School of Antwerp, 2nd quarter of the 16th Century

Fredrick William Sharon (c. 1856–1915);

By descent to his stepdaughter Florence Louise Witherspoon Breckenridge (c. 1890–1956) who married in 1909 Sir Thomas Fermor-Hesketh, 8th Bt, later 1st Baron Hesketh (1881–1944);

Thence by descent to his son Frederick Fermor-Hesketh, 2nd Baron Hesketh (1916–1955);

By whose trustees sold ('The Property of The Trustees of Frederick, 2nd Baron Hesketh, deceased'), London, Sotheby's, 3 December 2008, lot 2, where acquired by the mother of the present owner;

Thence by inheritance.

Manchester, City of Manchester Art Galleries, Art Treasures Centenary Exhibition, 1957, nos 25 and 38 (as Jan Gossaert);

Brussels, Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Le Siècle de Brueghel, 27 September – 24 November 1963, no. 106.

Phillips & MacConnal, 25 Castle Street, Liverpool, Inventory of the Contents of Easton Neston House, Northamptonshire, 1919, no. 10, 'Two XV Century Flemish panels of Saints, oil painting £750';

Anon compiler, An Inventory of the mansion and contents, Easton Neston House, Towcester, typed document, January 1923, 'Entrance Hall 1. Two XV century Flemish panels of Saints, oil paintings, £750';

Archibald Phillips, 16 Conduit Street, London, W1, Inventory and Valuation of the Household Furniture, Overmantel Effects, Pictures and other items at Easton Neston House, Towcester, Northants, February 1927, typed document (Family Archive), p. 8, Entrance Hall, no. 1, 'Two Flemish panels of Saints, £750';

Anon compiler, An Inventory of the Mansion and Contents, Easton Neston House, Towcester, February 1927, typed document (Family Archive), Drawing Room, no. 10, 'Two XV Century Flemish Panels of Saints, £750';

E.K. Waterhouse, in Catalogue of the Exhibition, European Old Masters, Manchester 1957, p. 7 (as Jan Gossaert);

Illustrated London News, 2 January 1960, supplement;

L. van Puyvelde et al., Le Siècle de Brueghel, exh. cat., Brussels 1963, p. 101, cat. no. 106, reproduced figs 67a and 67b (as Jan Gossaert).

These two paintings on oak panels have been cradled probably about a century ago. Each has a single joint about 10cm to the right and little sign past movement apart from a single crack in the St. Barbara panel. Each shows the trace of their place in the original structure of the altarpiece in a curved corner at opposite sides of the top edge. St. Barbara. The paint surface is clean. The joint has been narrowly touched out with one quite broad retouched damage in the central yellow sleeve, and a smaller retouching in the hand. There is one crack running half way up 3cm to the right side from the base. Uv inspection reveals a thick and uneven layer of varnish, and further retouching to the drapery over occasional little marks, but scarcely any wear (apart from a little in the castle near the top, the face and the right shoulder. St. Catherine. The paint surface is clean. This painting also has a joint to the right of centre, but with very little retouching. The curved corner is to the right of the sky in this panel, and there is a little retouching around the edges to conform with the frame. Uv inspection reveals an uneven layer of varnish. Further retouching to the drapery with one rather longer diagonal scratch, and some little touches in the head and neck which is slightly less immaculately preserved than elsewhere. The landscape is particularly beautifully intact. Overall the paintings are in good condition offered in ebonised carved wood frames with inlaid gilded flower pattern.
"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."

These altar wings depicting Saints Catherine and Barbara were attributed to Jan Gossaert by both Ellis Waterhouse and Leo van Puyvelde at the 1957 Manchester and 1963 Brussels exhibitions respectively. Today, however, scholars have unanimously rejected the attribution to Gossaert but do agree that the panels were executed in Antwerp, probably in the 1520s or possibly the early 1530s, showing stylistic similarites to both the Master of Frankfurt and the Master of the Female Half-Lengths. Although their provenance before circa 1900 is not known, they were clearly the left and right hanging wings of a triptych, a notion supported by the traces of hinges found at the right margin of the former and the left margin of the latter.

Note on Provenance
The panels are first recorded in the Drawing Room of Frederick William Sharon's New York residence, circa 1900 (Fig.1). Frederick was the only son of William Sharon (1821–1885) who initially made his fortune as a lawyer and merchant during the California gold rush of the 1840s and ’50s. He later co-founded the Bank of California with William Ralston and served as Senator in the 1870s. William Sharon had three children and it is possible these paintings were first acquired by him and entered the Fermor-Hesketh collection via his younger daughter, Florence Emily Sharon (1858–1924), who married Sir Thomas George Fermor-Hesketh, 7th Bt (1849–1924). It seems however more likely that they were acquired by Frederick William Sharon and passed to his stepdaughter, Florence Louise Witherspoon Breckenridge (c. 1890–1956), who married her step cousin Thomas Fermor-Hesketh (1881–1944) in 1909.

The younger Fermor-Heskeths first established themselves at no. 7 Rutland Gate, London and Rufford New Hall, Lancashire. In 1912, Sir Thomas George handed over the family's principal seat, Easton Neston in Northamptonshire, to his son who was M.P. for Enfield and  later ennobled for services to the Conservative Party, becoming Baron Hesketh in 1935. The panels hung in the Entrance Hall at Easton Neston until May 2005.