Decade 1520-1529
Except otherwise stated, all results include the premium.
See also : Ancient painting Ancient Germany Cranach Flemish art Ancient drawing Children Madonna and Child
See also : Ancient painting Ancient Germany Cranach Flemish art Ancient drawing Children Madonna and Child
1520 Portrait of Suleyman
2019 SOLD for £ 5.3M by Sotheby's
Mehmed the Conqueror, the seventh Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, broke the iconoclastic obligation of Islam. In 1479, to celebrate the peace treaty with the Republic of Venice, he wanted his portrait to be painted in the Western tradition by the best Venetian artist. Gentile Bellini carried out this mission to the greatest satisfaction of the Sultan. His image will also be used as a diplomatic gift.
This achievement generates a kind of frustration when Mehmed's successor returns to iconoclasm. Wealthy Venetian merchants who profit from the new Ottoman expansion would like to know what the "boss" looks like.
A new era opens in 1520 with the coming to power of Suleyman. Aged 26, he has global ambitions and a lot of skills. He will keep such promises : his reign of 46 years was the culmination of the Ottoman culture and he was nicknamed "the Magnificent" by Westerners for his activity as a legislator.
Upon his accession, an unidentified artist painted a portrait of Suleyman in profile in the style of Bellini, probably without having the formal permission of the Sultan. This image was reused in 1526 in Europe after Suleyman's victory over the Hungarians at the Battle of Mohacs.
An oil on panel 33 x 28 cm bearing the Latin inscription Suleiman Turchorum Imperator Maximus may well be the original version of this portrait. It was sold for £ 5.3M from a lower estimate of £ 250K by Sotheby's on May 1, 2019, lot 129.
This achievement generates a kind of frustration when Mehmed's successor returns to iconoclasm. Wealthy Venetian merchants who profit from the new Ottoman expansion would like to know what the "boss" looks like.
A new era opens in 1520 with the coming to power of Suleyman. Aged 26, he has global ambitions and a lot of skills. He will keep such promises : his reign of 46 years was the culmination of the Ottoman culture and he was nicknamed "the Magnificent" by Westerners for his activity as a legislator.
Upon his accession, an unidentified artist painted a portrait of Suleyman in profile in the style of Bellini, probably without having the formal permission of the Sultan. This image was reused in 1526 in Europe after Suleyman's victory over the Hungarians at the Battle of Mohacs.
An oil on panel 33 x 28 cm bearing the Latin inscription Suleiman Turchorum Imperator Maximus may well be the original version of this portrait. It was sold for £ 5.3M from a lower estimate of £ 250K by Sotheby's on May 1, 2019, lot 129.
#AuctionUpdate Royal Flush: This rare Venetian portrait of Ottoman Sultan Suleyman the Great was met with determined bidding, as three bidders pushed the price to £5,323,500 - 18 x its estimate! #SothebysMiddleEast pic.twitter.com/dyjutAPGnJ
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) May 1, 2019
1523 Head of Saint Joseph by Andrea del Sarto
2005 SOLD for £ 6.5M by Christie's
The drawing is a preparatory work indispensable to the painters of the later Renaissance. Raphael and Michelangelo produce high quality drawings which they retain as reusable models : these artworks are the ben finito cartoni.
Some copies are pierced to ensure an exact reproduction of the lines when executing the final painting. A black chalk drawing by Raphael, perforated for an application on the Vatican frescoes, was sold for £ 29M by Christie's on December 8, 2009.
The red chalk or sanguine is also in use. The earliest artist who mixed the two chalks on a same drawing was probably Piero Pollaiuolo around 1470. Fra Bartolommeo followed this technique when he prepared a group of portraits around 1515.
In the abundant work of Andrea del Sarto, only three drawings in two chalks have survived. All three are studies of an old man's head for St. Joseph. Their applications for paintings made by this master in the 1520s have been identified with certainty.
In the following of Fra Bartolommeo, Andrea draws the main lines in black and inserts the sanguine to bring a fleshy effect on cheeks, lips and ears. The drawing is then providing a realistic impression that foresees the actual look of the painting.
