Ancient Germany
including German-born artists
See also : Renaissance Manuscript Books Incunabula Religious texts Autograph Music Ancient painting Madonna and Child Inventions George I to III Cats
Chronology : 1150-1300 14th century 1430-1459 16th century 1500-1519 1520-1539 1540-1569 1620-1629 1760-1769
See also : Renaissance Manuscript Books Incunabula Religious texts Autograph Music Ancient painting Madonna and Child Inventions George I to III Cats
Chronology : 1150-1300 14th century 1430-1459 16th century 1500-1519 1520-1539 1540-1569 1620-1629 1760-1769
1188 The Gospels of Henry the Lion
1983 SOLD for £ 8.1M including premium by Sotheby's
narrated in 2020
The princes want to deserve and earn the eternal life. Henry the Lion, of the Welf dynasty, was one of the most powerful. Accumulating several legacies, he was Duke of Bavaria and of Saxony and his territory extended from the Baltic Sea to the Alps. His capital was in Brunswick (Braunschweig) and he founded, among others, Munich and Lübeck. He was stripped of his titles in 1180 for refusing to second the emperor Frederick Barbarossa.
Henry was a benefactor of Brunswick Cathedral, which he had built from 1173 and where he is buried. His gospel book is a very luxurious manuscript prepared for the consecration of the altar of the Virgin Mary in 1188 in that cathedral.
This book is a codex of 266 sheets of parchment 34 x 25 cm, including 50 full-page illustrations as well as historiated initials. It shows in a logical sequence the career of the duke protected by Christ and the saints, including for example his wedding and his coronation. Phylactery explanations complement the images, making it possible to identify the highly important imperial and ducal characters of his family.
The work was prepared at the Benedictine Abbey in Helmarshausen and the scribe identified his name. The script is a modified Caroline minuscule that anticipates the Gothic. The illustrations in bright colors are composed on the principle of the rejection of blank (horror vacui) while keeping a great readability. The image shared by Wikimedia gives the example of a page.
This masterpiece of the Romanesque illumination has remained intact. It was sold on December 6, 1983 by Sotheby's for £ 8.1M including premium, an all-categories record at that time for an artwork at auction. Considered in Germany as a national treasure, it was bought at that sale by a consortium including the government, the provinces of Lower Saxony and Bavaria and public and private donors.
Henry was a benefactor of Brunswick Cathedral, which he had built from 1173 and where he is buried. His gospel book is a very luxurious manuscript prepared for the consecration of the altar of the Virgin Mary in 1188 in that cathedral.
This book is a codex of 266 sheets of parchment 34 x 25 cm, including 50 full-page illustrations as well as historiated initials. It shows in a logical sequence the career of the duke protected by Christ and the saints, including for example his wedding and his coronation. Phylactery explanations complement the images, making it possible to identify the highly important imperial and ducal characters of his family.
The work was prepared at the Benedictine Abbey in Helmarshausen and the scribe identified his name. The script is a modified Caroline minuscule that anticipates the Gothic. The illustrations in bright colors are composed on the principle of the rejection of blank (horror vacui) while keeping a great readability. The image shared by Wikimedia gives the example of a page.
This masterpiece of the Romanesque illumination has remained intact. It was sold on December 6, 1983 by Sotheby's for £ 8.1M including premium, an all-categories record at that time for an artwork at auction. Considered in Germany as a national treasure, it was bought at that sale by a consortium including the government, the provinces of Lower Saxony and Bavaria and public and private donors.
1350 Gothic Realism
2019 SOLD for € 6.2M including premium
Prince Wenceslas, heir to the kingdom of Bohemia and godson of King Charles IV of France, is in Paris from 1323 to 1330. It is the time of the first great Parisian illuminator, Jean Pucelle. Back in Prague, Wenceslas frequently exercises the regency for his father the King Knight John the Blind, to whom he succeeds in 1346 as Charles IV. He will be the first prince of the Luxemburg dynasty to become emperor, in 1355.
In the West the Hundred Years War breaks out in 1337. This international conflict aggravated by the risk of schism between Avignon and Rome is a very good opportunity for Charles IV to make Prague one of the most important cities in Europe, seat of an archdiocese from 1344.
Charles first rebuilds the cathedral. In the year 1348 altogether, he creates the first Germanic university in Prague, launches a major urban plan to modernize his capital and has the imperial castle of Karlstein built for his personal use.
