Lot 66
  • 66

German, Swabia, probably Ulm, circa 1510-1520

Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 GBP
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Description

  • Bust of a female saint
  • gilt and polychromed limewood
  • German, Swabia, probably Ulm, circa 1510-1520
with a metal tag numbered: 1400 and an illegible old label and an illegible stamp on the underside.

Condition

Overall the condition of the wood is good with wear and dirt to the surface consistent with age. There is craquelure to the polychromy throughout and there are minor losses because of this as well as wear to the polychromy throughout. There are areas of overpainting, including at the back of the hat and the face. There is some stable splitting consistent with material, including to the side of the head and on the right side of the base. A plaque was lost at the front where there is also a chip to the lower edge of the base. There is a stable open joint running along the reverse of the base. A section of drapery was inserted on her proper left side.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

There is a parallel between the development of portraiture and the representation of female saints as contemporary beauties in the Renaissance. Famous examples include La Belle Florentine from the circle of Desiderio da Settignano in the Louvre, which in fact represents Saint Constance, and the Schöne Ulmerin by Michel Erhart, who is now identified as Mary Magdalen, in the Ulmer Museum. The former in particular is hard to distinguish from contemporary Italian portrait busts such as Desiderio's Marietta Strozzi in Berlin (inv. no. 77) or Francesco Laurana's Ippolita Maria Sforza in Vienna. In South Germany too it is hard to distinguish the skilfully individualised traits of such portraits as Matthias Gebel's Frederick III of Saxony and Philipp of Hessen from circa 1530 from the saints of Riemenschneider or the Master of Ottobueren. This tendency is an interesting combination of the humanising of saints and the perceived connection of a beautiful physical appearance with virtuous behaviour.

The way the present figure is mounted on the stepped base and the traces of previously attached attributes at the front suggest that it represents a saint. Her grand headdress, bound together on the reverse and with a swathe of drapery flowing from it over the proper left shoulder, is identical to that worn by Barbara Wespach-Ungelter in the portrait by the Ulm Master in the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart. The patterned fringes of her dress too are typical of the clothing of prominent German sitters. The rounded face with its nicely shaped nose and sharply delineated lips is distinctly Swabian. In fact, it compares closely to the features of the Schöne Ulmerin by Michel Erhart and is therefore likely to have been carved in the vicinity of Ulm.