Lot 10
  • 10

French, Paris, or German, circa 1340-1370

Estimate
100,000 - 200,000 GBP
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Description

  • Diptych with Scenes from the Life of Christ
  • ivory
  • French, Paris, or German, circa 1340-1370
inscribed: FM47 twice in ink on the reverse, and: 90/288 in ink to one of the edges

Provenance

Probably Karl Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1811-1885);
thence by descent, Princes of Hohenzollern, Sigmaringen (no. 1589), certainly by 1925;
Geheimrat Ottmar Strauss, Cologne, acquired circa 1928;
Fritz Thyssen, Germany (acquired from the above in a duress sale);
thence by descent to Anita Gräfin Zichy-Thyssen;
Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, Munich, inv. no. 90/288, acquired 1990;
restituted to the heirs of Ottmar Strauss, 2016

Exhibited

Munich, Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, Sammlung Fritz Thyssen: ausgewählte Meisterwerke, 1986

Literature

H. Sprinz, Die Bildwerke der Fürstlich Hohenzollernschen Sammlung Sigmaringen, Stuttgart, 1925, p. 4, no. 8, pl. 6 (inv. No. 1589);
Verzeichnis der im Städelschen Kunstinstitut ausgestellten Sigmaringer Sammlungen, exh. cat., Frankfurt, 1928, no. 244;
F. Thyssen, P. Eikemeier (eds.), Sammlung Fritz Thyssen: ausgewählte Meisterwerke, exh. cat. Munich, Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, 18 July-2 November 1986, pp. 58-59, no. 23

Condition

Overall the condition of the ivory is very good with minor dirt and wear the surface consistent with age. The ivory may have been cleaned as there is relatively little dirt. There is minor stable splitting to the ivory consistent with the material: splits include those running down the left panel on the right side; in the background and cadaver in the entombment scene; and in the background of the Adoration. There are a few small losses: including to the face and hand of the left mourning angel in the Crucifixion scene and flanking crocket from the arcade; to Stephaton's staff also in the Crucifixion scene. There is a section of creamy translucent ivory between the two scenes on the right panel (probably the natural nerve ending from the tusk). The metal hinges are later. There are holes to the interior sides of the panels for previous hinges. There is a loss to the ivory on the left panel right side where the previous lower hinge would have been. There is dirt and wear to the reverses, including a whitish recess on the left panel where a sample has been removed for carbon dating. There are several small holes to the sides. A round plug-like translucent section of ivory in the top side of the right panel is probably the natural nerve ending of the tusk. The outer sides are mounted with later metal clasps. There are various dirt residues including blackish dirt resides to the outer sides. There are some probably natural circular marks to the underside of the right panel.
"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 Hohenzollern-Strauss Diptych is exceptional not only for its large size and impeccable state of preservation, but for the extraordinary depth and refinement of its carving. Previously owned by princely and eminent industrial collectors, it counts among only a small number of Gothic ivory diptychs of this calibre to have appeared at auction in recent decades.

Carved in two registers on each wing, the diptych shows four scenes from the Life of Christ, beginning at the lower left register: The Nativity, the Adoration of the Magi, the Crucifixion, and the Entombment. Though following compositions seen commonly in 14th-century ivory carvings, each scene is characterised by a high level of detail and imagination. The Nativity includes a bagpipe player flanked by small lambs, as well as a figure receiving one of the angels' scrolls on the right, which is rarely seen in comparable diptychs. The Crucifixion scene, similarly, is more populated than usual, with Stephaton giving Christ vinegar, and two grieving angels surmounting the scene. It is the Entombment which introduces the most uncommon feature: the three sleeping soldiers at Christ’s tomb are usually seen in the Resurrection. Here they act as a narrative device foreshadowing this subsequent event, which is not included in the scope of the present diptych.

The sophistication of the diptych's iconography is matched by its form, which achieves clarity through depth and precision of carving, with classical regularity in the arrangement of the scenes. Stylistically the figures are characterised by long, tightly arranged waves of hair, wide, swollen eyelids, delicately carved noses, and elegantly flowing drapery.

In his leading systematic survey of Gothic ivories, Raymond Koechlin (op. cit.) proposed groups based on different datings and workshops, but only touched on the question of localisation, describing almost all ivory diptychs of the present type as French. More recent scholarship has since attempted to identify stylistic features that indicate an origin in other centres, notably the Meuse Valley and Cologne.

