Virgin of the Immaculate Conception

(Alessandro Algardi)

The ferocious roar of the dragon is somewhat muted by the animal’s gesture of turning its head upwards towards the Virgin; however, its taut pose with swishing tail and flapping wings adds great drama to the subject.

Private Collection, London

Notable Works of Art Now on the Market, Burlington Magazine CXXI June, 1973, pl. I
Jennifer Montagu, Alessandro Algardi, New Haven and London, 1985, pp. 347-8, cat. no. 42, fig. 192

New York, Stair Sainty Mattheisen May 1986, An Aspect of Collecting Taste, no. 2