.