One of the three drawings of St. Joseph is preserved at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. Another one, 37 x 23 cm with a leg study in the sanguine on the back side, was sold for £ 6.5M by Christie's on July 5, 2005, lot 14.
The third drawing was sold for € 3.9M by Gestas et Carrère on December 17, 2016.
Some copies are pierced to ensure an exact reproduction of the lines when executing the final painting. A black chalk drawing by Raphael, perforated for an application on the Vatican frescoes, was sold for £ 29M by Christie's on December 8, 2009.
The red chalk or sanguine is also in use. The earliest artist who mixed the two chalks on a same drawing was probably Piero Pollaiuolo around 1470. Fra Bartolommeo followed this technique when he prepared a group of portraits around 1515.
In the abundant work of Andrea del Sarto, only three drawings in two chalks have survived. All three are studies of an old man's head for St. Joseph. Their applications for paintings made by this master in the 1520s have been identified with certainty.
In the following of Fra Bartolommeo, Andrea draws the main lines in black and inserts the sanguine to bring a fleshy effect on cheeks, lips and ears. The drawing is then providing a realistic impression that foresees the actual look of the painting.
One of the three drawings of St. Joseph is preserved at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. Another one, 37 x 23 cm with a leg study in the sanguine on the back side, was sold for £ 6.5M by Christie's on July 5, 2005, lot 14.
The third drawing was sold for € 3.9M by Gestas et Carrère on December 17, 2016.
Old man's head drawings for St. Joseph by Andrea del Sarto : compare the three examples : Ashmolean Museum in Oxford ; sold by Christie's on July 5, 2005, lot 14 ; sold by Gestas et Carrère on December 17, 2016. Significance in the artist's career.
The Three Drawings: Comparison
Andrea del Sarto (1486–1530) produced several masterful head studies of old men, often as preparatory works for the figure of Saint Joseph in his Holy Family compositions during the 1520s, his mature late period. These drawings exemplify his renowned skill as a draughtsman, particularly in capturing naturalistic expression, subtle modeling of form, and emotional depth using chalk. The three specific examples mentioned are all accepted as autograph works and represent variations on the theme of an aged, contemplative Saint Joseph.
These head studies date to the 1520s, del Sarto's peak mature period after his brief French court sojourn (1518–1519) and return to Florence. By this time, he ran the most successful workshop in the city and earned the nickname "Andrea senza errori" (Andrea the faultless) for his technical perfection.
The Three Drawings: Comparison
Andrea del Sarto (1486–1530) produced several masterful head studies of old men, often as preparatory works for the figure of Saint Joseph in his Holy Family compositions during the 1520s, his mature late period. These drawings exemplify his renowned skill as a draughtsman, particularly in capturing naturalistic expression, subtle modeling of form, and emotional depth using chalk. The three specific examples mentioned are all accepted as autograph works and represent variations on the theme of an aged, contemplative Saint Joseph.
- Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
- Medium: Red chalk (with some later reinforcements in black chalk noted in older scholarship).
- Pose: Head of an old man in profile or three-quarter view, often looking upward or slightly down, with a contemplative or weary expression.
- Characteristics: Soft, tonal modeling typical of del Sarto's red chalk technique; emphasizes volume and aged features (wrinkles, beard). This drawing has been associated with a lost Holy Family known through copies (e.g., a panel in the Uffizi). It was once questioned but is now widely accepted as authentic.
- Visual: Gentle, atmospheric rendering with subtle gradations.
artssummary.com
- Sold at Christie's, London, July 5, 2005 (Lot 14)
- Title/Description: Head of Saint Joseph looking down, with a subsidiary study of his features (recto); Two studies of legs (verso).
- Medium: Black and red chalk (recto); red chalk (verso).
- Provenance: Formerly owned by Giorgio Vasari; on a characteristic Vasari mount.
- Related painting: Directly connected to the head of Saint Joseph in the Holy Family (c. 1523) commissioned by Zanobi Bracci, now in the Palazzo Pitti, Florence (Galleria Palatina). The main head study matches the painted dimensions almost exactly.
- Pose: Primary study shows the head looking down, with a smaller subsidiary study; expressive and introspective.
- Characteristics: Combines black and red chalk for contrast and depth; highly finished, showing del Sarto's precision.
