GERMAN SCHOOL, CIRCA 1500 | The Annunciation

Possibly Schmutzer collection, Vienna (according to an inscription on the reverse of one of the panels);
Anonymous sale, Vienna, Am Kinsky, 17 April 2007, lots 79-80 (as Workshop of Hans Leonhard Schäufelein).

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This pair of works has been restored and should be hung in its current state. Both panels are slightly curved from left to right. They have both been thinned and mounted onto wood. The curves are accommodated in the frames. In the painting of Mary, small spots of retouching can be seen under ultraviolet light in the architecture above the head of the figure, and in the buildings and columns in the upper right. Some losses have been retouched in the lower left, and there are retouches in the lower right corner. There are tiny dots of retouching to the left of the torso of the figure. Within the figure, there are only a few isolated spots in her chest and hair, and a few tiny dots in the face. The painting of the angel is in similar condition. The retouches are mostly applied to the darker colors above the figure. The figure itself is very well preserved, with only one retouch his chin and another in his cheek. There is a retouch in the building seen through the window, and a few other retouches in the bottom of the red gown and in the lower left corner. The delicate transparency of both works is well preserved.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

See note in previous lot.