Portrait of a man, half-length, in a white doublet with a ruff

This portrait was seen first-hand by the late Sir Denis Mahon, who suggested that an attribution to Annibale Carracci was very plausible, with the work datable to 1584 (verbal communication with the owner, 2004). Nicholas Turner proposed instead that it may be an early work by Annibale's cousin, Ludovico, datable to 1585-90 (private communication with the owner, 2011; this letter of expertise is sold with the lot). The attribution of the picture, however, remains uncertain.