This activity attracts artists from all over Europe. Most remained anonymous, with the exception of Master Theodoric who is the appointed painter of Charles IV throughout his reign. An important group of paintings made by this master for the Karlstein chapel has been preserved.
The paintings on wood from the reign of Charles IV are often made in very small formats, with an obvious search for humanism in the princely portraits and in the spontaneity of the attitudes. The minutia of the line shows that these painters were also illuminators.
An egg tempera 22 x 20 cm on wood 14 mm thick has just surfaced. This enthroned Madonna and Child is in the style of Bohemia, small and precious. The Child is dressed in a light tunic. His actions are innocent. The fingers of one hand grip his foot while the other hand gently holds the thumb of the mother. Their gazes communicate.
This scene is currently surrounded by a black paint dotted with paper stars, probably made in the nineteenth century. An X-ray inspection revealed that the original design was a vast architectural pattern in line with the ostentatious aims of Charles IV's art.
The experts recognized a similarity in the refinement of this painting with the restricted corpus of an anonymous artist designated as the Master of Vissy Brod, active in Bohemia around 1350.
It is estimated € 400K for sale by Cortot in Dijon on November 30, lot 52. Please watch the video shared by Artcento.
In the West the Hundred Years War breaks out in 1337. This international conflict aggravated by the risk of schism between Avignon and Rome is a very good opportunity for Charles IV to make Prague one of the most important cities in Europe, seat of an archdiocese from 1344.
Charles first rebuilds the cathedral. In the year 1348 altogether, he creates the first Germanic university in Prague, launches a major urban plan to modernize his capital and has the imperial castle of Karlstein built for his personal use.
This activity attracts artists from all over Europe. Most remained anonymous, with the exception of Master Theodoric who is the appointed painter of Charles IV throughout his reign. An important group of paintings made by this master for the Karlstein chapel has been preserved.
The paintings on wood from the reign of Charles IV are often made in very small formats, with an obvious search for humanism in the princely portraits and in the spontaneity of the attitudes. The minutia of the line shows that these painters were also illuminators.
An egg tempera 22 x 20 cm on wood 14 mm thick has just surfaced. This enthroned Madonna and Child is in the style of Bohemia, small and precious. The Child is dressed in a light tunic. His actions are innocent. The fingers of one hand grip his foot while the other hand gently holds the thumb of the mother. Their gazes communicate.
This scene is currently surrounded by a black paint dotted with paper stars, probably made in the nineteenth century. An X-ray inspection revealed that the original design was a vast architectural pattern in line with the ostentatious aims of Charles IV's art.
The experts recognized a similarity in the refinement of this painting with the restricted corpus of an anonymous artist designated as the Master of Vissy Brod, active in Bohemia around 1350.
It is estimated € 400K for sale by Cortot in Dijon on November 30, lot 52. Please watch the video shared by Artcento.
Une peinture primitive exceptionnelle a été découverte dans une maison dijonnaise. Attribuée au Maître de Vissy Brod, un peintre anonyme de la Bohème médiévale actif autour de 1350, elle est estimée à plus de 400 000 euros. https://t.co/gm20gTjCfu
— Interencheres (@interencheres) November 20, 2019
1455 Gutenberg Bible
1987 SOLD for $ 5.4M including premium by Christie's
Link to Christie's Books & Manuscripts department
1510 Cranach, Precursor of the Reformation
2012 SOLD 5.1 M$ including premium
Cranach, like his contemporaries, is a painter of Biblical and Christian scenes. Looking for examples of morality, he does not hesitate to consider a pagan theme: the death of Lucretia, told and perhaps invented by Livy to glorify Augustus.
Lucretia is the perfect synthesis of two opposite qualities designed to bring the best of the virtuosity of Cranach. She must be physically erotic, as her beauty has fueled the frenzy of the king's son. She must also be psychologically pure, since she could not survive the stain.
The oil on panel, 60 x 49 cm, for sale by Sotheby's in New York on January 26 is exceptional. The catalog describes two arguments for dating it circa 1510, so making it the earliest of the many Lucretias of Cranach.
On technical side, the support is a special assembly of strips of lime wood that has been produced during a very short period.
On image side, it is a very neat portrait with a flexible line, which anticipates the commercial versions executed on order. The heroine has a sad and stoic face at the precise moment when she drives the tip of the knife to her bare breast and when the first drop of blood flows almost imperceptibly.
This masterpiece is estimated $ 4M. Here is the link to the catalog.
