Christ Preaching

The present drawing is a copy after a fresco of circa 1564 (now destroyed) executed by Federico Zuccaro in the Grimani chapel of San Francesco della Vigna in Venice. The fresco is known through an engraving by Cornelis Cort and several drawings made after the fresco. The engraving and two drawings similar to this one (Musée du Louvre, Paris no. 4413, and GDSU, Florence, no. 11036 F) are illustrated and discussed as works of Luca Longhi (1507-1580) by Paola della Pergola ( ‘Riferimenti a Luca Longhi.’ In Bolletino d'arte, vol. 40, 1955, p. 83-84). A painting attributed to Luca Longhi in the Galleria Borghese, Rome (no. 90) is thought to be after a lost drawing by Zuccaro for this fresco and shows Christ in profile. A replica of Longhi's painting, attributed to Pedro Campagna (Kempner) is in the National Gallery of London (see catalogue, 1929, p. 48, no. 1249).
Attribution History: In 1895, the drawing was attributed to Tintoretto (see references M.M.A). Some time before 1939, the attribution was changed to the School of Tintoretto (J.M.B). On May 29, 1939, Dr. and Mrs. Hans Tietze orally attributed the drawing to Girolamo Muziano (1528-1592). A detail drawing by Muziano in the Albertina, Vienna, shows a slightly different composition of the left side of this drawing (see Ugo da Como, ‘Girolamo Muziano’, 1930). The attribution was changed from School of Tintoretto to Girolamo Muziano (H.B.W. 1940). The drawing, previously entitled, The Adoration of the Savior, and attributed to Girolamo Muziano is now entitled Christ Preaching and attributed to Federico Zuccaro, copy after (Claus Virch, May 1961).