Luca di Tommé

Probably commissioned by the Arte della Lana, or Wool Merchants Guild, for the Vallombrosan Church of San Michele in Siena;
Henri Chalandon, La Grange Blanche, Parcieux, near Trévoux, by 1907;
Chalandon family, from whom acquired directly by the present owners probably in the mid 1950s. 

B. Berenson, The Central Italian Painters of the Renaissance, New York and London 1909, p. 141 (as Bartolo di Fredi);
M. Meiss, "Notes on Three Linked Sienese Styles," in Art Bulletin, XLV, 1, March 1963, p. 48, note 12 (as by the so-called "Sienese Master of the Magdalen Legend," a follower of Luca di Tommè);
B. Berenson, Italian Pictures of the Renaissance: Central Italian and North Italian Schools, vol. I, London and New York 1968, p. 30 (as Bartolo di Fredi);
C. De Benedictis, La pittura senese, 1330-1370, Florence 1979, p. 67, note 80;
S. D'Argenio in M. Gregori, ed., La Fondazione Roberto Longhi a Firenze, Milan 1980, p. 242, cited under no. 22;
G. Chelazzi Dini, in Il Gotico a Siena, exhibition catalogue, Siena 1982, p. 278, cited under no. 103;
C. Volpe, Early Italian Paintings and Works of Art, 1300-1480, exhibition catalogue (Matthiesen Fine Art Ltd), London 1983, p. 29;
S.A. Fehm, Jr., Luca di Tommè: A Sienese Fourteenth-Century Painter, Carbondale, Illinois 1986, pp. 26, 35, note 21 (as 'Workshop of Luca di Tommè');
G. Freuler, "L'Eredità di Pietro Lorenzetti verso il 1350: novità per Biagio di Goro, Niccolò di Ser Sozzo e Luca di Tommè," in Nuovi studi, 4, 1997, pp. 20, 23-26, 31, notes 41, 47-48, 56, reproduced figs. 30 (reconstruction of altarpiece), 31, 32, 34;
P. Palladino, in Art and Devotion in Siena after 1350: Luca di Tommè and Niccolò di Buonaccorso, exhibition catalogue, 1997-1998, pp. 40/43, 46, reproduced p. 42, figs. 39-41.

"The following condition report has been provided by Sarah Walden, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This group of panels have not been touched apparently for some time, The beautiful calm tempera surface is largely unworn, although the gold ground has been rubbed in places showing streaks of the bole underneath. There are scattered old rough, darkened retouchings, often perhaps superfluous, but with some clearly over old flakes. Near the base there are groups of small circular indents, perhaps from some sort of past amateur fastening. The thick poplar panel has a certain amount of old worm damage but is still strong, with rather more damage at the top edge, although not apparently by worms. An unpainted band at the lower edge presumably fitted into the structure of the altarpiece. At the top the carved cornice of the original frame has been fractured from whatever damage happened to the back, but the prophets in the spandrels have been largely unaffected with one crack down the right side of the right prophet, and the left prophet perfectly intact. Throughout the prophets seem to have been almost completely untouched, and it seems likely that the group of paintings escaped early intervention, with a single episode of quite simplistic retouching a century ago, and washing which affected the gilding. Some of the detail over the gold leaf in the mitre has been worn, and the gold crozier is also thin showing the bole. The jewels have turned black, suggesting that the water contained some ammonia (or urine was often used) which affects blue azurite. The jewel on the glove still shows hints of blue. There are some wider retouchings on the glove and the book and smaller retouchings on the other hand. The curving crack in the centre comes from a knot behind, but has not lost any flakes. The magnificent tooling of the robe is finely preserved, and the head is also beautifully intact, with one tiny nick in the forehead. There is a knock at the lower left edge and some of the little circular indents described above in the lower area, with a candle burn at lower right. Despite these various accidents over time essentially the paint remains exceptionally undisturbed and intact. This report was not done under laboratory conditions."
"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."

The dowel marks located on the left hand side of this panel indicate that it would have originally occupied a position on the extreme right side of the central register of the San Michele polyptych, with the panel depciting Saint John the Baptist (Getty Museum, Los Angeles) to its left.

Saint Bernardo degli Uberti came from the noble Uberti family of Florence, and became a monk in the Vallombrosan Order. He entered the monastery of San Salvio, and subsequently rose to be Abbot or General-Superior of the Congregation. Later, having served as a papal legate he was created a Cardinal by Pope Urban II in 1097. His cardinal's hat can be seen in the background of the painting just below the spandrels. He also served as Bishop of Parma, and is depicted in the present panel with the cope, mitre and crozier of his office worn above the habit of the Vallombrosan Order. As a result of his support for Pope Gregory VII, he was reputedly dragged physically from his altar and driven into exile in 1104 by the supporters of the anti-pope Maginulf (Sylvester IV). He did not return to Parma until two years later in 1106, but was subsequently exiled again in 1127 for opposing the proclamation of the Emperor Conrad II. He died in Parma on 4 December 1133.