GIO ANTONIO SAULI E UNA LETTERA DI GIOVANNI BATTISTA MANZINI. SU DIECI QUADRI DI GUIDO RENI ACQUISTATI DA ANTON GIULIO I BRIGNOLE-SALE

The essay proposes a focus on the relationships between Genoa and Bologna in the middle of the 17th Century. The topic is a letter written in May 1641 by Giovanni Battista Manzini (1599-1664) to Gio Antonio Sauli (1596-1661) about ten pictures of Guido Reni bought by Anton Giulio I Brignole-Sale (1605-1662). The quality of the paintings mentioned in the letter, especially four ‘Sibille’, was questioned. Anton Giulio Brignole- Sale wrote to Manzini: “de quadri le quattro Sibille (...) sono sicuramente stimati copie, in alcuna delle quali Guido, al più, al più, habbia data qualche pennellata”. Later, Manzini wrote to his friend Sauli for an help in this difficult diplomatic relationship, to re-establish his honor. This is not surprising. The noble Genoese Gio Antonio Sauli is known for his interests in art and patronage. Especially, he loved the works of Orazio Gentileschi. The unknown letter written by Manzini to Gio Antonio Sauli in 1641 is an important new element to understand the complexity of the phenomenon of collecting