Nicolaus Kentner the Elder

Anonymous sale, Munich, Faber, 18-19 October 1965, lot 71 (as Bohemian school circa 1400-1410), where purchased by the father of the present owner;
Thence by inheritance.

The panel support has been thinned and an old cradle once attached to the reverse has been removed. The paint surface is dirty and the varnish is discoloured. There is a vertical split, 15 cm. from the left margin, which is approx. 26 cm. long; two small vertical splits running down from the left of the upper margin, approx. 5 cm. long each; and two further vertical splits running up from the lower right margin, the longest of which measures approx. 31 cm. Inspection under ultraviolet light reveals a thick milky varnish, which fluoresces opaque, but there are scattered retouchings around the figures and creatures at their feet, and lines of retouching to the aforementioned splits. Offered in a plain, painted wood frame with some losses.
"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."

We are grateful to Dr. Robert Suckale for proposing the attribution to Nicholaus Kentner the Elder from Lienz, and for suggesting a dating for the present panel of circa 1430 - 1440. Dr. Suckale notes particular similarities with the frescos by Kentner depicting the Holy trinity with four Angels in the apse of the chapel of Schloss Bruck, near Lienz, which is signed and dated 1452, and further frescos depicted the Seven acts of Mercy, dated to 1454 in the parish church of Saint Andrä in Lienz.¹

The saint on the right is traditionally identified as the third century Christian martyr Saint Cyriacus, credited with the exorcizing of a demon from the daughter of the Emperor Diocletian, but has also more recently been associated with the local Tyrolean Saint Valentine of Passau.

1. See E. Egg, Kunst in Tirol, vol. I, Innsbruck 1970-72, p. 104, reproduced in black and white p. 105.