- Sold by Gestas et Carrère, Paris, December 17, 2016
- Description: A red chalk study of the head of an old man (tête de vieillard), preparatory for Saint Joseph.
- Medium: Primarily red chalk.
- Characteristics: Exceptional quality, with fluid, vibrant modeling; sold for a record price (around €4 million), reflecting its pristine condition and mastery. Likely from the late 1520s, similar to other mature head studies.
- Pose: Contemplative old man, beard and aged features prominently rendered.
- Visual: Emphasizes del Sarto's characteristic warmth and lifelike presence in red chalk.
- Medium and Technique: The Ashmolean and 2016 sale examples are predominantly red chalk (del Sarto's preferred medium for its tonal softness and ability to convey flesh). The 2005 Christie's drawing uniquely combines black and red chalk on the recto, allowing sharper contrasts and finer details—possibly reflecting experimentation in his late phase.
- Pose and Expression: All show an elderly man with beard, evoking Saint Joseph's contemplative role. The Christie's version has a downward gaze (matching the Pitti painting's resting pose); the others tend toward upward or neutral gazes, suggesting different compositional explorations.
- Finish and Purpose: The Christie's drawing is highly resolved (near painting scale) and directly tied to a known work. The Ashmolean is linked to a lost composition, while the 2016 example appears as a pure life study, capturing raw observation.
- Style: All demonstrate del Sarto's hallmark naturalism, moving beyond idealization toward psychological depth—influenced by Leonardo but with greater immediacy.
These head studies date to the 1520s, del Sarto's peak mature period after his brief French court sojourn (1518–1519) and return to Florence. By this time, he ran the most successful workshop in the city and earned the nickname "Andrea senza errori" (Andrea the faultless) for his technical perfection.
- Draughtsmanship Mastery: Del Sarto transformed drawing into a central tool for exploring realism and expression. His numerous head studies (especially of apostles and saints like Joseph) reflect intensive preparation from live models, achieving unprecedented lifelikeness and emotional subtlety. Exhibitions (e.g., Frick Collection 2015, Getty) highlight how these works showcase his "rough and rustic" chalk handling, bringing vitality absent in contemporaries.
- Late Style Development: Black chalk heads (as in the Christie's example) are often associated with his final years, alongside red chalk dominance. These studies mark a shift toward greater psychological intensity and naturalism, influencing pupils like Pontormo and Rosso Fiorentino.
- Legacy: Vasari prized such drawings (owning the Christie's sheet), and they underscore why del Sarto was called the "perfect" painter-draughtsman—bridging High Renaissance harmony with emerging Mannerist expressiveness, despite his relative obscurity today compared to Michelangelo or Raphael.
Young Man by PONTORMO and BRONZINO
1
for reference of date
1525-1526 by Pontormo
Palazzo Mansi in Lucca
Jacopo da Pontormo is developing a new pictorial style in Florence, emphasizing psychological expression and storytelling over realism. A pupil of Andrea del Sarto, he is also a follower of Piero di Cosimo. He is a fresco and portrait painter.
His mythological and biblical works are at the origin of the mannerism with which the expression of the feelings supersede the realism of the attitudes.
He was the most appreciated portrait painter to the court of Florence at a brilliant intellectual time when customers requiring for art were expanding beyond the ruling family.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
His mythological and biblical works are at the origin of the mannerism with which the expression of the feelings supersede the realism of the attitudes.
He was the most appreciated portrait painter to the court of Florence at a brilliant intellectual time when customers requiring for art were expanding beyond the ruling family.
The image is shared by Wikimedia.
2
1525-1527 with a book by Bronzino
2015 SOLD for $ 9.1M by Christie's
The portrait of a young writer, oil on panel 94 x 78 cm, was described in 1842 in the collections of Palazzo Corsini. Its importance was not identified at that time and it was later known through a copy which was sufficient to state that it was not a work by Pontormo.
Re-submitted to experts from 2010, it is now attributed firmly to Agnolo Bronzino when he was an apprentice of Pontormo. It was sold for $ 9.1M by Christie's on January 28, 2015, lot 129. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Vasari acknowledged the fast and neat skill of the pupil and the difficulty of separating the works of Pontormo and Bronzino. The elegant and somewhat elongated figures by the pupil appear with cold detachment in opposition with the emotion of those by his teacher. The very thin painting layer of our portrait of a writer is matching Vasari's observation.