Luther enters history in 1517. One can imagine that he was sensitive to the approach of this painter who glorified the virtues without referencing to the saints. Cranach became the best artist of the first generation of Lutheran reformers.
POST SALE COMMENT
The catalog was convincing: Sotheby's has assessed the importance of this painting in the work of Cranach the Elder. The result, $ 5.1 million including premium, is deserved.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's :
Lucretia is the perfect synthesis of two opposite qualities designed to bring the best of the virtuosity of Cranach. She must be physically erotic, as her beauty has fueled the frenzy of the king's son. She must also be psychologically pure, since she could not survive the stain.
The oil on panel, 60 x 49 cm, for sale by Sotheby's in New York on January 26 is exceptional. The catalog describes two arguments for dating it circa 1510, so making it the earliest of the many Lucretias of Cranach.
On technical side, the support is a special assembly of strips of lime wood that has been produced during a very short period.
On image side, it is a very neat portrait with a flexible line, which anticipates the commercial versions executed on order. The heroine has a sad and stoic face at the precise moment when she drives the tip of the knife to her bare breast and when the first drop of blood flows almost imperceptibly.
This masterpiece is estimated $ 4M. Here is the link to the catalog.
Luther enters history in 1517. One can imagine that he was sensitive to the approach of this painter who glorified the virtues without referencing to the saints. Cranach became the best artist of the first generation of Lutheran reformers.
POST SALE COMMENT
The catalog was convincing: Sotheby's has assessed the importance of this painting in the work of Cranach the Elder. The result, $ 5.1 million including premium, is deserved.
I invite you to play the video shared by Sotheby's :
1511 The Altarpiece of a Saxon Donor
2012 SOLD 4.3 M£ including premium
On July 4 in London, Sotheby's sells a set of five oil paintings assembled into a folding triptych. The origin is known: these paintings were done shortly after the death in 1511 of a wealthy Saxon named Jobst von Feilitzsch to adorn the altar of his private chapel, and were kept in the family during four centuries and a half.
The central panel, 88 x72 cm, shows St. Anne with the Virgin and Child. The external and internal panels of the wings, 91 x 33 cm, are showing saints along with a postmortem portrait of the donor.
These portraits are beautiful. All these characters have a strong psychological dimension, as we perfectly appreciate when revealing the artist: Lucas Cranach the elder, himself, perhaps without the participation of his studio. At that time, the master had doubtless already assimilated the influence of Raphael.
The arrangement of these five works in a folding triptych seems natural, yet it is unclear what was the original presentation. In the seventeenth century, they had been reframed as a single row. It is remarkable that they were never separated. The set is estimated £ 4M, lot 7.
POST SALE COMMENT
Atypical lots are difficult to sell. Sold £ 4.3M including premium, this one remained just below its lower estimate.
I invite you to play the video in which Sotheby's has grouped this lot with a painting by Hans Baldung Grien.
Baldung Grien's painting presented in this video was sold £ 2.1 million including premium.
The images of the five panels are shared by Wikimedia.
LATER COMMENT
The set was separated. The internal wings of the altarpiece have been sold together for $ 1.22M including premium by Sotheby's in New York on January 29, 2020 from a lower estimate of $ 1M, lot 5.
The central panel, 88 x72 cm, shows St. Anne with the Virgin and Child. The external and internal panels of the wings, 91 x 33 cm, are showing saints along with a postmortem portrait of the donor.
These portraits are beautiful. All these characters have a strong psychological dimension, as we perfectly appreciate when revealing the artist: Lucas Cranach the elder, himself, perhaps without the participation of his studio. At that time, the master had doubtless already assimilated the influence of Raphael.
The arrangement of these five works in a folding triptych seems natural, yet it is unclear what was the original presentation. In the seventeenth century, they had been reframed as a single row. It is remarkable that they were never separated. The set is estimated £ 4M, lot 7.
POST SALE COMMENT
Atypical lots are difficult to sell. Sold £ 4.3M including premium, this one remained just below its lower estimate.
I invite you to play the video in which Sotheby's has grouped this lot with a painting by Hans Baldung Grien.
Baldung Grien's painting presented in this video was sold £ 2.1 million including premium.
The images of the five panels are shared by Wikimedia.
LATER COMMENT
The set was separated. The internal wings of the altarpiece have been sold together for $ 1.22M including premium by Sotheby's in New York on January 29, 2020 from a lower estimate of $ 1M, lot 5.
