Limburg or Lower Rhine, circa 1530

The quality of the carving of the present figure of Saint Barbara is excellent. Overall the condition is good with wear to the surface consistent with age. A section of the proper right little finger and third finger are lost. There is a loss to the back of Saint Barbara's headdress at the proper left side. There are a few small chips and losses, including: to two of the tips of the white drapery above the book; to the edges of the book; to the drapery below the left side of the book; to the edges of the drapery, notably to the swallow tail fold by the side of Saint Barbara's proper right leg; to Saint Barbara's proper right breast; possibly to the tassel on the proper right side of the headdress; and a few small losses to the castillated roof, to the pitched roof of the castle, and to the parapet on the upper edge of the red section of the tower, with particular wear to the polychromy. There are areas of loss to the polychromy and gilding, in particular to the Saint's gilt mantle, notably at her proper left knee and in front of the proper right leg. There are also various other losses to the polychromy, including to the white of the chemise and also notably to the red and brown polychromy on the tower and tower door. The palm leaf is probably later and may have been repainted. There is evidence of past worming to the wood, notably at the terrasse, in particular at the back. There are various losses to the edges of the terrasse due to worming. There are some filled worm holes in the gold drapery between the legs and elsewhere at the bottom of the sculpture, and there is also a split at the drapery in this area between the legs. There is minor stable splitting to the wood throughout, with more stable splits at the back of the figure, particularly at the bottom and at the tower at the back. The figure has been stabilised slightly on a flat surface with the use of cork to the underside. There is a small hole in the top of the Saint's head. The polychromy at the face and hands and possibly the upper section of the tower may have been refreshed, and there is particular wear to the end of the nose. Some of the gilding is refreshed.
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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."

The striking inventiveness and technical ambition which distinguish this large wood carving of Saint Barbara firmly associate it with Northern Mannerism, a movement that came to the fore in the Netherlands, France, and Germany in the first decades of the 16^th century. The lavish dress, the incorporation of stylistic traits that derive both from Renaissance and late Gothic art, and the engaging expression of the female saint are all typical of the style. The idealised beauty and extraordinary quality that the sculptor attained here are only approached by a small number of Lower Rhenish wood carvings, chiefly a pair of angels in the Schnütgen Museum in Cologne dated to circa 1530. Otherwise Saint Barbara’s artistic equivalents are the paintings of great Northern Mannerist painters such as Lucas Cranach, Jan Gossaert, and Lucas van Leyden.

Even though early sixteenth-century Mannerism is mainly associated with Antwerp, other centres in the North of France, Germany, and the Netherlands were important for the dissemination of the style. Encouraged by rich trade and extensive cultural contacts, numerous cities in the region saw an extraordinary number of artists organised in guilds, establish large workshops, and feed an expanding market for the production and export of art. The demand for a recognisable product stimulated painters and sculptors to develop a stock of figural motifs, compositions, and themes. Defining traits of Northern Mannerism include lavish costumes, vivid coloristic effects, imaginative architecture, and displays of technical virtuosity regardless of the subject matter. The personal form of religious expression that Protestants encouraged allowed these fashionable features to be flaunted by those artists who could render them.

Elaborate drapery, headdresses and jewellery distinguish many of Northern Mannerism’s most striking female figures. The extraordinary variety of elements attained in the dress of Saint Barbara is echoed in the religious scenes such as Jan de Beer’s Birth of the Virgin in the Museo de Arte Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid or Jan Gossaert’s  Holy Family with Saints Catherine and Barbara in the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga in Lisbon (inv. no. 1479). Among the most virtuoso passages of carving are the slashes on the sleeves of Saint Barbara. Similar sleeves with puffs of fabric pulled through the slashes and hanging from the cuff can be seen in Gossaert’s Mary Magdalen in the Museum Mayer van den Bergh, whilst the extraordinary heavy gold link necklaces and gem-set collar often characterises Lucas Cranach’s women, including Judith with the Head of Holofernes in the Staatsgalerie Stuttgart.

In sculpture, Northern Mannerist female figures of the scale of Saint Barbara appear chiefly in Picardy in France, the Mosan and Lower Rhenish parts of the Netherlands and Germany, and Utrecht. In Utrecht the Master of the Utrecht Female Stone Heads carved similarly lavish saints with comparable dress but, as is the case in the Southern Netherlands too, the mannerisms are extended to the facial features (see, for example, Saint Ursula in the Catherijneconvent, inv. no. ABM bh252). Female saints carved in the Netherlandish province of Limburg around the 1530s do possess the idealised beauty of the present saint. Note, for example, the works associated with the Master of Oostham, Jan van Steffenswert or the Meester of the Fize-le-Marsal Calvary. Note specifically the attitude and the extraordinary crown of Saint Lucia of Syracuse by the latter master and irregular drapery schemes of the Master of Oostham both illustrated by Gerits et al. (op. cit., nos. 227 and 466). That being said, few extant statues from the Eastern Netherlands have the fluidity of the detailing of the present figure. It is therefore possible that Saint Barbara was carved outside of the Netherlands. One pair of angels in the Schnütgen Museum and which are thought to have been carved in Cologne around 1530 combines the variety of decoration, extraordinary interplay of fabrics, and beautiful facial features that also characterise this figure (see Karrenbrock, op.cit., nos. 73-74). The typically Gothic triangular folds that cascade down from the waist are equally playfully diffused while the lighter fabric of the undergarment is minutely crumpled. The bead decoration and Gothic canopies visible on Barbara’s hat and tower respectively are repeated along the hem of the angel’s chasubles. The fingers of all three figures are similarly articulated and arranged in a conspicuous manner; a trait which is again reminiscent of contemporary painting. One technical feature also compares well: the statues in the Schnütgen Museum are flattened on the reverse as opposed to hollowed out. The only departure from Cologne wood sculpture at this time is that other carvings are made of limewood whilst the present figure is carved from walnut.

RELATED LITERATURE
J. Gerits et al., Laat-gotische beeldsnijkunst uit Limburg en grensland, exh. cat. Provinciaal Museum vor Religieuze Kunst, Sint-Truiden, 1990, pp. III. 21, 24, 26, 48, 92, 133-134, nos. 227, 165, and 466; R. Karrenbrock, Die Holzskulpturen des Mittelalters 1400 bis 1540. Teil 1: Köln, Westfalen, Norddeutschland, Cologne, 2001, pp. 364-370, nos. 73-74; D. Preising and M. Rief, Mittelalterliche Bildwerke aus Utrecht 1430-1530, exh. cat. Museum Catharijneconvent, Utrecht and Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum, Aachen, 2013, pp. 286-287, no. 56