Ulysses on the Island of Drepane (Corfu).
Oil on canvas. Circa 1720
59 x 86 in; 150.5 x 219.7cm.
In an Italian carved, gilded and painted frame, 2nd half of the 17th century.
Provenance: A Roman princely collection, probably since the eighteenth century.
The subject is taken from Homer's Odyssey. The shipwrecked Ulyses has been washed ashore on the island of Drepane (Corfu), and is assisted by Nausicaa, the king's daughter. A native of Friuli, Grassi arrived in Venice when young is recorded in there consistently from 1712 until 1747.
The attribution of this recently rediscovered painting to Grassi was made by Professor Ugo Ruggeri.