Paolo Anesi (1697 - 1773), View of Loreto with Monte Conero in the background, carriage, pilgrims, and travellers

Oil on canvas cm. 66x112. Framed This magnificent landscape by Paolo Anesi depicts a rare view of Loreto, with the flank of the Sanctuary of the Holy House emerging in the distance, originally framed between two majestic oak trees that form a scenic foreground repoussoir. The painting is executed with exceptional refinement: the trunks and delicate foliage of the trees are minutely described, as are the sumptuous two-horse carriage with a beggar approaching to ask for alms, the characteristic pair of shepherds resting nearby, and the carefully rendered topographical depiction of the fortified town in the background. Along the road beyond, several travellers can be seen, perhaps pilgrims making their way towards the sanctuary, while Monte Conero overlooking the sea dominates the right-hand side of the composition. The landscape is bathed in the diffused luminosity characteristic of Anesi and structured according to his distinctive panoramic vision, which lends the image an airy quality, expansive compositional breadth, and a light, graceful lyricism worthy of his finest views painted from nature, such as the Veduta del Campidoglio e di Campo Vaccino and the Roman Forum in the Museum of Rome and the Veduta del Tevere a Ponte Rotto in the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. W. Apolloni Gallery, Rome (until 1992); private collection, Rome.