Studio of Lucas Cranach the Elder

Ambras collection, Innsbruck;
Herr Halbreuter, Munich, on whose behalf sold by G. Joseph Esq, Bond Street, to Carl Haag (1820-1915) in 1862;
Thence by descent to the present owner.

London, Royal Academy, Winter Exhibition, 1872-3, no. 184 (lent by Carl Haag).

A. Graves, A Century of Loan Exhibitions, 1813-1912, vol. I, London 1913, p. 227.

"The following condition report has been provided by Henry Gentle, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. One panel has two small splits. Both paint layers are slightly raised and abraded with the skies and fur collars on both augmented by previous restoration which can be seen beneath discoloured varnishes."
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

These two portraits were probably painted to commemorate the death of John the Steadfast of Saxony (1468-1532), in 1532. He is paired with his predecessor and brother, the Elector Frederick III of Saxony (1463-1525), who was Cranach's most important early patron. Cranach entered his service at the court in Wittemberg in the spring of 1505. Thereafter Cranach remained with the house of Saxony for nearly fifty years, serving three successive Electors, the second being John the Steadfast. The demand for repetitions of Cranach's portraits continued well into the 1530s and Cranach enlisted his best students to fulfil this demand. The high quality in the execution of these two portraits suggests that assitance by Cranach himself should not be ruled out.

A note on the provenance:
Carl Haag (1820-1915) was a very notable painter of Orientalist subject matter. By the late 1840s he had settled in London and in 1853 was commissioned by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert to paint two large watercolours to commemorate deer stalking exhibitions at their Scottish estate, Balmoral. He travelled widely through Egypt, Syria, Dalmatia and Palestine and he is perhaps best known for his watercolours depicting bedouin life in these places. His watercolours were immensely popular during the 19th century and remain so today. He eventually returned to Germany, retiring to Oberwesel on the Rhine in 1903. Haag also owned another pair of small panels from Cranach's studio, which are the previous lot in this sale.