Tempera and gold on shaped panel cm. 66x47x2; cm. 58x38. 5. Framed The painting is accompanied by an expertise by Prof. Giuliano Briganti (dated 18th May 1971).
Neri Di Bicci Madonna with child and two angels oil, tempera and gold ground on wood, parqueted 59.5 x 42.5 cm Ercole Canessa (1868-1829), New York/Paris; his auction, American Art Association, New York, 25-26 February 1924, lot 164; acquired by James W. Oliver; Galerie Durand Ruel, Paris, 1952; Evan M. Evans, New York; Victor D. Spark, New York, 1961 and 1967; Sotheby's, New York, 14 January 1988, lot 58; private property, Italy Advertised in: The Art Quarterly, Spring 1961 and Spring 1967 (with ill.)
NERI DI BICCI (1418 Florence 1492) The archangel Gabriel. Circa 1470–80. Oil on panel. 43 × 32.5 cm. Provenance: Swiss private collection. With an extensive art historical analysis by Prof. Dr Gaudenz Freuler, August 2021. --------------- NERI DI BICCI (1418 Florenz 1492) Der Erzengel Gabriel. Um 1470–80. Öl auf Holz. 43 × 32,5 cm. Provenienz: Schweizer Privatbesitz. Mit einer ausführlichen kunsthistorischen Analyse von Prof. Dr. Gaudenz Freuler, August 2021. Vorliegende noch unveröffentlichte Tafel der florentinischen Renaissance ist ein charakteristisches Werk des Florentiner Malers Neri di Bicci, des letzten Sprösslings einer berühmten florentinischen Malerdynastie seit Lorenzo di Bicci (um 1350–1427). Der Malstil des Künstlers ist geprägt von der mittelalterlichen Goldgrundmalerei seiner Vorväter Lorenzo di Bicci und Bicci di Lorenzo (1373–1452). Gleichzeitig weist er auch eine Auseinandersetzung mit der Bildwelt der florentinischen Renaissance auf, insbesondere mit den künstlerischen Errungenschaften seiner moderneren Zeitgenossen, etwa eines Filippo Lippi (1457–1504) und Domenico Veneziano (1410–1461) – und am Ende seiner Karriere – des Andrea del Verrochio (1435–1488). Das hier in Rede stehende Bild des Erzengels Gabriel – erkennbar am Lilienzweig – war einst Teil einer grösseren Altartafel, deren Szenario durch einen oben rechts noch sichtbaren hochgezogenen Goldbrokat Vorhang illusionistisch enthüllt wurde. Solche Bildkonzepte wurden in der florentinischen Renaissance seit Filippo Lippi entwickelt. Demnach figurierte unser Engel Gabriel ursprünglich in der rechten Bildhälfte der vermutlich rechteckigen Tafel. Möglicherweise bildete unser Engel eine Einheit mit den beiden anderen Erzengeln Raphael und Michael, und liess ein Erscheinungsbild erkennen, wie es ähnlich von Neri di Bicci selbst auf seiner 1471 für Mariotto di Marco della Palla für Santo Spirito in Florenz gemalten Tafel (Detroit Institute of Arts, Inv.-Nr. 26.114) vorgebildet ist. Das Bildthema der drei Erzengel erfreute sich im Laufe der zweiten Hälfte des 15. Jahrhunderts in Florenz einer grösseren Beliebtheit. Die Entwicklung des florentinischen Erzengel Bildes im 15. Jahrhundert gipfelte um 1470 vermutlich in Verrocchios Werkstatt in einer höchst erfolgreichen Bilderfindung. Sie wurde in der Folge für die florentinischen Interpretationen dieses Bildthemas massgebend, was auch für Neri di Biccis Erzengel Bilder zutrifft. Daraus können wir schliessen, dass das vorliegende Bild im Verlaufe der 1470er-Jahre, also in einer späten Schaffensphase des 1491 verstorbenen Künstlers entstanden ist.
