Old Masters Day Sale, including portrait miniatures
Old Masters Day Sale, including portrait miniatures
Saint Wolfgang of Regensburg; Saint Sebastian; Saint Christopher; and the Magdalene
Lot Closed
December 8, 02:10 PM GMT
Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Danube school, late 15th century
Saint Wolfgang of Regensburg; Saint Sebastian; Saint Christopher; and the Magdalene
a set of four, all oil on panel
unframed, each: 59.9 x 19.2 cm.; 23⅝ x 7½ in.
framed, each: 64.6 x 23.6 cm.; 25½ x 9¼ in.
(4)
The origin of these panels, which most probably once formed the predella or double-sided wings of an altarpiece, may be inferred from the inclusion of Saint Wolfgang of Regensburg as part of the scheme. A bishop of Regensburg in Bavaria at the end of the 10th century, Wolfgang retired as a hermit to the Salzkammergut region of Upper Austria towards the end of his life, and subsequently a number of towns and churches in these areas, close to the Danube, named him as their patron saint.
The most famous artistic tribute to Saint Wolfgang is the Tyrolean artist Michael Pacher's (1430–1498) vast and elaborate polyptych altarpiece, completed in 1481, which is still in its original location of the parish church of the town St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut. Painted wings on either side depict episodes from the saint's life while the central section is formed of a monumental sculpted representation of The Coronation of the Virgin.1
1 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._Wolfgang_kath._Pfarrkirche_Pacher-Altar_Sonntagsseite_01.jpg