Lot n° 38
Estimation :
30000 - 50000
EUR
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Giovan Pietro Rizzoli, known as GIAMPIETRINO (active in Mila - Lot 38
Giovan Pietro Rizzoli, known as GIAMPIETRINO (active in Milan between 1500 and 1549) and workshop
Mary Magdalene in Prayer
Parquet-style fruitwood panel
Height: 61 cm
Width: 46 cm
Historic restorations
Provenance:
- Auction in Paris, Hôtel Georges V, Tajan Auction House, June 12, 1995, lot 123 (hammer price: 180,000 francs).
Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli is mentioned by Leonardo da Vinci in his Milanese workshop simply by his first name, “Gian Pietro” (Codex Atlanticus). He was there between 1497 and 1500 and was tasked with copying *The Last Supper* (a copy of which is preserved in London at the Royal Academy of Arts). He established himself as a creator of large-scale works, altarpieces (Pavia, 1521), and, above all, numerous small devotional works for private collectors. He spread Leonardo’s influence, tempered by that of Solario, Luini, and Cesare da Sesto, yet always with his own quite recognizable personal style.
As the creator of a new iconographic genre halfway between the sacred and the profane, Giampietrino specialized in depicting the repentant Mary Magdalene in a subtly erotic manner, which proved immensely popular with his contemporaries. He painted her as a half-length figure in various poses and compositions, each of which was reproduced in several versions. He also sometimes varied the orientation of the work or the background.
Regarding the manner of depicting the saint as in our painting—with her hands clasped in prayer, turned to the left, and her eyes raised to heaven—notable examples include the versions held at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg (panel, 49 x 39 cm), the Civic Museums of Pavia (inv. P 121 b), at the Gemäldegalerie—Staatliche Museen—in Berlin, as well as in private collections. There is a variant of the same subject in which the figure has her arms crossed over her chest (Brera Art Gallery in Milan and Burgos Cathedral).
The influence of Leonardo is evident here, both in the modeling, the slight sway of Mary Magdalene’s hips, and the layered composition of the rocky background—as in the master’s *Virgin of the Rocks* or *Saint Anne*. This is an allusion to the Grotto of Sainte-Baume in Provence, where, according to the Golden Legend, the saint is said to have spent the last years of her life as a hermit. The alabaster jar of ointment or perfume on the left is the one she used to anoint Christ’s feet during the meal at Simon the Pharisee’s house. Her hair, braided at the level of her navel as if forming a belt, is arranged to lend a sensual appearance to her breasts and arms.
We thank Professor Cristina Geddo for her assistance in describing this lot, based on a digital photograph taken on July 17, 2026.
Appraiser: Stéphane Pinta, Turquin Firm (viewing by appointment at the appraiser’s office)
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