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1527 Portrait of Sibylle of Cleves by Cranach
2008 SOLD for $ 7.7M including premium by Christie's
narrated in 2020
The reigning dynasties of Germany position themselves in relation to Luther's new faith. The Elector Friedrich III of Saxony managed to maintain equality between the parties. His brother Johann, who succeeded him in 1525, promoted Lutheranism to the rank of state church. Duke Johann III of Cleves annexed by his marriage the duchies of Jülich and Berg. He was a protector of Erasmus.
A marriage seals the alliance between these two dynasties. The engagement was celebrated in September 1526. Johann Friedrich, 23, the eldest son of the elector of Saxony, was one of Luther's most ardent supporters. Sibylle, 14, is the eldest daughter of the Duke of Cleves. The marriage took place in June 1527.
Cranach has been a court painter for the Saxon Electors in Wittenberg since 1504. Much linked to Luther, he was in 1525 the godfather of his first child.
Two portraits by Cranach of Sibylle during the engagement phase are known. She wears the crown of virgins which guarantees her virtue until her marriage. She is standing in three quarter length, her hands gently joined on the waist. The face is still juvenile. The 57 x 39 cm painting kept at Weimar Castle is dated 1526.
The other painting is an oil on panel 53 x 38 cm. The lively gaze and the smile display a better presence. The symbols of the two families are woven within the dress. It is signed by the serpent, used by Cranach instead of a monogram for his official paintings.
The portrait of Sibylle of Cleves was sold for $ 7.7M including premium by Christie's on April 15, 2008, lot 12. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
A marriage seals the alliance between these two dynasties. The engagement was celebrated in September 1526. Johann Friedrich, 23, the eldest son of the elector of Saxony, was one of Luther's most ardent supporters. Sibylle, 14, is the eldest daughter of the Duke of Cleves. The marriage took place in June 1527.
Cranach has been a court painter for the Saxon Electors in Wittenberg since 1504. Much linked to Luther, he was in 1525 the godfather of his first child.
Two portraits by Cranach of Sibylle during the engagement phase are known. She wears the crown of virgins which guarantees her virtue until her marriage. She is standing in three quarter length, her hands gently joined on the waist. The face is still juvenile. The 57 x 39 cm painting kept at Weimar Castle is dated 1526.
The other painting is an oil on panel 53 x 38 cm. The lively gaze and the smile display a better presence. The symbols of the two families are woven within the dress. It is signed by the serpent, used by Cranach instead of a monogram for his official paintings.
The portrait of Sibylle of Cleves was sold for $ 7.7M including premium by Christie's on April 15, 2008, lot 12. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
later 1520s The Ordeal of the Lion
2015 SOLD for £ 9.3M including premium
Lucas Cranach the Elder enjoyed all topics related to morality, not without humor. On July 8 in London, Sotheby's sells a Bocca della Verita painted at the end of the 1520s. This oil on panel in large size, 111 x 100 cm, is estimated £ 6M, lot 8.
The artist transposes a medieval ordeal with characters in clothes of his time. The mouth of truth is a lie detecting test to convict or release the adulteress. Included in the legends of Tristan and Iseult and Merlin, this story was previously used by illustrators including Altdorfer and Lucas van Leyden.
Each character has a role. The woman puts a hand in the mouth of the lion raised on a pedestal to be at her level. She is held at the waist by her supposed lover disguised as a fool. Two men wait to establish the minutes of justice.
The alleged cuckolded husband is on the far right of the picture, opposite to the lion. He is accompanied by two lovely ladies who are his witnesses. At his side, a last character sends a wink of complicity towards the viewer of the painting.
This is not a comic book and the verdict of the lion is not known. The lack of fear in the attitude of the woman tells that she wants to win the ordeal. The scene becomes a funny symbol of feminine cunning.
I invite you to watch the video shared by Sotheby's :
The artist transposes a medieval ordeal with characters in clothes of his time. The mouth of truth is a lie detecting test to convict or release the adulteress. Included in the legends of Tristan and Iseult and Merlin, this story was previously used by illustrators including Altdorfer and Lucas van Leyden.
Each character has a role. The woman puts a hand in the mouth of the lion raised on a pedestal to be at her level. She is held at the waist by her supposed lover disguised as a fool. Two men wait to establish the minutes of justice.
The alleged cuckolded husband is on the far right of the picture, opposite to the lion. He is accompanied by two lovely ladies who are his witnesses. At his side, a last character sends a wink of complicity towards the viewer of the painting.
