French, Burgundy or the Loire Valley, late 15th century

Château in the Bourbonnais region;
private collection of Louis-Pierre Bresset;
with Edouard Bresset Antiquaires, Paris, 1990

Overall the condition of the stone is good with dirt and wear to the surface consistent with age. Only traces of the original polychromy survive. The proper left hand is lost and much of the right hand is lost. There are chips and losses to the edges of the drapery, particularly to the drapes on the proper left side of the body. There are some small restorations to the edges of the drapes. There is a hook to the reverse.
"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."

The ducal family of Bourbon was closely tied to the French Royal family. They descended from Louis IX, later Saint Louis, and at the end of the 15^thcentury Duke Pierre II and his formidable wife Anne de France were the guardians of Louis XI’s children. Powerful, prosperous, and scholarly, the couple took an active role in the development of the French Renaissance. They employed the most modern artists from across the country including the remarkable painter Jean Hey and the innovative sculptor Michel Colombe. The style that emanated from the capital Moulins circa 1500 is distinguished by a striving for a realistic rendering of volumes and surfaces and a female ideal to which youth and the accentuation of the body were central.

The development of sculpture in the Bourbonnais is best illustrated comparing the stone Virgin and Child enthroned from the late 15^th-century, chosen for the cover of the Louvre’s most recent catalogue of French medieval sculpture (Baron, op.cit., inv. no. RF 2763), with the present statue. The thick undulating drapery, interplay of smooth surfaces, and sharply defined facial features are already present in the Louvre statue, but the sculptor has not departed from the Sluteresque stockiness. The sleek dress and interplay of compositional lines across the upper body, the suggestion of a bone structure in the face, and slight tension in the lips of the present Virgin Annunciate make for a more realistic and feminine appearance.  A closely comparable standing Virgin and Child from the parish church of Saint-Galmier dated to 1520-1530 with more differentiation of the textures was exhibited at the Grand Palais, Paris in 2010. (op.cit., no.75)

RELATED LITERATURE
F. Baron, Sculpture française. I – Moyen Âge, cat. Musée du Louvre, Paris, 1996, p. 194, no. RF 2763; G. Bresc-Bautier et al. (eds.), France 1500. Entre Moyen Age et Renaissance, exh cat. Galeries nationales, Grand Palais, Paris, 2010, pp. 158-177 and 183, no. 75