Madonna and Child Enthroned with Sts. Christopher, Blaise, Sebastian, and Francis
- Date
- c.1410–12
- Material
- Tempera and gold leaf on panel
- made in
- Florence, Tuscany region, Italy, Europe
- Classification
- Paintings
- Collection
- European Art to 1800
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 222
- Dimensions
- with frame at highest point: 71 x 75 3/4 x 6 in. (180.3 x 192.4 x 15.2 cm)
- Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 43:1937
NOTES
Mary, Christ, and four saints stand within a series of gabled panels. In this masterful example of an early 15th-century triptych, the saints are separated from the Virgin and Christ in individual compartments with their names in the blue border beneath their feet: Saints Christopher and Blaise to the left, Saints Sebastian and Francis to the right. Above, in three-part openings called trefoils, God the Father blesses in the center panel, while the Virgin Mary and the archangel Gabriel enact the Annunciation (the announcement to Mary of the impending birth of her son, Jesus) on either side.
Lorenzo di Niccolò’s figures demonstrate the early 15th-century taste for elegance, exemplified by the sweeping drapery and graceful lines of Saint Christopher, who carries Christ through a pool of green water.
Provenance
- 1901
Dr. Erich Frantz (1842–1903), Breslau, Germany
1901/05/09
In auction, at the sale of the collection of Erich Frantz at Hugo Helbing, Munich, Germany, May 9-10, 1901, lot no. 1 [1]
by 1908 - still in 1932
Jacques Rosenthal (1854-1937), Munich, Germany [2]
- 1937
Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc. [Paul M. Byk], New York, NY, USA
1937 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc. [3]
Notes:
[1] The 1901 sales catalogue lists Frantz as the former owner ["Katalog von Antiquitäten, Kunstsachen, Möbeln und Einrichtungs-Gegenständen, Oelgemälden alter Meister." Hugo Helbing, Munich, May 9-10, lot no. 1, pp. 7-8 (see https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/helbing1901_05_09x/0003/image,info; accessed 8 November 2023)]. An annotated copy of the catalogue in the Heidelberg collection records the purchaser as 'J Rosenthal'.
[2] According to a 1908 article, the panel was in the collection of Jacques Rosenthal [Sirén, Osvald. "Gli affreschi nel Paradiso degli Alberti: Lorenzo di Niccolò e Mariotto di Nardo." "L'arte," vol. XI (1908), p. 190]. The work remained in Rosenthal's collection through 1911 when Venturi's publication notes the work [Venturi, Adolfo. "Storia dell'Arte Italiana." Vol. 7, No. 1. Milan: Ulrico Hoepli, 1911, p. 25, n. 1]. It is unknown when the panel left the collection; however, it was some time between 1932 and 1933. In 1932, the panel is noted as belonging to Rosenthal in by Berenson [Berenson, Bernhard, "Italian Pictures of the Renaissance", Oxford: The Clarendon Press (1932), pp. 302–303; see https://archive.org/details/italianpictureso0000bern_b3y4/page/302/mode/2up on Archive.org, accessed 8 November 2023]. By 1933, the panel must have left Rosenthal's ownership; Offner noted in an article published that year that "it was once in the collection of Herr Jacques Rosenthal in Munich" [Offner, Richard. "The Mostra del Tesoro di Firenze Sacra II." "The Burlington Magazine," vol. 63, no. 367 (1933), pp. 166-78]. Jacques Rosenthal was a Jewish antiquarian and bookseller in Munich who endured significant losses under the Nazi government; in addition, he suffered a stroke towards the end of 1932, which may be when ownership of the triptych was transferred elsewhere.
[3] Per correspondence from Paul M. Byk of Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc. dated March 8, 1937 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, May 13, 1937.
Dr. Erich Frantz (1842–1903), Breslau, Germany
1901/05/09
In auction, at the sale of the collection of Erich Frantz at Hugo Helbing, Munich, Germany, May 9-10, 1901, lot no. 1 [1]
by 1908 - still in 1932
Jacques Rosenthal (1854-1937), Munich, Germany [2]
- 1937
Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc. [Paul M. Byk], New York, NY, USA
1937 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, purchased from Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc. [3]
Notes:
[1] The 1901 sales catalogue lists Frantz as the former owner ["Katalog von Antiquitäten, Kunstsachen, Möbeln und Einrichtungs-Gegenständen, Oelgemälden alter Meister." Hugo Helbing, Munich, May 9-10, lot no. 1, pp. 7-8 (see https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/helbing1901_05_09x/0003/image,info; accessed 8 November 2023)]. An annotated copy of the catalogue in the Heidelberg collection records the purchaser as 'J Rosenthal'.
[2] According to a 1908 article, the panel was in the collection of Jacques Rosenthal [Sirén, Osvald. "Gli affreschi nel Paradiso degli Alberti: Lorenzo di Niccolò e Mariotto di Nardo." "L'arte," vol. XI (1908), p. 190]. The work remained in Rosenthal's collection through 1911 when Venturi's publication notes the work [Venturi, Adolfo. "Storia dell'Arte Italiana." Vol. 7, No. 1. Milan: Ulrico Hoepli, 1911, p. 25, n. 1]. It is unknown when the panel left the collection; however, it was some time between 1932 and 1933. In 1932, the panel is noted as belonging to Rosenthal in by Berenson [Berenson, Bernhard, "Italian Pictures of the Renaissance", Oxford: The Clarendon Press (1932), pp. 302–303; see https://archive.org/details/italianpictureso0000bern_b3y4/page/302/mode/2up on Archive.org, accessed 8 November 2023]. By 1933, the panel must have left Rosenthal's ownership; Offner noted in an article published that year that "it was once in the collection of Herr Jacques Rosenthal in Munich" [Offner, Richard. "The Mostra del Tesoro di Firenze Sacra II." "The Burlington Magazine," vol. 63, no. 367 (1933), pp. 166-78]. Jacques Rosenthal was a Jewish antiquarian and bookseller in Munich who endured significant losses under the Nazi government; in addition, he suffered a stroke towards the end of 1932, which may be when ownership of the triptych was transferred elsewhere.
[3] Per correspondence from Paul M. Byk of Arnold Seligmann, Rey & Co., Inc. dated March 8, 1937 [SLAM document files]. Minutes of the Administrative Board of Control of the City Art Museum, May 13, 1937.
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