This is not a comic book and the verdict of the lion is not known. The lack of fear in the attitude of the woman tells that she wants to win the ordeal. The scene becomes a funny symbol of feminine cunning.
I invite you to watch the video shared by Sotheby's :
1532 The Elector of the Reformation
2018 SOLD for $ 7.7M including premium
Lucas Cranach becomes in 1504 a painter at the court of Saxony in Wittenberg. He will be until his death 49 years later a devoted collaborator of three successive Electors, ultimately joining the displacement to Weimar of the court of the last of them. He made many portraits of the electoral family without abandoning his other themes.
The first of his three Saxon patrons, Friedrich the Wise, is famous for his tolerance concerning Luther. Cranach is enthusiastic about the Reformation and then becomes a close friend of Luther.
The family events of the Saxon court are celebrated with half-length portraits in resplendent attire. In 1525 Friedrich is succeeded by his brother Johann who intensifies his pro-Lutheran policy. In the following year he manages the engagement of his son and heir Johann-Friedrich with Sibylle of Cleves. The wedding takes place in 1527. Cranach's portrait of the then 15-year-old princess was sold for $ 7.7M including premium by Christie's on April 15, 2008.
Johann-Friedrich succeeds Johann in 1532 and confirms his commitment to the Reformation. He commissions Cranach and his workshop for a large quantity of posthumous portraits of his two predecessors to serve as diplomatic gifts.
On April 19 in New York, Christie's sells a portrait of Johann-Friedrich, oil on panel 63 x 40 cm, lot 7 estimated $ 1M. The painting is neither dated nor signed and an underdrawing reveals that some details of the face were modified for perfecting the likeness or the dignity. It is probably a modello painted by the master after the accession to power of the new Elector to prepare the realization of copies by the workshop.
This artwork disappeared during the Nazi persecutions. It has just resurfaced and was restituted to the spoiled family with the support of Christie's.
Please watch the video shared by auction house (full video below the video tweet, including a portrait of Alessandro Farnese by another artist). POST SALE COMMENT : the Farnese portrait was sold for $ 2.6M including premium.
The first of his three Saxon patrons, Friedrich the Wise, is famous for his tolerance concerning Luther. Cranach is enthusiastic about the Reformation and then becomes a close friend of Luther.
The family events of the Saxon court are celebrated with half-length portraits in resplendent attire. In 1525 Friedrich is succeeded by his brother Johann who intensifies his pro-Lutheran policy. In the following year he manages the engagement of his son and heir Johann-Friedrich with Sibylle of Cleves. The wedding takes place in 1527. Cranach's portrait of the then 15-year-old princess was sold for $ 7.7M including premium by Christie's on April 15, 2008.
Johann-Friedrich succeeds Johann in 1532 and confirms his commitment to the Reformation. He commissions Cranach and his workshop for a large quantity of posthumous portraits of his two predecessors to serve as diplomatic gifts.
On April 19 in New York, Christie's sells a portrait of Johann-Friedrich, oil on panel 63 x 40 cm, lot 7 estimated $ 1M. The painting is neither dated nor signed and an underdrawing reveals that some details of the face were modified for perfecting the likeness or the dignity. It is probably a modello painted by the master after the accession to power of the new Elector to prepare the realization of copies by the workshop.
This artwork disappeared during the Nazi persecutions. It has just resurfaced and was restituted to the spoiled family with the support of Christie's.
Please watch the video shared by auction house (full video below the video tweet, including a portrait of Alessandro Farnese by another artist). POST SALE COMMENT : the Farnese portrait was sold for $ 2.6M including premium.
Dressed to impress: this opulent portrait by Lucas Cranach the Elder depicts John Frederick I, the final Elector of Saxony, in the most stylish clothes of the decade.https://t.co/nrSbZ9wZbG pic.twitter.com/Gzoh1FTVRC
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) April 15, 2018
1537 Shame and Pain onto the Honey Thief
2013 SOLD 2.2 M£ including premium
In the Lutheran circles of Wittenberg, the theme of Venus with Cupid stealing honey, from an ancient Greek poem, becomes popular. A malicious pleasure brings pain. Dürer treated this story with exaggeration around 1514 : Cupid is attacked by the whole hive. Venus, instead of helping, rumbles.
Cranach the Elder reuses this fable from 1527 with more subtlety. He is the master of the use of the female nude in moralizing allegories. Not far from displeasing his patron Luther, his sensual nudes leave some doubt between erotic expression and resistance to temptation. The quiet stag often in the background invites to the latter religious interpretation.