Experts identified a probable date of the work in comparison with other paintings by Bronzino : between 1525 and 1527.
Re-submitted to experts from 2010, it is now attributed firmly to Agnolo Bronzino when he was an apprentice of Pontormo. It was sold for $ 9.1M by Christie's on January 28, 2015, lot 129. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
Vasari acknowledged the fast and neat skill of the pupil and the difficulty of separating the works of Pontormo and Bronzino. The elegant and somewhat elongated figures by the pupil appear with cold detachment in opposition with the emotion of those by his teacher. The very thin painting layer of our portrait of a writer is matching Vasari's observation.
Experts identified a probable date of the work in comparison with other paintings by Bronzino : between 1525 and 1527.
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3
1527 with quill and sheet by Bronzino
2023 SOLD for $ 10.7M by Sotheby's
When he was still an apprentice to Pontormo in the mid 1520s, Agnolo Bronzino began a series of portraits of young men standing in three quarter length, often with attributes of writing, and possibly from a now lost modello.
Recently restituted to the family that lost it during the Nazi persecutions, one of these portraits, oil on panel 78 x 55 cm, was sold for $ 10.7M from a lower estimate of $ 3M by Sotheby's on January 26M, 2023, lot 106. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The man in his early twenties is holding a quill in his right hand over an open inkwell. He puts his left index finger on a piece of paper hand written with a Latin quatrain made fully readable on the picture. This writing is similar as a poem by Cicero on friendship in a picture by Pontormo.
The man with quill and sheet has the elongated face and the self confident gaze typical of Bronzino's portraits of the same time. A more specific comparison in style and technique may be made with the portrait of an identified teenager, also set against a simple green background, a hand on a handwritten poetry, painted during the Florence plague of 1527-1528.
Recently restituted to the family that lost it during the Nazi persecutions, one of these portraits, oil on panel 78 x 55 cm, was sold for $ 10.7M from a lower estimate of $ 3M by Sotheby's on January 26M, 2023, lot 106. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The man in his early twenties is holding a quill in his right hand over an open inkwell. He puts his left index finger on a piece of paper hand written with a Latin quatrain made fully readable on the picture. This writing is similar as a poem by Cicero on friendship in a picture by Pontormo.
The man with quill and sheet has the elongated face and the self confident gaze typical of Bronzino's portraits of the same time. A more specific comparison in style and technique may be made with the portrait of an identified teenager, also set against a simple green background, a hand on a handwritten poetry, painted during the Florence plague of 1527-1528.
#AuctionUpdate: In its auction debut, the recently rediscovered 'Portrait of a young man with a quill and a sheet of paper' by Bronzino electrified the room at #SothebysNewYork.
— Sotheby's (@Sothebys) January 26, 2023
After rounds of fierce bidding, the piece sold for over $10.6M, setting a new record for the artist. pic.twitter.com/RJYnFYf8ra
4
for reference
1527-1528 Lorenzo Lenzi by Bronzino
Castello Sforzesco
The portrait of a teenager, set against a simple green background, a hand on a handwritten poetry, painted during the Florence plague of 1527-1528. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
5
1529 Halberdier by Pontormo
1989 SOLD for $ 35M by Christie's
The Portrait of a Halberdier is an oil (or oil and tempera) on panel transferred to canvas 95 x 73 cm. This arrogant young man with a smooth and beardless face who is bulging his chest to the limit does not look like an infantry soldier. He is too richly dressed : he is an aristocrat.
By its military theme, this image enters into the context of the siege of Florence by the imperial armies in 1529. This date is all the more plausible as it corresponds to the period of greatest creativity of Pontormo, who will soon cease to resist his mental disorders.
Under these conditions, the young man is probably Francesco Guardi, aged fifteen. The wearing of the halberd would be a pun associated with the function of guardian evoked by his patronym.
The Portrait of a Halberdier was sold for $ 35M by Christie's on May 31, 1989. It was purchased at this sale by the J. Paul Getty Museum. The image is shared by Wikimedia. Because of its great pictorial quality, experts want to recognize in this portrait a work that was specifically admired by Vasari.
