French, circa 1140-1240 and later

Private collection;
sold Christie's London, 25 June 1980, lot 209;
private collection, Belgium

A report authored by Dr Heather Gilderdale Scott, Secretary to the Committee of the Corpus Vitrearum Medii Aevi (Medieval Stained Glass in Britain) is available from the department upon request (merel.deinema@sothebys.com).
"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."

These impressive panels compare stylistically with figures from French 12th- and early-13th-century stained glass. Compare the thick eyebrows, large dark pupils and rounded noses with the figures from the 12th-century Passion Window in Chartres Cathedral (medart, op. cit.). The style can also be seen in early 13th-century glass at Chartres, see, for example, figures from the Lives of St Savinien and Potentien Window (medart, op. cit.). Note also the two heads from a window depicting the Legend of St Nicholas believed to come from Soissons cathedral, circa 1210-1215, and now in the Cloisters Collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (1980.263.2 and 3). Analogous jewelled collars, as seen in the present panels, can be seen in the early 13th-century Life of St Martin of Tours Window from bay 20 at Chartres. The beautiful streaky red and lustrous blue witnessed in the present panels are typical of the finest examples of 12th- and early-13th- century stained glass. It is curious to note that the corner motifs with pine cones between scrolling acanthus leaves appear to be a feature of the Abbey of Saint Denis: the same concept is found on four carved impost blocks attributed to the church, circa mid-12th-century, two of which are in the Glencairn Museum, Bryn Athyn (inv. nos. 09.SP.12, 09.SP.13), one in the Cloisters (inv. no. 13.152.1) and another in the Pitcairn collection (inv. no. 09.SP.271). As is almost always the case with surviving French glass, the present panels have been reassembled probably in the 19th or early 20th century, with some glass being replaced, but, crucially, the most important elements, the faces, and much of the surroundings, can be identified as medieval.

RELATED LITERATURE
J. Hayward and W. Cahn, Radiance and Reflection: Medieval Art from the Raymond Pitcairn Collection, exh. cat. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1982 p. 73, no. 30; L. Grodecki and C. Brisac, Gothic Stained Glass 1200-1300, London, 1985, pp. 260-261, no. 83; M. W. Cothren, 'Fragments of an Early Thirteenth-Century St. Peter Window from the Cathedral of Rouen', in Gesta, vol. xxxvii/2, 1988, pp. 158-164; http://www.medart.pitt.edu/image/France/Chartres/Chartres-Cathedral/Windows/West-windows/051-Passion/chartres-51Passion-main.html [accessed 27 May 2016]

A report authored by Dr Heather Gilderdale Scott, Secretary to the Committee of the Corpus Vitrearum Medii Aevi (Medieval Stained Glass in Great Britain) is available upon request.