The three oils on panel that I discuss below have the same size, 51 x 35 cm, assessing that this theme was during more than ten years one of the most regular productions from this artist.
The earliest is dated 1532. It was sold for 16 MF including premium (€ 2.4M) by Rouillac on June 10, 2001. The attitudes are mannerist, although the bees have already begun to attack. Venus is not interested in the child. The epigram, however, leaves no doubt about the interpretation.
Dated 1537, the painting for sale by Bonhams in London on December 4, is more dramatic. It is estimated £ 1.5 M. Cupid is anguished by a dozen bees stinging his naked body and asks for help. Venus reaches out over the child's head but looks in another direction, as if to convince the viewer that the scoundrel is receiving what he deserved.
In 1538, Venus looks at Cupid. Her attitude is didactic, and the child tries to understand. Curiously, this ultimate stage of the story has no inscription. It was sold for 17.2 MF before fees (€ 2.6 M) by Rieunier et Bailly-Pommery on December 4, 2000.
POST SALE COMMENT
Good result for Venus and the young thief : £ 2.2M including premium.
I invite you to play the video shared by Bonhams :
Cranach the Elder reuses this fable from 1527 with more subtlety. He is the master of the use of the female nude in moralizing allegories. Not far from displeasing his patron Luther, his sensual nudes leave some doubt between erotic expression and resistance to temptation. The quiet stag often in the background invites to the latter religious interpretation.
The three oils on panel that I discuss below have the same size, 51 x 35 cm, assessing that this theme was during more than ten years one of the most regular productions from this artist.
The earliest is dated 1532. It was sold for 16 MF including premium (€ 2.4M) by Rouillac on June 10, 2001. The attitudes are mannerist, although the bees have already begun to attack. Venus is not interested in the child. The epigram, however, leaves no doubt about the interpretation.
Dated 1537, the painting for sale by Bonhams in London on December 4, is more dramatic. It is estimated £ 1.5 M. Cupid is anguished by a dozen bees stinging his naked body and asks for help. Venus reaches out over the child's head but looks in another direction, as if to convince the viewer that the scoundrel is receiving what he deserved.
In 1538, Venus looks at Cupid. Her attitude is didactic, and the child tries to understand. Curiously, this ultimate stage of the story has no inscription. It was sold for 17.2 MF before fees (€ 2.6 M) by Rieunier et Bailly-Pommery on December 4, 2000.
POST SALE COMMENT
Good result for Venus and the young thief : £ 2.2M including premium.
I invite you to play the video shared by Bonhams :
1545 The Painter and the Burger
2010 SOLD 5.6 M£ including premium
Christie's presents for sale on July 6 in London a beautiful German portrait of the sixteenth century, in good condition, estimated £ 5 million.
The artist, Georg Pencz, was known at Nuremberg as the best pupil of Dürer. At that time the German art was imbued with the Italian influence. Pencz is also (and mostly) famous as a printmaker. The painting is signed with his monogram.
The model, Sigismund Baldinger, is a typical member of the commercial bourgeoisie. Based in Nuremberg where he joined the council, he worked for a merchant family of Augsburg.
In 1545, Baldinger was 35 years old. He is a bearded man with short hair, well dressed, very modern-looking. Solid and confident, he gazes with authority and courtesy. If he believes that this artwork forwards the image of his glory to his descendants, he is right. He will be knighted soon after and this oil on panel, 135 x 118 cm, will remain in his family for nearly four centuries.
POST SALE COMMENT
This portrait of a civilian is altogether rare, large size and of high quality. It is not easy to find an auction history for this pupil of Dürer. The market understood: £ 5.6 million including premium.
The artist, Georg Pencz, was known at Nuremberg as the best pupil of Dürer. At that time the German art was imbued with the Italian influence. Pencz is also (and mostly) famous as a printmaker. The painting is signed with his monogram.
The model, Sigismund Baldinger, is a typical member of the commercial bourgeoisie. Based in Nuremberg where he joined the council, he worked for a merchant family of Augsburg.
In 1545, Baldinger was 35 years old. He is a bearded man with short hair, well dressed, very modern-looking. Solid and confident, he gazes with authority and courtesy. If he believes that this artwork forwards the image of his glory to his descendants, he is right. He will be knighted soon after and this oil on panel, 135 x 118 cm, will remain in his family for nearly four centuries.