Grok thought :
Quote
Willie Chunderan @williechunderan Oct 13, 2024
RENAISSANCE ART AND ARCHITECTURE Vincent DeLuise THE MONUMENTALITY OF PONTORMO: The Halberdier I had the opportunity in summer 2021 to spend several hours in the splendor of cinquecento portraiture in the Medici court, in that spectacular Metropolitan Museum of Art blockbuster
Grok thought :
The Portrait of a Halberdier by Jacopo Pontormo, created around 1529–1530 or possibly later in the 1530s, features a young man in elaborate attire holding a halberd (a pole weapon combining a spear and battle-axe). The painting's symbolic elements are deeply tied to the turbulent political context of Florence during the late Renaissance, including the 1529–1530 Siege of Florence by imperial Spanish forces and the transition from republican to Medici ducal rule. Interpretations often hinge on the debated identity of the sitter—potentially Francesco Guardi (a republican defender), a young Cosimo I de' Medici (symbolizing Medici triumph), or others like Ercole Rangone—leading to ambivalent republican or monarchic readings. Below, I outline key symbolic meanings drawn from art historical analyses.
The Halberd
This weapon symbolizes martial prowess and defense. In a republican interpretation (as Francesco Guardi), it represents the young Florentine militiamen's role in resisting the siege, where even teenagers patrolled and armed themselves to protect the republic against Medici-backed imperial forces. For a monarchic view (as Cosimo I), it underscores the consolidation of ducal military authority after victories like the Battle of Montemurlo in 1537.
The Medallion (Hat Badge or Cap Brooch)
The badge depicts Hercules wrestling or lifting Antaeus, a classical motif symbolizing strength, triumph over adversity, and heroic victory. Hercules was a patron emblem of Florence overall, but in Medici contexts, it allegorizes Cosimo's defeats of republican exiles (fuorusciti) like the Strozzi family, assimilating civic symbols into absolutist propaganda. In a republican lens, it evokes Florentine resistance to Medici control, echoing unexecuted works like Michelangelo's Hercules and Antaeus for Palazzo Vecchio. Its ambiguity makes it a versatile Renaissance reference to fortitude rather than a definitive identifier.
The Background Fortress or Bastion
The faint wall or fortification in the background symbolizes defensive resilience amid siege warfare. For Guardi, it may reference specific sites like San Miniato al Monte, tying into themes of property defense ("guardio del monte") and republican guardianship. In Cosimo's case, it claims authority over Florentine strongholds, reinforcing ducal power.
Clothing and Attire
The sitter's sumptuous, fashionable outfit—red cap, golden pin, sheathed sword, and elaborate uniform—symbolizes social status, youthful pomp, and the "splendid armament" of Florentine militia youths during the siege, as chronicled by historians like Benedetto Varchi and Jacopo Nardi. This attire reflects gendered social codes and generational tensions in the Last Florentine Republic, where young men faced pressures to embody idealized, heroic masculinity despite their inexperience.
Pose, Expression, and Overall Figure
The direct gaze, swaggering stance, and idealized features (large eyes, curly hair, smooth face) convey naive arrogance, psychological depth, and "bella gioventù" (beautiful youth), drawing from classical archetypes like Octavian Augustus or Saint George. This symbolizes poignant vulnerability amid heroism—a slim teenager posing as a confident guardian—highlighting the contrast between appearance and reality in times of political upheaval.
The painting's overarching symbolism embodies Florence's political ambivalence: republican ideals of liberty and defense versus Medici monarchic triumph, with elements adaptable to either narrative due to the era's cultural assimilation of symbols.
By its military theme, this image enters into the context of the siege of Florence by the imperial armies in 1529. This date is all the more plausible as it corresponds to the period of greatest creativity of Pontormo, who will soon cease to resist his mental disorders.
Under these conditions, the young man is probably Francesco Guardi, aged fifteen. The wearing of the halberd would be a pun associated with the function of guardian evoked by his patronym.
