Marzio Masturzo (Active in Naples and Rome in the second half of the 17th century)
attributable
Battle between Christian and Turkish cavalry
Oil on canvas
78 x 144 cm. - In frame cm. 99 x 162
Reference bibliography:
Sestieri G., "I pittori di battaglie. Maestri italiani e stranieri del XVII e XVIII secolo", Ed. De Luca 1999
Complete details of the artwork (click HERE)
The painting depicts a heated battle scene between Christian and Turkish cavalry, set in an expansive plain near a fortified city. The scene, characterized by pronounced dynamism and expressive force, captures the two factions in the thick of combat, with fallen bodies, scattered weapons, and wounded horses on the ground, enhancing the drama of the clash.
The scene – which captures all the energy of the battle with a complex and well-balanced composition – the ample descriptive space dedicated to the setting, the color palette, as well as the way the figures are depicted, allow us to attribute our painting to an artist active in Naples in the mid-17th century.
In fact, the battles of Neapolitan painters are often enhanced by intense color, a vivid and marked brushstroke, where bright reds and blues stand out, suggesting to the observer the crucial point of the conflict, with characteristic swirling clouds rising from the clash.
The canvas, in particular, refers to the pictorial outcomes of the artistic production of Marzio Masturzo, an emblematic exponent of the genre of Italian "battle painters" of the 17th century, active in Naples and then in Rome in the second half of the 17th century.
A peculiarity of this scene is the realistic depiction of the combat in the foreground, with excellent pictorial quality and careful staging, highlighting the vortex of violence that reaches its peak in the center of the canvas, with the two opposing horsemen, astonishingly depicted with realism.
Another characteristic of the Neapolitan artist is the presence of side wings created by fortified hills dominated by fortresses and castles, sometimes inspired by real buildings, which, together with clouds and black smoke, create a sort of scenic presence around the battle space.
In our canvas, a fortification with round towers stands out on the right, evoking the Maschio Angioino, a subject repeatedly depicted by the artist, often with interpretative variations.
The canvas finds several possible comparisons with works belonging to his oeuvre, as can be observed in some of the comparative images shown below, characterized by the same elements including similar swiftness of execution, caricatural physiognomies, and side wings with towers, such as those found at Palazzo Barberini.
Works of certain attribution (including the battle scene in the Galleria Nazionale di Roma, https://catalogo.beniculturali.it/detail/HistoricOrArtisticProperty/1200252356, fig. 1) attest to the painter's proximity to Salvator Rosa, of whom our artist was a pupil and friend, but also to the early phase of Jacques Courtois, known as Borgognone.
We can also see these parallels in the 'Combat between Turkish and Christian knights,' signed MM on the back and published in Sestieri's monograph (p. 388 n. 9, fig. 2).
Among Masturzio's works comparable to ours, particular mention should be made of paintings of the same subject in two private collections, one in Parma (https://catalogo.fondazionezeri.unibo.it/scheda/opera/86110/, fig. 3) and another in Modena (fig. 4), as well as a Battle Scene, also depicting a clash between Christian and Turkish cavalry, cataloged in the Zeri Phototheque under card number 84536 (https://catalogo.fondazionezeri.unibo.it/scheda/opera/86459/, fig. 5). All three of these works re-propose, in a context of precise compositional similarities, the central figure of the warrior on a white horse charging against the enemy, pistol in hand, as seen in our painting.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Good state of preservation, complete with a gilded and lacquered frame.
The work is sold with a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic sheet.
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