Walnut reliquary bust of Mary Magdalene carved... - Lot 244 - Pierre Bergé & Associés

Lot 244
Go to lot
Estimation :
6000 - 8000 EUR
Result without fees
Result : 54 000EUR
Walnut reliquary bust of Mary Magdalene carved... - Lot 244 - Pierre Bergé & Associés
Walnut reliquary bust of Mary Magdalene carved with polychrome and gilding remains, sketched back. The young saint, with a straight bust, is holding the ointment vase in front of her, lifting the lid with her right hand. Beautiful face with a high, open forehead, slit eyes with kissed eyelids, a mouth with fine, well-drawn lips and a chin with a dimpled chin; she is wearing a turban over her abundant hair falling in long wavy strands down her back; she is dressed in a dress close to the body, with a rounded neck adorned with pearls, long sleeves and folded cuffs; rectangular box for the relic in the body of the vase. Strasbourg, workshop of Nicolas de Leyde (Leiden ?, c. 1420/30 - Wiener Neustadt, 1473), c. 1465 Moulded oak panelled base bearing the date MDCVI... Height: 48 cm - Width: 31.5 cm - Depth: 18.5 cm Bust height : 39,5 cm (small accidents and lacks, last old but later polychromy probably from the 17th century given the date on the base) The Mary Magdalene delicately lifting the lid of her ointment jar is a recurring subject in the work of Nicolas Gerhaert, who was referred to as Nicolas de Leyde in his time at . The saint is depicted carrying the vase with her left hand, her other hand holding the lid above the container in a gesture of offering. Good examples are the full-length Magdalene saints attributed to him or his workshop, such as those in the parish church of St. Leodegar in Biengen (Baden-Württemberg) or St. George in Nördlingen in Bavaria (Figs. a and b). This reliquary bust is to be compared with the so-called "busts of Wissembourg" representing four saints, Barbara, Catherine of Alexandria, Margaret of Antioch and Agnes, all in walnut except for the fourth, which is a plaster cast. Two busts are in the Metropolitan Museum in New York (inv.
My orders
Sale information
Sales conditions
Return to catalogue