- 253
Workshop of Lucas Cranach the Elder
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 USD
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Description
- Lucas, the elder Cranach
- Portrait of John the Steadfast, Elector of Saxony
- inscribed lower section: IMMORATLE DVCVM DECVS HAC SVB IMAGINE LVCAS / PINXIT IOANNEM SAXONI TERRA TIBI / SIC DE SE MERTO TVLIT HVNC RITESELLVS HONORE / HVIVS ID EXEMPLVM POSTERIATIS ERIT.;
inscribed, upper right edge, with the artist's device of a winged serpent - oil on panel
- 6 7/8 x 5 ½ inches
Provenance
Possibly Paul Mersch Collection, Paris;
Possibly his sale, Paris, Hotel Druout, 8 May 1908, lot 24 (as Lucas Cranach the Elder);
A. Chatain, Chicago;
From whom acquired by Watson Bradford Dickerman, November 1912;
By whom bequeathed to his wife Mrs. Watson Bradford Dickerman;
By whom gifted to The Brooklyn Museum of Art, 1949 (inv. no. 49.231).
Possibly his sale, Paris, Hotel Druout, 8 May 1908, lot 24 (as Lucas Cranach the Elder);
A. Chatain, Chicago;
From whom acquired by Watson Bradford Dickerman, November 1912;
By whom bequeathed to his wife Mrs. Watson Bradford Dickerman;
By whom gifted to The Brooklyn Museum of Art, 1949 (inv. no. 49.231).
Exhibited
New York, Duveen Brothers, Cranach, 1 - 31 May 1960, no.1 (as Lucas Cranach the Elder).
Literature
Lucas Cranach, exhibition catalogue, Duveen Brothers, New York 1960, p. 11, cat. no. 1 (as Lucas Cranach the Elder).
Condition
Panel is uncradled and is slightly bowed from top to bottom. there is some slight thinness to the fur collar, but generally the paint surface has been well preserved. there is a small horizontal crack or split in the right side of fur collar and another small crack at lower left corner; another tiny horizontal crack on forehead. under UV: some small retouches to costume and an area on hat. a bit of retouching along small crack on forehead.
Offered in an elaborately carved black wood frame with pediment shaped top.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE 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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
This portrait of John the Steadfast, Elector of Saxony, may have originally been paired with another depicting his predecessor and brother, the Elector Frederick III of Saxony (1463-1525), who was Cranach's most important early patron. Cranach entered the service of Frederick III 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 beyond.