John Fleming Leicester, 1st Baron De Tabley;
His sale, London, Coxe, 9 May 1807, lot 117 (as Murillo).

D. Angulo Iñiguez, Murillo, Madrid 1981, vol. II, p. 412, cat. no. 1.666 (under "obras discutibiles").

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. This work is restored and well-framed. It should be hung in its current state. The lining supports the canvas nicely and although the surface has a few raised cracks, none of these are disturbing. The paint layer is heavily applied and generally in very good condition. The blue robe of the Madonna has weakened slightly and there are retouches around and beneath the baby's legs. The shadowed areas beneath the putti in the lower right and some of the darker browns around the lilies in the lower center have also become weaker over time. The dark robe of the kneeling saint in the lower left and the lower sky in the center of the left side have become slightly transparent. All of the retouches are carefully applied and the picture looks very well as is.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

Alonso Miguel de Tovar began his career as an artist painting religious subjects and was trained in this manner by Juan Antonio Ossorio in Seville. Stylistically, and as is clear in this large-scale Saint Dominic receiving the Rosary from the Virgin, his religious works are heavily indebted to Murillo. Ignacio Cano Rivero places this example in the latter part of the artist's career, to circa 1732, and at a moment when his contours become softened compared to his early career. At this mature moment his style is still indebted to Murillo, but very much distinguishable as an independent hand. Indeed, the present work has stylistic parallels with Miguel de Tovar's similarly rendered Divina Pastora in the Museo del Prado (inv. P000871). We are grateful to Ignacio Cano Rivero and Benito Navarette for independently proposing the attribution to Alonso Miguel de Tovar, based on photographs.