(Barcelona 1837–1904 Rome)
Venice, the patriarch in Cappa Magna leaving San Giovanni e Paolo
(San Zanipolo), signed, inscribed R. Tusquets Roma, on the reverse artist’s label Raimondo Tusquets, Corso N.1, p. 3, oil on canvas, 124 x 95 cm, framed, (Rei)

Provenance:
Galerie Hugo Helbing, Munich, 17 September 1930, lot 154;
Private Collection Germany.

Santi Giovanni e Paolo (called ‘San Zanipolo’ in Venetian vernacular) is one of the largest churches in Venice and belongs to the Dominican Order. The church is famous for its tombs of many doge and important figures of Venetian history.
The present lot depicts a cardinal leaving the church through the main portal, whose Corinthian columns were created in the mid-15th century by Venetian sculptor Bartolomeo Bono. A solemn Mass has just come to an end. Inside the church the sea of candles and clouds of incense are still visible, the portal is decorated with green garlands and the stairs are strewn with flower petals.
At the forecourt of the church, a lively bustle can be observed: the carriage of the cardinal has already driven up, drawn by two elegant black horses. The liveried servants wish to assist him in boarding. A little girl holding her nanny’s hand watches the solemn departure of the clergyman. A shoeshine boy and barefoot children rush in to see the spectacle. To the right, in front of the church wall, stands can be seen where rosaries are presented. A young, elegantly dressed lady with a dainty dog on a leash leaves the forecourt to the right, followed by a servant with a baby in her arms, wrapped in many layers of white, fragrant fabric - perhaps a baptised child?