New-York tribune., 1910-04-17

n Note on the ROkeby Tenus ana
Otkcr Disputed Pictures.

,bcnticitv Of that picture i'm the National Gal |
Iery which we reproduce to-day the Venus
with the Mirror" better known the RoEeby
Venus Twice. recently. Mr.. Greig has demon
strated his acuteness i'm penetrating to the
origin of an old picture. Upon a painting
ascribod to Rembrandt i'm the Winter Exhib-
tion at burlington House he discovered the
signature of Ferdinand Bol. and he showed
that a work in the Sailing Collection given To-
Pieter de HoOgh, was really signed by Samuel
van Hoogstraetcn. These disclosures of his
have teen accepted conclusive, but he has
not as Vet. established his hypothesis that the
sVenus." long believed to be by VelasqucZ, WAS
signed with the cipher of Juan BaUtista Del
Mazo. the son-in-law Of the court painter Of
Philip ", nor does il seem likely that he will
deprive the great Spanish master of this beau
tiful painting. His claim is that he has found
m the lower left hand corner of the picture,
about twelve inches under the left foot of the
reclining figure, Il signature which, he re-
produces it i'm the Morning Post" clearly re-
veals only "B' and M" The cipher sug
gests rather than actually exhibits the full ini-
tals Of MaZo. Against this claim is TO be set
the fact stated by London correspondent,
that Sir Charles Holroyd. the Director of the
National Gallery (himself artist, after TAX
ing off the glass has obtained certificate from
eight experts that there is no signature visible
The whole question is of course intensely in
teresting and it is worth while to examine into
the character and history of the picture.
1t is related by Beruete, the CanOncal au-
thOrity on Velasquez, to the period following
Gre second of the painters two Italian jour
eeys, the period of the Mercury and Argos,
the Mars and several other NEUROLOGICAL sub
,ects produced toward the end of his career.
These included a Psyche and Cupid" an
-Apollo and Marsyas" and a Venus and
Adonis" which adorned the Hall of Mirrors in
The Alcazar at Madrid and were destroyed by
lire in 1894 Travorsing the history of the
Venus with the Mirror" Bcruete says:
The first mention made of it is by Don Antonio
POM in his ''Niaje de Espena." published i'm 1876.
the Duke OF Alba; Don Pedro de Madrazo in an
article published in the 'Ilustracion Espanola
Venus with the Mirror" is other than
of the year i6S6 of the ROYAL Alcazar, and adds
ae nas 3winF % & to The fire in p ths be- Aeazar 81 in ~ l II
Of Alba. Professor JuSti and Curtis, i'm agree
the picture which l admitted as being correct in
the French edition Of my book.
Recently have be- able to determine the true
origin and clear up the confusion existing between
smer anS ad aIreron, S1S If 1aPid2 tnf
from those Of the Venus with the Mirror" The
of Don Gaspar Merdez De TIaro son of the famous
Don Don Luis Mendez de FIaro MARQUIS OF CarPio and
the time of the fan of his uncle the ndeDuGue
one in Rome in 1862. and another in Naples in 1855
In these Inventories there appears the picture Of
the venus mentioned in the following terms. n
Hfc-S:Ze Venus, reclining nude and a child hold
ing mirror in which she herself. The picture
of the Venus Is original Of Don Diego Nelas-
qucZ-' The picture Of the Venus therefore did
belong the AIcaZar Palace as NadT;za
Thought but to the Mendez de TIaro family.
I'y the marriage of DOna Catalina de IIaro Y
Gu2man, daughter Of Don GaSpar. with the Duke
OF Alba. In 1858, the property Of the Hare family
reverted to the House Of Alba with he
picture Of The Venus of velasquez In 1892 at the
death Of the renowned Duchess OF Aba whose
portrait was 50 often painted by Goya. the
court OF Charles N, by tcstJmentary disposition
Of this lady part of her property Uas
TO personal friends, who therefore not her
legitimate heirs. This brought about 4 lawsuit at
The instance Of the the title and estate
OF The House OF Alba. who was the D;ke Cf Eov-
wick. ldTl3 and JCTiCl. lawsuit ,u,
King, Charles ~. issued order that tn. three
pictures in question should EC sold 20 his u-inl.
MINISTER ana fdvuIltc Don Manuel tindu-. frinriD.
de IA IaZ IEGSe three pictures we're the Ma
donna Of the House Of Aba by i;aTha.l The
Scnooi Of Love. by Coucggic, and tic Venus
with the Mirror
After the fan Of the Principe a., Ia Paz in 1893
The Venus was sold 10 Mr. Wallis the agent Of
tn weN-knoWn dealer in p. lures. Mr.. Bucntuln
In 1915, and on the advice Of Sir Thomas I.lvrenc.
II was LoN.ht .Tc.I Mr.. buchanan nv Ni- N!uIIitt
Tor t5'o From that time mp tin October. 1905. tins
Ia'k 1.-THE home Of Mr.. Marrittl with the ovccT-
tcn Ot the TWO occasions which il Ea hcc1 ex-
liltcd To the public, in 1851 ard iu Tsur Is-t,n
House ia 1870 At The exhibition ~ Old Masters.
The rest of tho story l. briefly told 4 few
years ago it was in tHe air" that the picture
might be bought and the present writer. by the
W.. 50 far succeeded in interesting one buyer
in Tic subject, that he promised to go down 20
Eol,cby Park and if he could rot obtain il
for Arr0f ~ir.o al.