Eugène Kraemer, before 1913;
His deceased sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, May 5-6, 1913, lot 38, to the ancestor of the present owner.  

J. Wilhelm, "In search of some missing Fragonard paintings", in The Art Quarterly, 1955, vol. XVIII, pp. 364-376, reproduced p. 365, fig. 2;
G. Wildenstein, The Paintings of Fragonard, Garden City 1960,  p. 193, under cat. no. 14;
J-P. Cuzin, Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Vie et oeuvre, Catalogue complet des peintures, Paris 1987, p 311, under cat. no. 270;
P. Rosenberg, Fragonard, exhibition catalogue, Paris and New York 1987, p. 472, under cat. no. 231, reproduced fig. 2 (as Attributed to Fragonard).
P. Rosenberg, Tout l'oeuvre peint de Fragonard, Paris 1989, p. 114, cat. no. 375, reproduced (as uncertain attribution).

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. Although this painting is hard to properly view at present, the condition actually seems to be very good. The canvas currently has an old glue lining but the cracking is quite raised, and if the lining were to be reexamined, the cracking could be considerably improved. There is old restoration in the upper left and upper right and the lower left and lower right have some fresh losses which are unrestored. The remainder of the picture seems to be in lovely condition with no restorations of any note. A fresh lining, cleaning and proper retouching on the edges will present the picture very well.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This exquisite little picture is painted with Fragonard's bravura style. Pierre Rosenberg lists three autograph versions of this composition in his monograph on the artist, all with differences¹. The present work, which he lists as an uncertain attribution, is among the two most highly finished examples. In this painting the Virgin Mary is wearing a long veil which appears only in the present version.  Two out of the three autograph Visitations recently appeared on the New York art market and respectively sold for $292,000 and  $280,000²  

This painting can be traced back  to the famous Eugène Kraemer collection which was auctioned after his death in Paris (see provenance). The ancestor of the current owner, who ammased an important collection of French furniture and pictures, purchased several paintings in this sale at the time. The Kraemer sale included important works by artists such as Quentin de La Tour, Rosalba Carriera, Jean Baptiste Greuze, Elisabeth Vigee Lebrun, Jean Mark Nattier and Jean-Honoré Fragonard. It is interesting to note that the highest price in the sale was achieved for a set of four paintings by Fragonard: one representing la Petite Jardinière which reappeared on the Paris art market in 2004³; La Petite Musicienne and La Petite Pèlerine, both now lost, and le Petit Educateur, today in the Musée de Beaux Arts,&꧒nbsp;Cholet, France.  &nbܫsp;

The large capriccio by Hubert Robert, lot 92 in this sale, was a﷽lso included in the Kraemer sale.

 

 

1 P. Rosenberg, Tout l'oeuvre peint de Fragonard, Paris, 1989, p. 114, cat. no. 372, 373, 374, illustrated
2 . Sale, New York, Christie's, 23 May 2000, lot 42 and Sale, New York, Doyles, 24 January, 2001, lot 92
3 . Anonymo☂us sale, Paris, Christie𝓰's, 24 June, 2004, lot 94, Unsold