Neri di Bicci (Firenze, ca. 1419 - 1492), Madonna mit Kind und zwei Engeln, Tempera und Öl auf Leinwand, Maße: 66,6 x 55.5 cm, gerahmt. Expertise: Mauro U. Lucco.
NERI DI BICCI (FLORENCE 1418-1492) The Miracle of Saint Bernardino of Siena; and The Baptism of Christ tempera and gold on panel, in an engaged frame 13 3/4 x 55 7/8 in. (34.9 x 142 cm.) ,
Neri di Bicci (Florence 1418-1492) The Madonna and Child with Saints Jerome and John the Baptisttempera and gold on panel, arched top, in an engaged frame43 x 281⁄8 in. (109.2 x 71.4 cm.)
Neri di Bicci (Florence 1418-1492) The Miracle of Saint Bernardino of Siena; and The Baptism of Christ tempera and gold on panel, in an engaged frame 13 ¾ x 55 7/8 in. (34.9 x 142 cm.) (2)
tempera su tavola, cm 58x43,5, Provenienza: New York, Collezione Ercole Canessa, Collezione James W. Oliver La Vergine, inscritta in una silhouette molto elegante e decorata con un largo uso della foglia d'oro nel nimbo e nel risvolto del mantello e dei polsini, accarezza con la mano destra il Bambino, quasi sospeso a mezz'aria nel grembo della madre. Gesù da parte sua si accosta affettuosamente col viso alla mano, mentre alle spalle del gruppo due angeli sembrano rivolgersi al Salvatore con atteggiamenti piuttosto diversi: quello di sinistra appare raccolto in preghiera, mentre quello di destra, quasi a braccia conserte, lo osserva con un sentimento di partecipazione accostante, ma del tutto umano, come se si trattasse di una sorta di fratello maggiore nei riguardi di un neonato. La tavola è un bell'esempio di pittura devozionale fiorentina della seconda metà del Quattrocento, documento della civiltà figurativa delle 'botteghe': i prodotti di questi atelier ― che si concentravano com'è noto nella zona commerciale della città, tra la chiesa di Santa Trinità e la Piazza del Mercato Vecchio ― erano prima di tutto dei sontuosi oggetti di carpenteria, con un largo uso di materiali preziosi. In questa fase i pittori si trovavano a lavorare dunque fianco a fianco con sapienti artigiani, quando non erano loro stessi ad unire alle competenze formali la capacità di lavorare l'oro e le pietre'. Nella civiltà delle botteghe vi era poi una sorta di tacito accordo nella spartizione del mercato dell'arte: e nell'ambito della pittura di devozione privata, a partire dagli anni '50 e poi fino quasi allo scadere del secolo, la bottega a cui giungeva il maggior numero di commissioni era sicuramente quella - collocata nell'attuale via Porta Rossa - che faceva capo alla figura di Neri di Bicci, l'autore appunto dell'opera qui esposta. Il pittore era figlio e nipote di artisti: il nonno, Lorenzo di Bicci era stato un testimone non di secondo piano della stagione del tardogiottismo di fine Trecento; il padre, Bicci di Lorenzo, uno dei vertici della cultura del gotico internazionale a Firenze; Neri si trovò dunque ad ereditare una condizione di autorevolezza nel panorama artistico della città. Come già si era verificato col passaggio di consegne dal nonno al padre, per un certo periodo Neri affiancò Bicci di Lorenzo già mettendo in mostra prerogative stilistiche autonome, in modo da far abituare gradualmente la committenza al mutamento generazionale prima che questo fosse in essere. Rispetto alle premesse tardogotiche del padre, Neri fin dagli esordi porta i segni di una maturazione avvenuta in ambiente postmasaccesco. Costante in lui è la tensione nei confronti di una grazia formale desunta soprattutto dal confronto con le Madonne di Filippo Lippi. Fedele a sé stesso nella mancanza d'interesse per la scansione prospettica dei piani, come pure per un gusto lineare che rimarrà sua consueta cifra stilistica, Neri diventa un pittore inflazionato, dalla