Vincenzo Foppa of Brescia, founder of the Lombard school, his life ...

158 VINCENZO FOPPA
decorative part of the composition ; the design of the triple crown on the
tiara and the treatment of the collar studded with gems recall the treatment
of similar work in the altarpieces of the Brera and National Gallery ;
but the
picture has lost much of its original character owing to repainting ; and still
more is this the case with the St. Bartholomew, which in the type of head
and in the form of the hands alone reveals its descent from Foppa. The
character of the drapery has been completely altered by restoration and
shows no trace of Foppa's manner ;^ this is due, no doubt, to the treatment it
received before it quitted Bergamo at the hands of Signor Gritti, who was
himself a painter.
Should these canvases ever find their way to the studio of Professor
Cavenaghi at Milan, the true character of the master would doubtless reappear
at least in the case of the St. Gregory, which of the two compositions
seems the most nearly related to Foppa.
1
It is very similar in quality and character to the drapery of the St. John the
Evangelist in the Brera fresco of 1485 ; both figures probably owe their present aspect
in great part to the era of restoration.