POST SALE COMMENT
This portrait of a civilian is altogether rare, large size and of high quality. It is not easy to find an auction history for this pupil of Dürer. The market understood: £ 5.6 million including premium.
early 1620s The Baroque Synthesis of Johann Liss
2019 SOLD for £ 5.7M including premium
Johann Liss was born in Oldenburg near Lübeck. The artistic tradition was almost nonexistent in Holstein. Ready to capture all the new trends, the young man begins his journey circa 1615. In Haarlem he is appealed by the eroticism of Goltzius. Later he will be nicknamed Pan. Around 1618, just over 20 years old, he incorporates the style and some themes from Rubens and Jordaens.
Like so many others including the Caravagesques of Utrecht, he arrives in Italy. He shares his time between Rome and Venice. He will not finish this classic learning tour : he dies in Verona in the epidemic of plague that started in Venice in 1629.
Sandrart, who knew him very well in Venice in 1629, reminded his predilection for this city where they appreciate the expressive colors of Titian and Veronese. He also narrated the impulsive creativity of Liss, able to seek inspiration for several days before rushing to do a new work without taking time to eat and sleep. This immutable cycle ends with a wandering during which he empties his purse we do not know where.
St. Mary Magdalene between Vice and Virtue is a theme borrowed from Jordaens. The semi-nude woman in ecstasy has chosen the nice young Angel who brings her the palm of repentance. She holds a skull, the usual symbol of vanity, and ignores the old woman who is presenting the treasures of the Orient.
This work was composed in the early 1620s. The contrasting lighting, bright on the Good and nonexistent on the Evil, is Caravagesque. The Venetian influence, by which one expects the luxury of the clothes and the shock of the colors, is obvious but not yet dominant.
Two identical oils on canvas exist. Both can be autograph. One of them, 114 x 135 cm, is kept in the Dresden Museum. The other, 99 x 126 cm, surfaced more recently. It was sold for £ 1M including premium by Christie's on December 9, 1994 and is estimated £ 4M for sale by Sotheby's in London on July 3, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's where it is compared with a small painting by Wtewael.
Like so many others including the Caravagesques of Utrecht, he arrives in Italy. He shares his time between Rome and Venice. He will not finish this classic learning tour : he dies in Verona in the epidemic of plague that started in Venice in 1629.
Sandrart, who knew him very well in Venice in 1629, reminded his predilection for this city where they appreciate the expressive colors of Titian and Veronese. He also narrated the impulsive creativity of Liss, able to seek inspiration for several days before rushing to do a new work without taking time to eat and sleep. This immutable cycle ends with a wandering during which he empties his purse we do not know where.
St. Mary Magdalene between Vice and Virtue is a theme borrowed from Jordaens. The semi-nude woman in ecstasy has chosen the nice young Angel who brings her the palm of repentance. She holds a skull, the usual symbol of vanity, and ignores the old woman who is presenting the treasures of the Orient.
This work was composed in the early 1620s. The contrasting lighting, bright on the Good and nonexistent on the Evil, is Caravagesque. The Venetian influence, by which one expects the luxury of the clothes and the shock of the colors, is obvious but not yet dominant.
Two identical oils on canvas exist. Both can be autograph. One of them, 114 x 135 cm, is kept in the Dresden Museum. The other, 99 x 126 cm, surfaced more recently. It was sold for £ 1M including premium by Christie's on December 9, 1994 and is estimated £ 4M for sale by Sotheby's in London on July 3, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by Sotheby's where it is compared with a small painting by Wtewael.
#AuctionUpdate One of the finest examples of the Johann Liss’ work to remain in private hands, this captivating portrayal of Mary Magdalene choosing Salvation over Temptation sets a new artist record at £5,665,200. #SothebysOldMasters pic.twitter.com/y5ULAr506W
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) July 3, 2019
1740 Improvisation for Lautenwerk
2016 SOLD for £ 2.5M including premium
On July 13 in London, Christie's sells the autograph manuscript of a work of instrumental music by Johann Sebastian Bach, designated by the reference 998 in the Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (BWV). It is estimated £ 1.5M, lot 129.
This document is a masterpiece of spontaneity that brings us into the creative process of the most gifted musician. It was probably written in improvisation on the two sides of a reused sheet music. The sheet was later separated into two parts, presumably to facilitate its use.
The musical writing is easy but the creative impulse just missed to overflow the surface of the paper. The sheet is signed and titled in a poor French "Prelude (Fuga, Allegro) pour la Luth ô Cembal". The manuscript is complete of its three movements.