fervida e continua attività ― testimoniata da quel preziosissimo documento che sono le Ricordanze, un diario della sua bottega che copre il periodo dal 1453 al 1475'. La Madonna esposta è opera della maturità, di Neri, da assegnare verosimilmente agli anni '60. In questa fase, inaugurata dalla tavola con l'incoronazione della Vergine già nella chiesa fiorentina di San Felice in Piazza e oggi nella Galleria dell'Accademia, il pittore supera la concisione formale delle prime opere attraverso la ricerca di un maggior numero di termini di confronto. Se infatti attorno alla metà del secolo il suo stile era essenzialmente un aggiornamento della tradizione primo quattrocentesca condotto attraverso la riflessione sui testi dell'Angelico e di Filippo Lippi, ora l'artista pare guardare ad Andrea del Castagno e Giovanni di Francesco, nonché alle prime opere di maestri più giovani di lui come Benozzo Gozzoli, Alessio Baldovirtetti e Pesellino. u risultato è uno stile 'di compromesso', arcaizzante nella scelta dei materiali come nel generale umore fiabesco della composizione, ma moderno nella sottile finzione della luce e nella scioltezza dei brevi passaggi d'ombra (ad esempio nel volto della Vergine). La cromia risponde a questo doppio registro: preziosa nei tessuti, con brani di protocangiantismo, come nel profilo della tunica dell'angelo in preghiera, diventa più schietta ― lippesca certo, ma quasi già botticelliana ― nella descrizione dell'epidermide. L'intento é quello di unire trasposizione simbolica e indole colloquiale: la tavola non si qualificava solo come strumento di devozione, tua anche di partecipazione umana e l'atteggiamento diverso da parte dei due angeli risponde proprio a questa duplice esigenza. La Madonna esposta non ha menzioni bibliografiche, ma è comparsa in due occasioni (1961 e 1967) sulla rivista "Art Quarterly" in occasione di due esposizioni organizzate dalla Victor D. Spark Gallery di New York.`A. M. Bernacchioru, Le botteghe di pittura: luoghi, strutture e attività, in Maestri e botteghe: pittura a Firenze alla fine del Quattrocento, catalogo della mostra (Firenze), Cinisello Balsamo 1992, pp. 23-34. J. Tripps, Neri di Bicci, in Da Bernardo Daddi al Beato Angelico a Botticelli. Dipintijiorentini del Lindenau-Museum di Altenburg, a cura di M. Boskovits, catalogo della mostra, Firenze 2005, p. 152. C. Frosinini, Il passaggio di gestione in una bottega pittorica fiorentina del primo '400: Bicci di Lorenzo e Neri di Bicci (2), in "Antichità, Viva", 26, 1987, pp. 5-14. Neri di Bicci, Le ricordanze, a cura di 13. Santi, Pisa 1977.
BICCI, NERI DI (1418 Florence 1492) The Ascension of Christ. Circa 1475-80. Tempera and gold ground on panel. 95 x 57 cm. Provenance: - Collection of Barons Petre, Essex, probably 19th century (according to coat of arms on red sealing wax verso). - Swiss or German dealer, early 20th century (according to note verso) - Swiss private collection. BICCI, NERI DI (1418 Florenz 1492) Christi Himmelfahrt. Um 1475-80. Tempera und Goldgrund auf Holz. 95 x 57 cm. Provenienz: - Sammlung Barons of Petre, Essex, wohl 19. Jh. (gemäss rückseitigem Wappen auf rotem Siegelwachs). - Schweizer oder deutscher Kunsthandel, frühes 20. Jh. (gemäss rückseitiger Abbildung). - Schweizer Privatsammlung. Einer Zuweisung an Neri di Bicci dieser in starken Farben gehaltenen, prächtig erhaltenen Tafel kann nichts entgegengestellt werden. Tatsächlich handelt es sich hier um ein typisches Werk des sehr produktiven Florentiner Malers Neri di Bicci, des letzten Sprösslings einer berühmten Florentinischen Malerdynastie seit Lorenzo di Bicci (ca. 1350-1427). Der beinahe unveränderte Malstil des Künstlers blieb zeitlebens