Pastoral Landscape

The vista of the Roman countryside with its ancient and modern buildings, including the Temple of the Sibyl and the Villa d’Este, made the town of Tivoli famous. The man who commissioned this painting, Michel Passart (1611/12 – 1692), was an inquiring intellectual and one of the most interesting Parisian collectors of his day; a friend of Poussin and patron to Herman van Swanevelt, Passart was a connoisseur of painting. Having lived in Rome in 1643-44, he might have discussed this commission with Claude and then remained in contact with the artist after he returned to France.