This music was composed for a solo instrument. The BWV classes it amidst the works for lute but Christie's catalog observes that this opus was not fully compatible with the lutes of its time.
It was probably intended for a Lautenwerk, an instrument similar to a harpsichord whose metal strings were replaced with gut strings plucked by quills. The mellow tone of a Lautenwerk supports a fast and playful music. The allegro of BWV998 can be danced.
BWV998 may be dated around 1740, at a time when Bach confronted the Lautenwerk with the lute for his friends. He owned two Lautenwerk. Besides his skilled hands, this instrument was never popular and disappeared almost completely. TheLautenwerck page in Wikipedia offers a recording of BWV998 on a recreated Lautenwerk.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's:
This document is a masterpiece of spontaneity that brings us into the creative process of the most gifted musician. It was probably written in improvisation on the two sides of a reused sheet music. The sheet was later separated into two parts, presumably to facilitate its use.
The musical writing is easy but the creative impulse just missed to overflow the surface of the paper. The sheet is signed and titled in a poor French "Prelude (Fuga, Allegro) pour la Luth ô Cembal". The manuscript is complete of its three movements.
This music was composed for a solo instrument. The BWV classes it amidst the works for lute but Christie's catalog observes that this opus was not fully compatible with the lutes of its time.
It was probably intended for a Lautenwerk, an instrument similar to a harpsichord whose metal strings were replaced with gut strings plucked by quills. The mellow tone of a Lautenwerk supports a fast and playful music. The allegro of BWV998 can be danced.
BWV998 may be dated around 1740, at a time when Bach confronted the Lautenwerk with the lute for his friends. He owned two Lautenwerk. Besides his skilled hands, this instrument was never popular and disappeared almost completely. TheLautenwerck page in Wikipedia offers a recording of BWV998 on a recreated Lautenwerk.
Please watch the video shared by Christie's:
1762 Conversation with Garrick
2011 SOLD 6.8 M£ including premium
Two centuries after Shakespeare, one century after Molière, the dominant figure of the theater was David Garrick. That illustrious actor was also known to manage his own career, and reached in his time a considerable fame and high social rank. He was however not knighted.
In 1754, Garrick bought a luxurious villa on the banks of the Thames in Hampton. He had built by Robert Adam a temple to Shakespeare in neo-Greek style. This building is now a museum dedicated to Garrick.
At that time in England, the fashion in painting is the conversation piece. Influenced by the Dutch genre scenes, this style shows the sponsor of the painting surrounded by family and friends. The faces are clearly identifiable, and attitudes are active and friendly.
Garrick was introduced to all the great English painters of his time. Yet in 1762, he entrusted to a young German artist recently arrived in England the task of executing a pair of conversation pieces in Hampton. After this first success, Johann Zoffany became the best painter in this theme.
This pair of oils on canvas, 100 x 125 cm each, is estimated £ 6M, for sale by Sotheby's in London on December 7.
One of them, showing the afternoon tea on the lawn along the river, is illustrated in the press release shared by AuctionPublicity. The other, showing Mr. and Mrs. Garrick in front of Shakespeare temple, is illustrated in the Wikipedia.
POST SALE COMMENT
This lot apparently atypical was in fact quite representative of the art of its time. The sale could be considered difficult, but it is successful: £ 6.8 million including premium.
Here is the Wikipedia image :
In 1754, Garrick bought a luxurious villa on the banks of the Thames in Hampton. He had built by Robert Adam a temple to Shakespeare in neo-Greek style. This building is now a museum dedicated to Garrick.
At that time in England, the fashion in painting is the conversation piece. Influenced by the Dutch genre scenes, this style shows the sponsor of the painting surrounded by family and friends. The faces are clearly identifiable, and attitudes are active and friendly.
Garrick was introduced to all the great English painters of his time. Yet in 1762, he entrusted to a young German artist recently arrived in England the task of executing a pair of conversation pieces in Hampton. After this first success, Johann Zoffany became the best painter in this theme.
This pair of oils on canvas, 100 x 125 cm each, is estimated £ 6M, for sale by Sotheby's in London on December 7.
One of them, showing the afternoon tea on the lawn along the river, is illustrated in the press release shared by AuctionPublicity. The other, showing Mr. and Mrs. Garrick in front of Shakespeare temple, is illustrated in the Wikipedia.
POST SALE COMMENT
This lot apparently atypical was in fact quite representative of the art of its time. The sale could be considered difficult, but it is successful: £ 6.8 million including premium.
Here is the Wikipedia image :