Comparisons with diptychs of a similar type, however, point towards on origin of the Hohenzollern-Strauss diptych in Paris, arguably the foremost centre of Gothic ivory carving. In both style and iconography, the present work relates closely to a pair of near-identical diptychs in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (inv. no. A.554-1910) and in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. no. 17.190.251). Slightly smaller than the present diptych, they show three of the same – though somewhat less detailed – scenes, substituting the Entombment with the Glorification of the Virgin. Both diptychs are currently localised in Paris and dated to the mid-14th century (Williamson and Davies, op. cit., no. 90). A similarly catalogued diptych in the Art Institute of Chicago (inv. no. 1970.115, see Gothic Ivories Database) matches the present diptych in size while showing identical scenes with some variations and in a different order. Though stylistically analogous, the carving of the Chicago diptych is less consistent than in our example, highlighting the present diptych's remarkable quality.

While a localisation in Paris is the most plausible, the possibility of an alternative origin should not be excluded, not least because of the remaining uncertainties in the scholarship regarding the categorisation of 14th-century ivories. A single-tiered diptych at the Metropolitan Museum (inv. no. 11.203) with the Nativity and Crucifixion, described as Rhenish or Mosan by Gaborit-Chopin (op. cit., p. 436), displays the same general iconography while repeating stylistic features such as the long wavy beard of the old Shepherd and the cross-hatching on the Virgin’s pillow. However, though this particular hairstyle is often considered a feature of German ivories, the individualised facial types, elongated figural style, and busy drapery cited as typical of Mosan or Rhenish examples contrast with the present diptych. See, for example, large two-tiered diptychs in Amsterdam (Rijksmuseum, inv. no. BK-1992-28) and Madrid (Museo Lazaro Galdiano, inv. no. 2587), which have been tentatively described as German (Gothic Ivories Database).

Another important argument for placing the Hohenzollern-Strauss Diptych in Paris instead of Germany is its relation to the so-called 'large Passion diptychs', a grouping of monumental multi-tiered examplars proposed by Koechlin (op. cit., pp. 285-303). Today this group is no longer considered to be the work of a single atelier, but most of its prime examples retain an attribution to Paris, while being dated to the mid- to late 14th century. Similar in size to the present work, several are composed in three registers which often depict more than one scene. Examples of this type at the Courtauld Institute of Art (inv. no. O.1966.GP.9) and the British Museum (inv. no. 1855,1201.34) are analogous to the present diptych in style and iconographic sophistication. To achieve the height and depth of these masterpieces, Gothic ivory carvers were limited to using the largest of tusks, which would have been extremely costly. These large-scale diptychs were therefore the preserve of the wealthy few and commissioned by illustrious patrons such as Charles V, whose inventory recorded five such works (Lowden, op. cit., p. 91).

It may be assumed that the Hohenzollern-Strauss Diptych was produced for a similarly important patron. That it was treated as a prized possession throughout its history is attested to by its near-immaculate condition. It is unclear when or how the diptych entered the princely Hohenzollern collection, but it was almost certainly acquired by Karl Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1811-1885), who amassed a magnificent collection of Kunstkammer objects for Schloss Sigmaringen. The diptych was subsequently owned by two great 20th-century German collectors, Ottmar Strauss and Fritz Thyssen, before entering the collection of the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum. Like previously restituted masterpieces from the Strauss collection sold in these rooms – the Upper Rhenish Dormition (8 July 2011, lot 22) and the Master of Rimini Saint Peter (3 December 2014, lot 22) – the present, exceptional diptych epitomises the discerning eye of this important collector.  

RELATED LITERATURE
R. Koechlin, Les Ivoires gothiques français, Paris, 1924, vol. II, pp. 285-303; D. Gaborit-Chopin (ed.), Ivoires médiévaux, Ve-XVe siècle, cat. Musée du Louvre, Paris, 2003, pp. 435-436; J. Lowden, Medieval and Later Ivories in the Courtauld Gallery: Complete Catalogue, London, 2013, pp. 87-91; P. Williamson and G. Davies, Medieval Ivory Carvings: 1200-1550, cat. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2014, Part I, pp. 15-16, pp. 210-212 and pp. 278-281; Gothic Ivories Project at The Courtauld Institute of Art, London, www.gothicivories.courtauld.ac.uk [accessed 16 May 2017]

The present lot is offered with a Radiocarbon dating measurement report (ref. no. RCD-8879) prepared by J. Walker of RCD Lockinge, dated 9 May 2017, which states that the ivory dates between 1169 and 1270 (95% confidence interval).