AFTER PETER PAUL RUBENS(FLEMISH 1577–1640)"SAINT GREGORY WITH SAINTS DOMITILLA, MAURUS AND PAPIANUS"Black and red chalk on [Swiss] paper, with Coat-of-Arms watermark (See Briquet 1072 - Fribourg, circa 1600)Sheet size: 19 1/8 x 14 1/4 in. (48.6 x 36.2cm)PROVENANCE:Collection of T.W. Dashwood of Ryder.His Sale, 1860 (not in Lugt).Private Collection, New York, New York.NOTE:The present drawing follows Rubens' composition of the Madonna della Vallicella, which he originally completed in 1607 for the Chiesa Nuova di Santa Maria in Vallicella, Rome. Because of an unfortunate glaring effect on the canvas, the original painting was eventually refused by the Church, and replaced by a different version, which Rubens chose to paint on slate instead. The original painting on which our drawing is based is now in the Musée des Beaux Arts de Grenoble. Given the paper's age, the present work may be a contemporary drawing made after Ruben's painting, most likely executed by a Dutch artist active in Rome the early years of the 17th century.