Prague Altarpiece [left wing, fragment]: Female Saint (Apollonia?)

Prague Altarpiece [left wing, fragment]: Female Saint (Apollonia?)

Title

Prague Altarpiece [left wing, fragment]: Female Saint (Apollonia?)

[cda 2017]

Painting on limewood

Medium

Painting on limewood

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, No. 88]

The large Marian retable five fragments of which are known to have survived was in St Vitus cathedral until 1619. A reconstruction shows that a seated figure of the Mother of God in a gloriole of clouds occupied the central position, and might have been an Assumption. However the eight

The large Marian retable five fragments of which are known to have survived was in St Vitus cathedral until 1619. A reconstruction shows that a seated figure of the Mother of God in a gloriole of clouds occupied the central position, and might have been an Assumption. However the eight virgin saints accompanying the Virgin suggest a Virgo inter virgines. The martyrs are wearing contemporary courtly attire and hold intercessory prayers in their hands each beginning with the letter or syllables of the corresponding name. [...]

As the initial [on this fragment] is not complete her identity as Apollonia remains inconclusive. Her pearl necklace that usually decorates depictions of the Virgin as a symbol of her virginity differs considerably from the luxurious gold jewellery of the other women. However the exceptionally elegant dress of all the saints does suggest a courtly clientele was the intended audience for the work. [Horký, Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, No. 88]

Attribution
Lucas Cranach the Elder (and Workshop)

Attribution

Lucas Cranach the Elder (and Workshop)

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, no. 88]
[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, no. 7e]

Production dates
about 1520-1525
about 1520

Production dates

about 1520-1525

[Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, No. 88]

about 1520

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, no. 7e]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 41.8 x 32.5 cm

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 41.8 x 32.5 cm

  • [Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, No. 88]

Signature / Dating

None

Inscriptions and Labels

None

Inscriptions and Labels

Inscriptions, Badges:

  • None

Owner
Private Collection
Repository
Private Collection
CDA ID
PRIVATE_NONE-P160
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/PRIVATE_NONE-P160/

Provenance

  • In December 1619 the retable in St Vitus Cathedral located in the chancel dedicated the Virgin fell victim under Friedrich I to Calvinist iconoclasm and the heads of the saints were cut out of the work.
  • 2003 on the art market
    [Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, No. 88]

Exhibitions

Düsseldorf 2017, No. 88

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Heydenreich 2021 A
AuthorGunnar Heydenreich
TitleHans Kemmer: Spuren künstlerischer Gestaltungsprozesse. Teil I: Lübeck
Publicationin Dagmar Täube, ed., Lucas Cranach der Ältere und Hans Kemmer. Meistermaler zwischen Renaissance und Reformation [Lübeck, St. Annen-Museum]
Place of PublicationMunich
Year of Publication2021
Pages49-57
Sandner 2021 76
AuthorIngo Sandner
TitleDie Werkstattpraxis Lucas Cranach des Älteren
Publicationin Dagmar Täube, ed., Lucas Cranach der Ältere und Hans Kemmer. Meistermaler zwischen Renaissance und Reformation [Lübeck, St. Annen-Museum]
Place of PublicationMunich
Year of Publication2021
Pages71-81
Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017 182 No. 88
EditorGunnar Heydenreich, Daniel Görres, Beat Wismer
TitleLucas Cranach der Ältere. Meister - Marke - Moderne. [anlässlich der Ausstellung "Cranach. Meister - Marke - Moderne", Stiftung Museum Kunstpalast, Düsseldorf, 08. April 2017 - 30. Juli 2017]
Place of PublicationMunich
Year of Publication2017
Tacke 2015 83
AuthorAndreas Tacke
TitleGleich dem Kaninchen vor der Schlange? Altgläubige und die Wittenberger Bildpropaganda.
Publicationin Julia Carrasco, Justus Lange, Benjamin D. Spira, Timo Trümper, Stiftung Schloss Friedenstein Gotha and Museumslandschaft Hessen Kassel, eds., Bild und Botschaft. Cranach im Dienst von Hof und Reformation, [Exhib. Cat. Gotha, Kassel]
Place of PublicationHeidelberg
Year of Publication2015
Pages82-90
Chamonikola 2005 A 7 (English version 3)
AuthorKaliopi Chamonikola
TitlePod znamením okrídleného hada. Under the sign of the winged Serpent
Publicationin Kaliopi Chamonikola, ed., Pod znamením okrídleného hada. Lucas Cranach a ceské zeme, Under the winged Serpent, Lucas Cranach and the Czech Lands, Exhib. Prague 2005
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication2005
Pages6-7 (3)
Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005 58-60, 65 (English version 26-28) 7e Pl. p. 65
EditorObrazárna Pražského hradu, Kaliopi Chamonikola
TitlePod znamením okrídleného hada. Lucas Cranach a ceské zeme. Under the winged Serpent. Lucas Cranach and the Czech Land
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication2005

Research History / Discussion

While the connection between the four fragments in Prague, Karlsruhe and Aschaffenburg was already identified by Max J. Friedländer and Jakob Rosenberg the fifth fragment (private collection) was only discovered in 2003 on the art market. In 2005 the separated parts were first shown together again in Prague. The original Marian retable that boasted an impressive height of about 2.2 to 2.5 meters is for stylistic and historical reasons dated to about 1520. This time frame is debatable since it has not yet been established who commissioned this ambitious work from Lucas Cranach. The client should possibly be sought among the Habsburg family as the Lady Chapel in Prague was traditionally reserved for the commemoration of rulers. At the First Congress of Vienna held in 1515 Emperor Maximilian I formed close ties with the Jagellonian dynasty, a relationship that was further consolidated by the ensuing double wedding. In 1521 his grandson Ferdinand I married Anna of Bohemia and in 1527 he was crowned king of Bohemia in Prague. In terms of content the concept for the Marian retable is exceptional and an advisor with considerable theological knowledge must have assisted Cranach. The martyrs on the central panel – the four virgines capitales Barbara, Catharine, Margaret and Dorothy – can be identified by their attributes as well as by the texts shown on manuscript sheets in gothic script. Agnes and Christine on the side wings can be identified by the associated text, while remnants of Ursula’s attribute the arrow confirm her identity. Hans Georg Thümmel who in 1994 presented the first extensive reconstruction of the altar characterized the intercessional prayers in Latin as compositions loosely based on the Marian antiphons. A complete source has been determined for Christine’s address. (Hesbert 1970, S. 71, Nr. 6278)"

[Horky, Exhib. Cat. Düsseldorf 2017, 182, No. 88]

  • Prague Altarpiece [left wing, fragment]: Female Saint (Apollonia?), about 1520-1525

Images

Compare images
  • overall
  • overall
  • overall
  • reverse
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Technical studies

2017Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • irr

Underdrawing

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Material:

- fluid, black medium, brush

Type/Ductus:

- freehand underdrawing

- thin lines

Function:

- relatively binding for the final painted version; lines delineate the main contours and describe essential details and facial features; no representation of volume

Deviations:

- minor corrections were made to forms during the painting process; small changes (e. g. position of the eyes, nose and mouth)

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Sandner, Smith-Contini, Heydenreich, cda 2018]

  • photographed by Ingo Sandner
  • photographed by Gunnar Heydenreich

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'Prague Altarpiece [left wing, fragment]: Female Saint (Apollonia?)', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/PRIVATE_NONE-P160/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'Prague Altarpiece [left wing, fragment]: Female Saint (Apollonia?)', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/PRIVATE_NONE-P160/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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