Venetian painter, second half of 17th century, Archimedes with his student (?).

Giovanni Battista Langetti's circle (Genoa 1635-1676 Venice)
oil, doubled canvas, 78 x 97.5 cm;
The painting is accompanied by an expert opinion by Maciej Monkiewicz, 1992.
"Both the subject of the opinionated representation and the stylistic features are close to the works of Giovanni Battista Langetti, a prominent Italian artist of the Baroque era, setting the tone for the naturalistic orientation in the Venetian school of his time. The subject of the painting is reminiscent of such Langetti depictions as "Archimedes with Personifications of Peace and War" (private collection in Genoa), two versions of "The Assassination of Archimedes" (private collection, Padua and Anacleto Frezzati collection in Venice), as well as depictions of "The Philosophers" (private collection in Venice and Pinacoteca Civica in Rimini). All of these - and many other - works by Langetti feature the type of bearded old man seen in our painting. Also the young man on the right resembles the figures found in the paintings of this artist [...] The similarities also include the general compositional arrangement of the painting, its dimensions, the way the light is handled - restless, 'sliding', or the characteristics of the hands, especially of the old man-Archimedes."
(from the opinion of Mr. Maciej Monkiewicz dated January 3, 1992)