Franz Timmerman

Anonymous sale, Lempertz, Cologne, 14 May 1926, lot 196;
With C. van der Feer Ladèr, Baarn;
Dr. Wilhelm Mautner (1889-1944), Amsterdam;
Erhard Göpel, acquired from the above for Adolf Hitler's "Sonderauftrag Linz" (inv. no. 2996) in July 1943 for hfl. 24.000;
Recovered by the Allied forces and deposited with the Munich Central Collecting Point (inv. no. 3727) in 1945;
Returned to the custody of the Stichting Nederlandsch Kunstbezit, Holland in 1946 (inv. no. NK1655);
On loan to the Bonnefantenmuseum, Maastricht;
Restituted to the heirs of Dr. Wilhelm Mautner in 2010.

Rijksdienst Beeldende Kunst, Old Master Paintings, An Illustrated Summary Catalogue, The Hague 1992, p. 290, no. 2556

The stable, flat support consists of two vertical panels. The paint surface is secure and has an overall pattern of fine lines of drying craquelure. Some old retouching work is visible to the naked eye along the panel join and inspection under UV light confirms this and reveals some little scattered flake losses throughout, most notably in the upper right of the sky. Offered in a gilt wood and plaster frame in good condition.
"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."

This is an exceptionally rare signed work by Franz Timmerman and indeed would appear to be his earliest dated painting. In its style and figure types it is dependent on the work of Lucas Cranach the Elder and is proof of his knowledge of Cranach’s paintings prior to his spending the period 1538-41 in the great master’s workshop in Wittenberg. Timmerman may have had in mind Cranach's own depiction of the subject from nearly twenty years earlier, one of a pair of panels painted in 1515 for Stanislav Thurza, Bishop of Olmutz, and now in the Archiepiscopal Palace in Kromeritz. Timmerman had been sent to Wittenberg by the city council of his native Hamburg and was recalled by them, at their expense, sometime in 1541 or soon after, and certainly no later than 1543 when he was officially appointed Painter to the Hamburg City Council.