The Portrait of a Halberdier was sold for $ 35M by Christie's on May 31, 1989. It was purchased at this sale by the J. Paul Getty Museum. The image is shared by Wikimedia. Because of its great pictorial quality, experts want to recognize in this portrait a work that was specifically admired by Vasari.
Grok thought :
Quote
Willie Chunderan @williechunderan Oct 13, 2024
RENAISSANCE ART AND ARCHITECTURE Vincent DeLuise THE MONUMENTALITY OF PONTORMO: The Halberdier I had the opportunity in summer 2021 to spend several hours in the splendor of cinquecento portraiture in the Medici court, in that spectacular Metropolitan Museum of Art blockbuster
- Pontormo's "Portrait of a Halberdier" (c. 1530) exemplifies Mannerism through its elongated forms, like the subject's oversized left arm, ambiguous shadowy background suggesting a fortress, and refined garment textures that create optical tension.
- The sitter's identity remains debated: Giorgio Vasari identified him as Francesco Guardi, a young noble during Florence's 1529 siege, while art historian Elizabeth Cropper argues for Cosimo de' Medici based on 1612 inventory evidence, highlighting the painting's symbolic depth.
- Displayed prominently in the 2021 Metropolitan Museum exhibition "The Medici: Portraits and Politics," the work reflects Pontormo's role as court painter, pioneering elegant, reserved portraits for the Medici elite amid Renaissance-to-Mannerist transitions.
Grok thought :
The Portrait of a Halberdier by Jacopo Pontormo, created around 1529–1530 or possibly later in the 1530s, features a young man in elaborate attire holding a halberd (a pole weapon combining a spear and battle-axe). The painting's symbolic elements are deeply tied to the turbulent political context of Florence during the late Renaissance, including the 1529–1530 Siege of Florence by imperial Spanish forces and the transition from republican to Medici ducal rule. Interpretations often hinge on the debated identity of the sitter—potentially Francesco Guardi (a republican defender), a young Cosimo I de' Medici (symbolizing Medici triumph), or others like Ercole Rangone—leading to ambivalent republican or monarchic readings. Below, I outline key symbolic meanings drawn from art historical analyses.
The Halberd
This weapon symbolizes martial prowess and defense. In a republican interpretation (as Francesco Guardi), it represents the young Florentine militiamen's role in resisting the siege, where even teenagers patrolled and armed themselves to protect the republic against Medici-backed imperial forces. For a monarchic view (as Cosimo I), it underscores the consolidation of ducal military authority after victories like the Battle of Montemurlo in 1537.
The Medallion (Hat Badge or Cap Brooch)
The badge depicts Hercules wrestling or lifting Antaeus, a classical motif symbolizing strength, triumph over adversity, and heroic victory. Hercules was a patron emblem of Florence overall, but in Medici contexts, it allegorizes Cosimo's defeats of republican exiles (fuorusciti) like the Strozzi family, assimilating civic symbols into absolutist propaganda. In a republican lens, it evokes Florentine resistance to Medici control, echoing unexecuted works like Michelangelo's Hercules and Antaeus for Palazzo Vecchio. Its ambiguity makes it a versatile Renaissance reference to fortitude rather than a definitive identifier.
The Background Fortress or Bastion
The faint wall or fortification in the background symbolizes defensive resilience amid siege warfare. For Guardi, it may reference specific sites like San Miniato al Monte, tying into themes of property defense ("guardio del monte") and republican guardianship. In Cosimo's case, it claims authority over Florentine strongholds, reinforcing ducal power.
Clothing and Attire
The sitter's sumptuous, fashionable outfit—red cap, golden pin, sheathed sword, and elaborate uniform—symbolizes social status, youthful pomp, and the "splendid armament" of Florentine militia youths during the siege, as chronicled by historians like Benedetto Varchi and Jacopo Nardi. This attire reflects gendered social codes and generational tensions in the Last Florentine Republic, where young men faced pressures to embody idealized, heroic masculinity despite their inexperience.
Pose, Expression, and Overall Figure
The direct gaze, swaggering stance, and idealized features (large eyes, curly hair, smooth face) convey naive arrogance, psychological depth, and "bella gioventù" (beautiful youth), drawing from classical archetypes like Octavian Augustus or Saint George. This symbolizes poignant vulnerability amid heroism—a slim teenager posing as a confident guardian—highlighting the contrast between appearance and reality in times of political upheaval.