stark geprägt von der mittelalterlichen Goldgrundmalerei seiner Vorväter Lorenzo di Bicci (ca. 1350-1427) und Bicci di Lorenzo (1373-1452), jedoch nicht ohne ansatzweise klassische Versatzstücke in seine Bilder einzubauen oder in seltenen Fällen wie im 1460 gemalten Verkündigungsbild im Konvento von Certomodo in Poppi auch ganze Raumkonzepte. Seine Bildwelt blieb aber stets ein bunter irrealer Kosmos, wo sich die himmlischen Wunder zwischen Himmel und Erde abspielen. Die kunsthistorische Bedeutung Neri di Biccis liegt besonders in den Aufzeichnungen in seinen (im Archiv der Uffizien gelagerten) Tagebüchern. Sie sind von grundlegender Bedeutung für die damalige Kunstproduktion, denn sie geben unmittelbaren Aufschluss über den Alltag und die Produktionsweise einer Künstlerwerkstatt im Florenz der Renaissance (siehe Santi, Bruno (Hg.): Neri di Bicci, Le ricordanze, 10 marzo 1453 -24 aprile 1475, Pisa 1976). Aus diesen Aufzeichnungen entnehmen wir auch, dass Neri di Bicci wohl wegen seiner soliden technischen Fähigkeiten ein gefragter Ausbilder war, bei dem sich unter anderen Francesco Botticini, Giusto d'Andrea und Cosimo Rosselli, Autor einer hier ebenfalls zum Verkauf angebotenen Tafel (Los 3006) zeitweise ausbilden liessen. Letzterer sollte später gar zu jener Malerelite aufsteigen, die nach Rom berufen wurde, um die Sixtina zu freskieren (1481/82). Stilkritische Überlegungen und der Umstand, dass das hier angebotene Tafelbild mit der Himmelfahrt Christi nicht in Neri di Biccis Aufzeichnungen zwischen 1453 und April 1475 figuriert, sind klare Hinweise dafür, dass dieses in seinem Spätwerk nach 1475 zuzurechnen ist. Dies wird auch bestätigt durch die dinglich als dreidimensionale Scheiben aufgefassten goldenen Heiligenscheine, die sich in seinem Spätwerk im 8. Jahrzehnt des 15. Jahrhunderts ähnlich vorfinden. Dieser Trend zu allerdings noch naiv anmutenden Naturalismen ist auch im köstlichen Detail des auf dem zentralen Felsplateau zwei dunkle Fusstapfen hinterlassenden Schattenwurfs der Füsse des zum Himmel fahrenden Christus zu erkennen. Stilistisch schliesst sich vorliegendes Bild an Werke wie das ehemals in der Brüsseler Sammlung van Gelder befindliche Tafelbild mit der Anbetung des Kindes oder die beiden am 8. Juli 2004 bei Sotheby's in London verkauften Tabernakel Flügel, deren Datierung wohl gleich wie unsere Tafel in die Jahre zwischen 1475-80 anzusetzen ist. Neri di Bicci war ein technisch wie kommerziell versierter Maler, der sich den jeweiligen Auftraggeber flexibel anzupassen wusste. Wenn es darum ging einen urbanen Auftrag in Florenz zu erledigen, wie um 1455, in der Vallombrosaner Kirche Santa Trinità in Florenz das ganz nach dem Kunstempfinden der Renaissance gestaltete Fresko zu Ehren des Giovanni Gualberto, war Neri durchaus befähigt nach den modernen Prinzipien der florentinischen Renaissance zu gestalten, doch seine Hauptklientele blieben meist Ordenskirchen und Private in den ländlichen Gegenden um Florenz, für die er fromme Bilder nach der hergebrachten Ästhetik der farbenfrohen Goldgrundmalerei des Mittelalters schuf. Wir danken Prof. Dr. Gaudenz Freuler für die Unterstützung bei der Katalogisierung dieses Gemäldes. BICCI, NERI DI (1418 Florence 1492) Ascension of Christ. Ca. 1475-80. Tempera and gilt ground on wood. 95 x 57 cm. Provenance: - Collection of Baron Petre, of Essex, probably 19th century (according to a crest in red sealing wax on the back). - Swiss or German art market, early 20th c. (according to a label on the back). - Swiss private collection. An attribution to Neri di Bicci of this richly coloured, gorgeously preserved panel cannot be opposed. In fact, this is a typical work by the prolific