PROVENANCE: Julius Weitzner, New York and London, 1955; Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Stone, 1955.

Pietro Novelli was a Sicilian artist of exceptional talent. Even though he made a brief visit to Naples, he spent the majority of his short career in his Sicilian homeland. His small-town affinity and early death contribute to his omission from most historical art references. His descriptive epithet, Il Monrealese, stems from his work at the monastery at Monreale in central Sicily.

It is rare to find a work by this artist in American collections, let alone a ten-foot altarpiece. Novelli’s treatment of the annunciation is unusual. It is as if the viewer is witness to the Angel Gabriel’s commissioning by the Trinity in heaven. God the Father still holds the lilies (a symbol of the Virgin) that Gabriel is to take to Mary (seen in prayer in the bottom left corner).