Featured Curious old watercolor on paper with technical notes and two signatures

Hello friends,
in a batch of various paintings that I won at the beginning of 2019 at the Pirone auction house in Rome, there was this curious picture, it seems to me a watercolor on paper.
I hadn't given it much importance, but over time, it has increasingly caught my eyes, until I came here to you
It intrigues me a lot because I don't understand who is represented, a carnival mask? Then there are other interesting factors: some "technical notes" in pen, and two signatures, one on the top right, and one on the left. Perhaps one represents the name of the represented character and one is that of the author, I do not know.
I seem to notice some pencil and pen strokes superimposed on the pencil, but I'm not sure. Could it be a sketch, a technical draft of a future painting project?
On the back, from the state of the frame and from the oxidation of the nails, it seems to me that it is an "old" work, but I could not go back to the date. In short, there are some interesting things, and I would like to share all this with you in order to take advantage of your expertise and receive your points of view in this regard.
Thank you all for your time.
Measurements: 35 cm x 26 cm

 

Looks like it might be a costume design. This might explain the technical notes.

 

I agree...Venetian Carnivale costume design.

 

The character is the Plague Doctor.

Yup...

 

Dottore della Pesta beak dressed in Arlecchino's clothes? Commedia dell'Arte/carnivale connection here for sure. And a rooster tail?

 

Is it possible this says Rome & a date?

 

11 / Dec. ?

 

Good eyes, Deborah!

 

Well, I'm not sure I'm right. December in Italian is dicembre and a native English-speaker wouldn't write a date in that format.

Debora

 

Wow, thanks, with magnifier yes it seems Roma, 11 Dic. written in italian, (day month year) format. I'm italian and i can say that our abbreviation of dicembre is dic. So the artist is Italian and he did a Venetian mask... For sure in the 20th century, by the oxidation of the nails... 1970? 1980? I'm studying also the other sign on the left, the first word should be an Italian name...
80% it seems OVIDIO .....could be Ovidio Gragnoli ?
Check here for his works
https://www.google.com/search?q=pit...VODewKHX9zAsQQ_AUoAXoECAsQAw&biw=1350&bih=625

 

but he died in 1953, if it was him, then this watercolor should be from the 40s .... I don't know ... maybe it's not him

 

Hi @Gianluca72 , I took a look at Ovidio Gragnoli and he was a fabulous artist of real life. I don't feel your sketch was done by him.

 

ciao
yes :-( i think that you're right
Thanks a lot for your message