How does this artwork elucidate its History and provenance?
The painting came into the collection of Cardinal Scipione Borghese in 1607 as a gift from Francesco Barbaro (patriarch of Aquileia). An existing letter from Barbaro to Borghese documents that Barbaro sent two paintings by Veronese to Borghese separately, though the letter does not describe the paintings in much detail. The letter does note the two paintings depict "sermons"; the Galleria Borghese has owned two paintings depicting sermons—Saint John the Baptist Preaching and Saint Anthony Preaching to the Fish, both by Veronese—for quite some time. Prior to their move to the Villa Borghese Pinciana (today's Galleria Borghese), the two "sermon" paintings had been placed at Palazzo Torlonia by 1613, when they were described in verse by the court poet Scipione Francucci.In 1897 art critic Giovanni Morelli contested the attribution of the two sermon paintings to Veronese, instead attributing them to Giovanni Battista Zelotti.
Francesco Barbaro (patriarch of Aquileia) Scipione Borghese Galleria Borghese Giovanni Battista Zelotti John the Baptist Saint Anthony Preaching to the Fish court poet Villa Borghese Pinciana Giovanni Morelli Palazzo Torlonia