RICCI, Sebastiano
(b. 1659, Belluno, d. 1734, Venezia)

Feast of Silenus

-
Oil on canvas, 99 x 114 cm
Private collection

The pair of canvases, depicting The Bacchanal in Honour of Pan and The Feast of Silenus, were commissioned by the celebrated patron of the arts, Johann Matthias von der Schulenburg (1661-1747). A German aristocrat and general of the Saxon and Venetian armies, Schulenburg settled in Venice upon his retirement where he began to amass a spectacular collection, acquiring paintings by the likes of Raphael, Giorgione and Correggio.

In addition to the present canvases, Ricci painted two further versions of these pendants.