- 186
Taddeo di Bartolo
Description
- Taddeo di Bartolo
- saint agnes
- tempera on poplar panel, gold ground, unframed
- 38 by 31 cm
Provenance
From whom acquired in 1890 in Florence by Prince Johann II of Liechtenstein (1840-1929), as 'Gaddo di Bartolo' for £370.
Exhibited
Lucerne, Kunstmuseum, 1948, Meisterwerke aus den Sammlungen des Fürsten von Lichtenstein, cat. no. 39;
Vaduz, Italienische Kunst des XIV bis XVI Jahrhunderts aus den Sammlungen des Fürsten von Liechtenstein, 1972, cat. no. 26, reproduced plate XXVII.
Literature
W. Suida, Oestereichisches Kunstchatze, Vienna 1911, vol. I, plate X, as Ambrogio Lorenzetti;
R. Van Marle, The Development of the Italian School of Painting, The Hague 1924, vol. II, p. 426, note 1, as Ambrogio Lorenzetti;
A. Kronfeld, Führer durch die Fürstlich Liechtenseinische Gemäldegalerie in Wien, Vienna 1931, p. 173, cat. no. 869, as Taddeo Bartoli;
B. Berenson, Italian Pictures of the Reniassance, Oxford 1932, p. 552;
G. Sinibaldi, I Lorenzetti. Siena 1933, p. 2320 as Ambrogio Lorenzetti;
R. Van Marle, The Development of the Italian School of Painting, The Hague 1934, vol. II, p. 623, note 1, as Taddeo di Bartolo;
S. Symeonides, Taddeo di Bartolo, Siena 1965, reproduced plate LII;
B. Berenson, Italian Pictures of the Renaissance, Central Italian Schools, London 1968, vol. I, p. 423;
G. Wilhelm, in the exhibition catalogue, Italienische Kunst des XIV. bis XVI. Jahrhunderts. Aus den Sammlungen des Fürsten von Liechtenstein, Vaduz 1972, p. 18, cat. no. 26, reproduced figure XXVII;
G.E. Solberg, Taddeo di Bartolo: His life and work, unpublished Ph.D. diss., New York University 1991, pp. 463-65, reproduced fig. 268.
J. Kräftner, A. Hanzl and K. Klopf-Weiss, in the exhibition catalogue, Auf Goldenem Grund. Italienische Malerei zwischen Gotischer Tradition und dem Aufbruch zur Renaissance, Vienna 2008, pp. 46 and 98, cat. no. 19.
Condition
"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
Taddeo di Bartolo is first recorded in Siena as a polychromist of statuettes for the cathedral's new choir stalls in 1386 and as an independent painter in 1389, the year of his first known dated work. Somewhat peripatetic, he is known to have worked in Pisa and Genoa and Vasari records that he went as far afield as Padua, though no works from this period survive. On his return to Siena he quickly established himself as Siena's leading painter and remained so until his death.
As is typical for Taddeo's figures, Saint Agnes, shown here with her attribute of a lamb, is presented with a powerful monumentality which fills the pictorial space. We are most grateful to Dr Gaudenz Freuler for suggeting that judging from the panel's size, it once formed part of a lateral pilaster. Solberg (see Literature) links the present work to a group of four panels formerly in the Loew-Beer Collection, Frankfurt (op. cit., fig. 267). The comparable physiognomies, format and decorative details, particularly in the working of the haloes, suggests a similar date of execution circa 1415-20.
Charles Fairfax Murray, the renowned Pre-Raphaelite artist, was an avid collector and connoisseur of early Italian art, which was an important influence on his own work. He was a respected expert in this field and acted as a consultant for several museums including the Fitzwilliam, the Fogg Art Museum at Harvard University, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the National Gallery who acquired works by Matteo di Giovanni, Nicolò di Buonaccorso, Andrea del Castagno, Giovanni Bellini, and Barna da Siena on his advice. From 1975 he lived in Tuscany with his Italian wife, firstly in Siena and later in Florence.