Negotiating an art deal in eighteenth-century Europe: Guido Reni’s Dispute and its acquisition by Sir Robert Walpole in 1731

This article presents new evidence concerning the sale in 1731 of Guido Reni’s Dispute over the Immaculate Conception to Sir Robert Walpole, Britain’s first serving Prime Minister and one of the most important English collectors of the eighteenth century. The documents provide a full record of the negotiations undertaken to bring the painting to England, thereby affording a rare opportunity to examine the procedures involved in such a deal, as well as the roles and the identities of its main actors. Negotiation was a central aspect in the process of acquiring artistic masterpieces, and thus an essential stage in the creation of an art collection. Also investigated here is the possible role of Guido’s work in the contemporary Roman cultural context, while new evidence is presented on the previous owners of the painting, the De Angelis family. This new material allows, therefore, for a broader consideration of the success of Guido’s art in the context of eighteenth-century Europe.