Collection
Antique Paintings
COD. 17585
Joseph sold to Potiphar
Oil on canvas
118x196 cm, with frame 140x218.5 cm
Gaspare Diziani, one of the most important painters of the 18th-century Venetian school, trained in the workshop of Antonio Lazzarini in Belluno and, after moving to Venice, under Gregorio Lazzarini. However, it was Sebastiano Ricci who most influenced his painting style and helped him achieve great renown during his lifetime. This fame was largely linked to his work in theatrical set design—an activity that kept him busy in Venetian theaters and led to his being summoned to the service of Augustus III of Saxony in Dresden and Munich. In the following years, he was active in various cities across the Veneto region, such as Treviso and Padua, and spent time in Rome, Bergamo, and Trento, producing works that ranged from historical, mythological, and religious subjects to portraits and landscapes.
The painting depicts the famous Old Testament episode in which Joseph—one of Jacob's twelve sons—is sold into slavery by his own brothers to Potiphar, the captain of the Egyptian king's guard. From the expertise of Egidio Martini:
"The painting depicting 'Joseph Sold to Potiphar' is, in my judgment, an undoubted work by Gaspare Diziani (Belluno 1689 – Venice 1767). It is one of his stylistically most robust paintings, in which the forms are modeled in an almost sculptural manner. However, this distinctive quality does not detract from the work's coloristic values; here, as always with Diziani, the colors display great richness and magnificent splendor. Precisely because of these formal characteristics, I believe the painting dates to between 1725 and 1730—closely aligning with the ceiling of the parish church in Borbiago (Venice), completed before 1732 (cf. Vincenzo da Canal, *Vita del Lazzarini*, 1809), and also with the *Scena galante* (dating from the same period) in the Lapicirella collection in Florence, illustrated in my *Pittura veneziana del Settecento* [Venetian Painting of the Eighteenth Century] (1964, fig. 169)."
The painting is published by F. Valcanover in *Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche*, Vol. LX, No. 2, 1981, p. 290.
In 2025, the Superintendency of Piedmont recognized the work as being of interest to the national cultural heritage, describing it as a "painting of great quality" and "an important addition to the master's catalogue." The painting is accompanied by a Certificate of Free Circulation (no. 101411, dated July 1, 2024) issued by the Milan Export Office.
The painting depicts the famous Old Testament episode in which Joseph—one of Jacob's twelve sons—is sold into slavery by his own brothers to Potiphar, the captain of the Egyptian king's guard. From the expertise of Egidio Martini:
"The painting depicting 'Joseph Sold to Potiphar' is, in my judgment, an undoubted work by Gaspare Diziani (Belluno 1689 – Venice 1767). It is one of his stylistically most robust paintings, in which the forms are modeled in an almost sculptural manner. However, this distinctive quality does not detract from the work's coloristic values; here, as always with Diziani, the colors display great richness and magnificent splendor. Precisely because of these formal characteristics, I believe the painting dates to between 1725 and 1730—closely aligning with the ceiling of the parish church in Borbiago (Venice), completed before 1732 (cf. Vincenzo da Canal, *Vita del Lazzarini*, 1809), and also with the *Scena galante* (dating from the same period) in the Lapicirella collection in Florence, illustrated in my *Pittura veneziana del Settecento* [Venetian Painting of the Eighteenth Century] (1964, fig. 169)."
The painting is published by F. Valcanover in *Studi Trentini di Scienze Storiche*, Vol. LX, No. 2, 1981, p. 290.
In 2025, the Superintendency of Piedmont recognized the work as being of interest to the national cultural heritage, describing it as a "painting of great quality" and "an important addition to the master's catalogue." The painting is accompanied by a Certificate of Free Circulation (no. 101411, dated July 1, 2024) issued by the Milan Export Office.
€ 40.000,00
Price
Sold
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The furnishings shown in the ambient images are purely for illustrative and staging purposes. Unless otherwise indicated, they are not included in the sale of the artwork.