The painting's overarching symbolism embodies Florence's political ambivalence: republican ideals of liberty and defense versus Medici monarchic triumph, with elements adaptable to either narrative due to the era's cultural assimilation of symbols.
CRANACH
1
1527 Sibylle of Cleves
2008 SOLD for $ 7.7M by Christie's
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 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 by Christie's on April 15, 2008, lot 12. The image is shared by Wikimedia.
later 1520s Bocca della Verita
2015 SOLD for £ 9.3M by Sotheby's
Lucas Cranach enjoyed all topics related to morality, not without humor.
Bocca della Verita, oil on panel in large size 111 x 100 cm painted at the end of the 1520, was sold for £ 9.3M from a lower estimate of £ 6M by Sotheby's on July 8, 2015, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
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.
Bocca della Verita, oil on panel in large size 111 x 100 cm painted at the end of the 1520, was sold for £ 9.3M from a lower estimate of £ 6M by Sotheby's on July 8, 2015, lot 8. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
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.
ca 1520s Portrait of a young man by Lucas van Leyden
2018 SOLD for £ 11.5M by Christie's
The city of Leiden has become rich thanks to its weaving industry. The crafts were also developed : printing press from 1483, glass etching, goldsmith's work. Its earliest important painter, Cornelis Engebrechtsz or Engelbrechtsz, who specializes in Biblical scenes, trains his sons and his apprentices.
A pupil of Cornelis, Lucas Hugensz is skilled for graphic arts. From his adolescence, he shows a great maturity. Beginning in 1508, his engraved work is important, with an abundance and sharpness of details and a beauty of contrasts that have enthralled Dürer. The colors of his paintings are the brightest of his time. He is known as Lucas van Leyden.
Lucas was born in Leiden. It is believed that his father was a painter. His date of birth is questioned. We do not know how he learned engraving or after whom he specialized in his genre scenes animated by crowds of characters. He married in Leiden in 1515 and died in 1533 at about 40 years old.
His biography is blurred by his praise by van Mander, born fifteen years after the death of Lucas, who could however have collected the memories of direct witnesses. Lucas appears passionate about his art from his childhood, working day and night until the exhaustion that will shorten his life.
The autograph works by Lucas van Leyden are extremely rare at auction. On December 4, 2018, Christie's sold as lot 60 for £ 11.5M from an estimate in the region of £ 1.5M a 28 x 13 cm black chalk drawing of a richly dressed young man standing, probably a study for a detail of a composition that has not been identified. The watermark is known in Netherlands and Germany in the 1520s and 1530s.
This drawing belonged to the Rugby School and is sold for the benefit of its educational program
A pupil of Cornelis, Lucas Hugensz is skilled for graphic arts. From his adolescence, he shows a great maturity. Beginning in 1508, his engraved work is important, with an abundance and sharpness of details and a beauty of contrasts that have enthralled Dürer. The colors of his paintings are the brightest of his time. He is known as Lucas van Leyden.
Lucas was born in Leiden. It is believed that his father was a painter. His date of birth is questioned. We do not know how he learned engraving or after whom he specialized in his genre scenes animated by crowds of characters. He married in Leiden in 1515 and died in 1533 at about 40 years old.
His biography is blurred by his praise by van Mander, born fifteen years after the death of Lucas, who could however have collected the memories of direct witnesses. Lucas appears passionate about his art from his childhood, working day and night until the exhaustion that will shorten his life.
The autograph works by Lucas van Leyden are extremely rare at auction. On December 4, 2018, Christie's sold as lot 60 for £ 11.5M from an estimate in the region of £ 1.5M a 28 x 13 cm black chalk drawing of a richly dressed young man standing, probably a study for a detail of a composition that has not been identified. The watermark is known in Netherlands and Germany in the 1520s and 1530s.
This drawing belonged to the Rugby School and is sold for the benefit of its educational program
On 4 December Christie’s will present 'Old Masters/New Scholars: Works of Art to Benefit Rugby School,' led by a rare drawing by the Dutch Old Master painter and printmaker Lucas van Leyden.