Florentine painter Neri di Bicci, the last heir to the famous Florentine painting dynasty established by Lorenzo di Bicci (ca. 1350-1427). The artist's painterly style, which remained largely unchanged throughout his life, was strongly shaped on the traditions of the medieval gold ground painting learnt from his forefathers Lorenzo di Bicci (ca. 1350-1427) and Bicci di Lorenzo (1373-1452), though he modernized his pictorial language by occasionally integrating into his paintings rudimentary classical elements. In rare cases, such as in the Annunciation in the Convento di Certomodo in Poppi (1460) he even chose to place his scenes within the convincingly structured perspective of classicising Renaissance architecture, according to the taste of the great Renaissance painters of his time. But his pictorial world always remained a fabulous and colourful cosmos between heaven and earth where celestial miracles played out. The art historical importance of Neri di Bicci lies particularly in the notes recorded in his diaries (stored in the archive of the Uffizi). They are of fundamental importance to the study of art production at the time, because they provide direct information about the daily life and production of an artist's workshop in Renaissance Florence (see Santi, Bruno (ed.): Neri di Bicci, Le Ricordanze, 10 marzo 1453 -24 aprile 1475 Pisa 1976). From these records we learn also that Neri di Bicci, probably because of his strong technical skills, was sought after as an instructor by, among others, Francesco Botticini, Giusto d'Andrea and Cosimo Rosselli, author of a panel also offered here for sale (lot 3006), who intermittently trained with him. The latter would ascend later to that elite group of painters called to Rome in order to fresco the Sistine Chapel (1481/82). Stylistic considerations and the fact that this painting of the Ascension of Christ offered here does not figure in Neri di Bicci's records between 1453 and April 1475, indicate clearly that it should be placed among his late work after 1475. This is also confirmed by the conception of the golden halos as solid three-dimensional discs, which are found similarly in his later work during the 8th decade of the 15th century. This trend towards a still naïve naturalism, however, is also evident in the exquisite detail of two dark footprints visible on the rocky plateau at centre: shadows cast by the feet of Christ as he ascends to heaven. Stylistically, the present picture joins works such as a panel painting of the Adoration of the Child, formerly in the van Gelder collection, Brussels; or two tabernacle wings, sold at Sotheby's in London on 8 July 2004, which most likely date to the years 1475-80, as our panel. Neri di Bicci was a technically accomplished and commercially successful painter who knew how to adapt his style to each patron. When it came time to fulfill an urban commission in Florence, as in 1455 within the Vallambrosian church of Santa Trinita, which was decorated in honour of Giovanni Gualberto in accord with the artistic sensibility of the Renaissance fresco, Neri was well-qualified to incorporate modern principles of the Florentine Renaissance in his designs; however, his primary clientele were churches of religious orders and private individuals in the rural areas around Florence, for which he created devotional images in accordance with the traditional aesthetics of colourful gold ground paintings from the Middle Ages. We thank Prof. Dr. Gaudenz Freuler for his assistance in cataloguing this lot.
Neri di Bicci Florence 1418-1492 The Archangel Raphael leading two Dominican friars in a coastal landscape tempera and gold on panel 8¼ x 19 in. 21 x 48.3 cm.
