Andrea Casali (1705 - 1784) , attributed to Madonna and Child (by Guido Reni) Oil on copper 23.7 x 31.5 cm Distinguishing features: on the back of the frame an inscription '4415' (?); on the reverse of the copper tape with the author's name ('Andrea Casali') pinned to it Conservation status. Support: 90% Conservation status. Surface: 80% (retouches, also on the face of the Child and on the curtain) Of Roman origin, Andrea Casali took his first steps in Sebastiano Conca's workshop, managing to enter, after his first public commissions between Rome and Rieti, the prestigious artistic coterie of Cardinal Ottoboni, where he became a pupil of Francesco Trevisani. Casali's fame led him to become part of the international scene, producing works for the Royal Palace in Madrid and the Albertina Academy in Turin, and to refine his style also with stays in Paris and London. Here he was able to develop different genres, such as sacred themes, historical-mythological and portrait painting. Great was the fortune of the famous and 'perfect' iconography of this Madonna adoring the Child, also known as the 'Madonna of Sleep'. The subject was originally conceived by Guido Reni, a version of which is known to be conserved in Rome at the Doria Pamphilij Gallery (inv. 288) and was subsequently replicated, with variants, numerous times by Sassoferrato (A. Bardelli, card in "Sassoferrato: la devota bellezza: con i disegni della Collezione Reale Britannica", edited by F. Macé de Lépinay, Cinisello Balsamo 2017, pp. 234-235 cat. 53, p. 273). The enormous success of and interest in this sacred theme, profound on an existential level and at the same time intimate in its domestic serenity, continued a century after its creation, during the 18th century, as the rare copper on auction testifies. Massimo Francucci, who has known the work for some time, confirms its attribution to Andrea Casali (communication of 27 September 2023). Angela Negro, who, having examined the work through a high definition reproduction, notes its "certain Trevisan influence", but does not agree with the attribution (communication of 26 September 2023). We would like to thank Dr. Massimo Francucci and Angela Negro for their precious support in cataloguing the work.