- 55
Attributed to Michele da Firenze (c. 1385-1443) Italian, Florence, circa 1430
Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 GBP
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Description
- Virgin and Child
- gilt and polychromed terracotta
- Attributed to Michele da Firenze (c. 1385-1443) Italian, Florence, circa 1430
Provenance
Carel Welker, London, before 1939
and thence by family descent to the present owner
and thence by family descent to the present owner
Condition
Overall the condition of the terracotta is good with wear and dirt to the surface consistent with age. There is craquelure to the polychromy throughout. The polychromy seems to consist of several older layers which have been laid over each other. There are a number of small losses, including to the pilasters, the foliate moulding and towards the bottom of the arches. There are seven holes for mounting. Christ's proper left big toe is lost and there is a small loss to the Virgin's proper left middle finger. The top left large scroll on the outer arch is reattached. Christ's head is probably reattached.
The present lot is offered with a thermoluminescence analysis report from Oxford Authentication Ltd dated 30 July 2012 stating that the sample (No: N112h77) was last fired between 400 and 700 years ago.
"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."
"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
The present relief must have been intended to be set into the wall of a side altar to be used as a devotional image. It belongs to a group of painted terracotta reliefs which depend on the traditional style of Lorenzo Ghiberti, but were originally attributed to the so-called Master of the Pellegrini Chapel in the church of Sant’ Anastasia, Verona. This sculptor is now known to be Michele da Firenze, thanks to the discovery of a document of 1436 recording payment to Michele for the reliefs in the aforementioned chapel.
Michele da Firenze spent time in the workshop of Ghiberti in Florence between 1403 and 1420. From 1433 to 1443 he was active in the Veneto, Emilia and Ferrara. Of the five reliefs in the Victoria and Albert Museum, attributed by Pope-Hennessy to Michele’s workshop (op.cit., nos. 56-57), the nearest to the present example are inv. nos. 7572-1861 and 73:5-1866. The first, from the Gigli Campagna collection, was fired in two parts and came to the museum in 1861. It shows the seated Virgin flanked by full-length saints with a winged cherub above a swathed curtain and, together with the Gothic foliate outline, strongly reflects the present relief. The other, by comparison, shows a standing Virgin, but also has standing boys on columns as in this relief. The entries for these two reliefs in the Victoria and Albert Museum’s catalogue note several other examples on the art market in the 1920s, although none appear to match the present terracotta exactly. Closer still, are two three-quarter length Madonnas in the Bode Museum illustrated by Antonio Galli (op.cit., fig. 102). Another very similar relief, formerly at the Certosa in Pavia, is in the Bargello and is illustrated by Gentilini (op.cit.).
An expertise on the reverse of a photograph of the present relief, dated London, 19. VIII. 1929 by Dr. Hans Mackowsky gives the relief to the Master of the Pellegrini Chapel around 1430 and states that it retains its original, well-preserved colours and gold. Mackowsky (1871-1938) worked on both Michelangelo and Verrocchio.
We would like to thank Peta Motture of the Victoria and Albert Museum for her assistance with cataloguing this relief.
RELATED LITERATURE
J. Pope-Hennessy, Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1964, vol. I, pp. 65-58, nos. 56-57, vol. III, pls. 68-69; A. Galli, ‘Michele da Firenze. Problemi dell’ attivita’, Prospettiva, 68, 1992, pp. 13-29, figs. 1-2; G. Gentilini, 'Michele di Firenze, San Leonardo', G. Romano (ed.), Da Biduino ad Algardi: pittura e scultura a confronto, Turin, 1990, pp. 25-38
The present lot is offered with a thermoluminescence analysis report from Oxford Authentication Ltd dated 30 July 2012 stating that the sample (No: N112h77) was last fired between 400 and 700 years ago.
Michele da Firenze spent time in the workshop of Ghiberti in Florence between 1403 and 1420. From 1433 to 1443 he was active in the Veneto, Emilia and Ferrara. Of the five reliefs in the Victoria and Albert Museum, attributed by Pope-Hennessy to Michele’s workshop (op.cit., nos. 56-57), the nearest to the present example are inv. nos. 7572-1861 and 73:5-1866. The first, from the Gigli Campagna collection, was fired in two parts and came to the museum in 1861. It shows the seated Virgin flanked by full-length saints with a winged cherub above a swathed curtain and, together with the Gothic foliate outline, strongly reflects the present relief. The other, by comparison, shows a standing Virgin, but also has standing boys on columns as in this relief. The entries for these two reliefs in the Victoria and Albert Museum’s catalogue note several other examples on the art market in the 1920s, although none appear to match the present terracotta exactly. Closer still, are two three-quarter length Madonnas in the Bode Museum illustrated by Antonio Galli (op.cit., fig. 102). Another very similar relief, formerly at the Certosa in Pavia, is in the Bargello and is illustrated by Gentilini (op.cit.).
An expertise on the reverse of a photograph of the present relief, dated London, 19. VIII. 1929 by Dr. Hans Mackowsky gives the relief to the Master of the Pellegrini Chapel around 1430 and states that it retains its original, well-preserved colours and gold. Mackowsky (1871-1938) worked on both Michelangelo and Verrocchio.
We would like to thank Peta Motture of the Victoria and Albert Museum for her assistance with cataloguing this relief.
RELATED LITERATURE
J. Pope-Hennessy, Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1964, vol. I, pp. 65-58, nos. 56-57, vol. III, pls. 68-69; A. Galli, ‘Michele da Firenze. Problemi dell’ attivita’, Prospettiva, 68, 1992, pp. 13-29, figs. 1-2; G. Gentilini, 'Michele di Firenze, San Leonardo', G. Romano (ed.), Da Biduino ad Algardi: pittura e scultura a confronto, Turin, 1990, pp. 25-38
The present lot is offered with a thermoluminescence analysis report from Oxford Authentication Ltd dated 30 July 2012 stating that the sample (No: N112h77) was last fired between 400 and 700 years ago.