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) October 7, 2018
Find out more about the sale here:https://t.co/AYcX38U2C7 pic.twitter.com/qNFrXbi61L
1520s Madonna of the Cherries by Metsys
2024 SOLD for £ 10.7M by Christie's
At the turn of the 1520s the leading master painter in Antwerp was Quentin Metsys (also spelled Massys).
The Virgin was the protector of the city. The cathedral was devoted to her. Every year on Assumption Day a lavish procession carried her image everywhere in the city.
Metsys did not miss that theme. He re-used an image from Byzantine icons on which the Virgin kisses the naked infant Christ on the mouth as he wraps his arms around her neck. Such group had been introduced in Netherlands during the Quattrocento by Dirk Bouts, to remind that Christ was born a human emotional being.
In the Madonna of the Cherries, Metsys features the group on a lavish throne. Fruit symbols are a couple of cherries in Mary's hand, plus apple and grape on a ledge in the foreground. They respectively refer to Paradise, to the original sin and to the eucharistic wine of the Last Supper.
A subtlety is added. The plump infant is so tenderly attached to the mother that he cannot perceive the cherries, carefully kept away from him as a symbol of greed which is not rejected by his supposedly pure and somehow stoic mother.
The original work was famous in Antwerp in the next century. A painting by van Haecht commemorates a visit to van der Geest by Archdukes Albert and Isabella. Highlighted by the collector amidst an imaginary gathering of famous masterpieces, the Madonna of the cherries is demonstrated by van der Geest to his archducal visitors while the likes of Rubens and van Dyck are attending.
That Madonna went out of view after a sale in 1668. The painting sold in 1920 from the Château de la Muette was considered as a copy. After being sold with an attribution to the Studio of Metsys for £ 255K by Christie's on July 9, 2015, lot 6, the La Muette copy has been cleaned of its ugly coating and repaints. In that process the green curtain hiding the landscape has been canceled.
Now acknowledged as the lost original, this oil on panel 75 x 63 cm was sold for £ 10.7M from a lower estimate of £ 8M for sale by Christie's on July 2, 2024, lot 4. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
The Virgin was the protector of the city. The cathedral was devoted to her. Every year on Assumption Day a lavish procession carried her image everywhere in the city.
Metsys did not miss that theme. He re-used an image from Byzantine icons on which the Virgin kisses the naked infant Christ on the mouth as he wraps his arms around her neck. Such group had been introduced in Netherlands during the Quattrocento by Dirk Bouts, to remind that Christ was born a human emotional being.
In the Madonna of the Cherries, Metsys features the group on a lavish throne. Fruit symbols are a couple of cherries in Mary's hand, plus apple and grape on a ledge in the foreground. They respectively refer to Paradise, to the original sin and to the eucharistic wine of the Last Supper.
A subtlety is added. The plump infant is so tenderly attached to the mother that he cannot perceive the cherries, carefully kept away from him as a symbol of greed which is not rejected by his supposedly pure and somehow stoic mother.
The original work was famous in Antwerp in the next century. A painting by van Haecht commemorates a visit to van der Geest by Archdukes Albert and Isabella. Highlighted by the collector amidst an imaginary gathering of famous masterpieces, the Madonna of the cherries is demonstrated by van der Geest to his archducal visitors while the likes of Rubens and van Dyck are attending.
That Madonna went out of view after a sale in 1668. The painting sold in 1920 from the Château de la Muette was considered as a copy. After being sold with an attribution to the Studio of Metsys for £ 255K by Christie's on July 9, 2015, lot 6, the La Muette copy has been cleaned of its ugly coating and repaints. In that process the green curtain hiding the landscape has been canceled.
Now acknowledged as the lost original, this oil on panel 75 x 63 cm was sold for £ 10.7M from a lower estimate of £ 8M for sale by Christie's on July 2, 2024, lot 4. Please watch the video shared by the auction house.
Hugely famous in its day. Missing for centuries. Transformed by conservation: Quentin Metsys’s masterpiece, The Madonna of the Cherries. Find out more about the masterwork here: https://t.co/LZ2Cqf8VNT pic.twitter.com/mggJMaLzAC
— Christie's (@ChristiesInc) June 17, 2024
