SAINT GREGORY THE GREAT STAYING THE PLAGUE IN A PROCESSION LEADING TO THE CASTEL SANT'ANGELO

THIS DRAWING CANNOT BE CONNECTED WITH ANY KNOWN WORK BY VANNI. VENTURA SALIMBENI, VANNI'S HALF-BROTHER, DID PAINT A STILL EXTANT ALTARPIECE OF THE SUBJECT FOR THE CHURCH OF SAN PIETRO, PERUGIA, IN 1602, P.A. RIEDL, 'ZUM OEUVRE DES VENTURA SALIMBENI' MITTEILUNGEN DES KUNSTHISTORISCHEN INSTITUTES IN FLORENZ, 1960, P. 221-48.
DESPITE CERTAIN COMPOSITIONAL SIMILARITIES, THE PRESENT SHEET CANNOT BE REGARDED AS A STUDY FOR SALIMBENI'S ALTARPIECE. IT IS MORE LIKELY TO BE AN EARLY STUDY BY VANNI, EXECUTED DURING HIS FIRST STAY IN ROME, OF WHICH HIS HALF-BROTHER REMAINED AWARE. BOTH PROFESSOR RIEDL AND DR. ALESSANDRO BAGNOLI (PRIVATE COMMUNICATION) HAVE EXPRESSED THEIR OPINION THAT THIS SHEET COULD BE AN EARLY WORK BY VANNI.