Holy Family with Saint Anne and Female Head in Profile
1651 to 1700
Medium
pen and brown ink on laid paper
Dimensions
overall (approximate): 19.6 x 17.1 cm (7 11/16 x 6 3/4 in.)
Classification
Drawing
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Elizabeth Miles Cooke in memory of Hereward Lester Cooke
Accession Number
1978.8.1
Art Historical Context
This delicate drawing, *Holy Family with Saint Anne Female Head in Profile*, to the Bolognese artist Donatoti (1671–1749), captures a tender moment from Christian iconography. Creti, a leading figure in late Baroque Bologna, was renowned for his graceful history paintings and preparatory sketches influenced by the Carracci legacy. Created sometime between 1651 and1700—likely during his early career—this work depicts the Virgin Mary, Christ Child, Saint Anne, and a mysterious female head in profile, evoking the warmth of familial devotion central to Counter-Reformation art. Executed in pen and...