Danube School, circa 1520

The colours are rather brighter than in the illustration in the catalogue. Both panels are flat and uncradled. The versos retain the original tooled and gilded ground, but have lost the original painted figures, whose outlines alone now remain. Both panels appear to be constructed from two planks and the join has opened slightly on both pictures. In addition to this the Catherine panel has two vertical splits running from the top edge, one down to beside the head of the executioner and the other down to the axe of the man on his right. Both panels are now dirty and their varnish uneven or discoloured. The vast majority of the paint surface appears to be very well preserved indeed, with the thick vigorous brushwork and impasto intact throughout. Both retain the original barb or paint edge. There are signs of minor older losses and repairs, for example around the joins, particularly on the Barbara panel, and to the dress of Saint Barbara, the hat of her Judge and the blue coat of her executioner, to the angel upper left in the same panel and to the left side of the Catherine panel. The largest repairs appear to be two damages of ca. 8 x 5 cms in the background above the soldiers' weapons in the centre right of the Barbara panel. These areas have all been quite crudely repainted in the past, and the old paint is now mostly clearly discoloured and visible to the naked eye, for example on the neck of Saint Barbara herself. The surfaces have numerous minor scattered scratches or tiny losses; there is an old knot in the lower right corner of the Catherine panel.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

We are grateful to Ludwig Meyer for suggesting that these panels are by a painter from the Danube School, and would originally have flanked a carved wooden shrine.  Dr Meyer notes that the composition of the Martyrdom of Saint Barbara derives in broad outline and in the disposition of the principal figures from Lucas Cranach the Elder's woodcut of the same subject (Bartsch 70), which dates from circa 1509.  The painter of the present panels has adapted Cranach's composition to the taller and narrower format of an altarpiece wing.

Although they are not from the same hand, Dr Meyer notes similarities in style - for example in the strong modelling of the figures - with two panels depicting the Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence dating from circa 1515, in the Sankt Lorenzkirche in Berching, Oberpfalz.