Panini’s The Cumaean Sibyl delivering the Oracles, c.1741, was acquired in 2001 with an ornate reproduction Louis XV style frame (above).
The decision to replace the frame was based in the knowledge that the framing of paintings by Panini is well documented in his own works.
Commonly the paintings are framed in Salvator Rosa frames, an Italian style similar to the Carlo Maratta frames popular in England in the eighteenth century.
Montages of the painting in variations of the Rosa frame were developed.
Of the variations proposed, one with a fluted top edge was selected.
The frame, hand carved, gilded and distressed, was built in London at the same time as the frame for Reynolds Miss Susanna Gale.
The frame arrived in February 2002 and was fitted to the painting (top).