Bust in white marble, perhaps of Caterina Ginnasi, by Cosimo Fancelli, Rome, ca. 1660

The sitter is shown in full face, her head is covered with a veil which falls over her shoulders, and she wears a close-fitting dress open at the throat with a wide turned-back collar.

The bust, evidently part of a wall monument, was said to have been purchased from the convent of Santa Lucia delle Botteghe Oscure in Rome (demolished 1938).
It is stylistically similar to that of the monuments of Faustina Ginnasi (died 1646), originally within Santa Lucia and now transferred to the chapel within the Palazzo Ginnasi, Rome. It was ascribed by an early source to Cosimo (1618-1688) and Giacomo Antonio (1619-1671) Fancelli.Both brothers trained with Bernini and assisted him on a number of major commissions. Several portrait busts by Cosimo Fancelli exist in Rome, dating from between 1660-1680. Based upon this evidence, this bust has tentatively been identified as Caterina Ginnasi (1590-1660), the daughter of Faustina (Martinelli, 1956, p. 32).
Caterina was a painter of religious altarpieces who trained with Gaspare Celio and Giovanni Lanfranco. Eschewing marriage, she lived at the convent of Santa Lucia which may explain the veil worn by the sitter. After her uncle’s death she dedicated herself to religious initiatives (Melasecchi, Olga, ‘Caterina Ginassi’ Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Vol. 55, 2001). Caterina was buried in the chapel of S. Biagio in the family church at the foot of the tombs of both her mother and uncle, the art patron, Cardinal Domenico Ginassi (Brunelli, Giampiero, ‘Domenico Ginassi’ Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Vol. 55, 2001; also see Dombrowski, Damian, 'Addenda to the Work of Giuliano Finelli' , The Burlington Magazine, Vol., 14, No. 1149, (Dec. 1998), pp.824-828).

The bust has been tentatively identified as Caterina Ginnasi, a painter, and the daughter of Faustina Ginnasi. It is evidently part of a wall monument and is stylistically similar to the monument of Faustina Ginnasi (died 1646), originally within Santa Lucia delle Botteghe Oscure in Rome (demolished in 1938) and now transferred to the chapel within the Palazzo Ginnasi, Rome. It was ascribed by an early source to Cosimo (1618-1688) and Giacomo Antonio (1619-1671) Fancelli. Both brothers trained with Bernini and assisted him on a number of major commissions.

7530-1861