Antonio de Moscoso, Count of Altamira

Description

Antonio de Moscoso (1685–1725), Count of Altamira, became a Gentleman of the Chamber to Philip V in 1715 and Chief Cupbearer to the future Louis I in 1721. He served as Governor of the Buen Retiro, a position that brought him into contact with several artists. Following the death without issue of the 3rd Marquis of Leganés, the Count of Altamira inherited the collection of paintings that Diego Felipe de Guzmán, 1st Marquis of Leganés, had amassed during the 17th century (Poleró, 1898; Volk, 1980; López, 1962).

The documentation regarding the inheritance is extensive, as they were unable to locate all the assets he had inherited from the 3rd Marquis, such as the Madonna of the Impanatta, attributed to Raphael, or Titian’s Virgin and Child with Saint John. This situation led to claims regarding the missing works, demanding that the executors of the 3rd Marquis provide financial compensation for the missing assets. Ultimately, the court ruled in favor of the Count of Altamira: he was to receive financial compensation and could select certain paintings from the unclaimed assets left by the marquis (Preciado, 2009).

Bibliography

• LÓPEZ NAVÍO, José Luis (1962): "La gran colección de pinturas del marqués de Leganés", nº 8, Analecta Calsanctiana, pp. 259-330.
• PÉREZ PRECIADO, José Juan (2009): El Marqués de Leganés y las artes (Tesis doctoral), Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, pp. 850-861.
• POLERÓ, Vicente (1898): "Colección de pinturas que reunió en su palacio el marqués de Leganés don Diego Felipe de Guzmán (siglo XVII)", nº 6, Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Excursiones, pp. 122-134.
• VOLK, Mary Crawford (1980): "New Light on a Seventeenth Century Collector: The Marquis of Leganés", vol. 62, The Art Bulletin, pp. 256-268.