PROPERTY FROM A DECEASED'S ESTATE SAINT LAURENCE IN GLORY WITH FOUR ANGELS measurements note 38 by 24.5 cm.; 15 by 9 3/4 in. oil on softwood panel, gold ground, the reverse inscribed with the name of Jesus NOTE The young saint represented here, wearing the deacon's dalmatic and holding a banner, is almost certainly Saint Laurence: compare the dress and appearance of the saint in a predella painted by a follower of Gerini in Limoges (for which see G. Kaftal, Iconography of the Saints in Tuscan Painting, Florence 1986, pp. 618-9, figs. 711-2). The reverse of the panel is painted, indicating that it most likely once formed part of a small triptych or diptych (possibly together with an image of Saint Stephen, with whom Laurence is often associated). We are grateful to Everett Fahy for endorsing the attribution to Neri di Bicci upon first-hand inspection of the painting.
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION THE MADONNA AND CHILD WITH ANGELS measurements note 59.5 by 42.5 cm.; 23 1/2 by 16 3/4 in. tempera on panel, gold ground PROVENANCE Ercole Canessa, his sale, New York, American Art Association, 25-26 January 1924, lot 164; Purchased from the above by James W. Oliver; With Durand Ruel, Paris, 1952; Evan M. Evans, New York; Victor D. Spark, New York, 1961 and 1967 (see under Literature below); Anonymous sale, New York, Sotheby's Parke-Bernet, 14 January 1988, lot 58, where purchased by the present collector. LITERATURE Advertisement in The Art Quarterly, Spring 1961 and Spring 1967, reproduced. NOTE This small devotional painting of The Madonna and Child with Angels is a characteristic work by Neri di Bicci. Its iconography is traditional and its style, though a little archaic and retardataire for Quattrocento painting in Florence, is instantly recognisable. Characteristic of Neri di Bicci are the decorative details in the painting; the gold trim of the Madonna's robe and the cushion on which Christ sits; the delicate punchwork of the haloes; and the gold rays emanating from the stars and clouds scattered throughout the sky. Neri di Bicci was the third in line from a family of artists: his father Bicci di Lorenzo (1373-1452) and his grandfather Lorenzo di Bicci (1350-1427) had been successful painters before him. He was a member of the Compagnia di San Luca in Florence in 1434 and began his artistic career as an assistant in his father's workshop, taking over its running after Bicci di Lorenzo became ill in 1446. It was after his father's death in 1452 that Neri di Bicci became an independent artist in his own right and he began keeping a diary, both professional and personal, which covers his principal years of activity from 1453 to 1475: this account, called Le Ricordanze, has been described as "the most extensive surviving original document to record the activity of a 15th-century painter".1 His paintings successfully integrate the early Quattrocento models of his father's paintings with those of the more naturalistic artists of his own generation, such as Fra Angelico, Domenico Veneziano, Filippo Lippi and Andrea del Castagno. Although not considered an innovator, Neri di Bicci and his workshop received a constant stream of commissions from the Florentine nobility and religious institutions, and a number of talented artists were employed by him over the years: Cosimo Rosselli, Giusto d'Andrea, Francesco Botticini and Bernardo di Stefano Rosselli are amongst those documented there. Dating Neri di Bicci's paintings is extremely difficult because the style and iconography of his works remained largely unchanged throughout his career. A number of parallels between this Madonna and Child and other panels by Neri di Bicci can be found, however: the Madonna's facial type and costume (white veil, gold-trimmed robe and brooch) are the same as those in the large altarpiece of The Madonna with the Girdle in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow. Variations on the theme of this panel, where the Madonna and Child are seated before a star-lit sky, were in the collection of Georg Hartmann, Frankfurt-am-Main,2 and another (in which the Madonna is helped by two angels to cover the sleeping Christ Child) was sold in these rooms, 16 April 1980, lot 45. 1. B. Santi, "Neri di Bicci", in J. Turner ed., The Dictionary of Art, London 1996, vol. II, p. 801. The manuscript of Le Ricordanze consists of 189 sheets and is held at the Uffizi, Florence. 2. Exhibited in Frankfurt in 1924-5, no. 150 (Witt Library mount).
SAINTS SEBASTIAN AND APOLLONIA measurements note each: 44 by 15 7/8 in.; 111.7 by 40.3 cm. each inscribed at the bottom SCS. SEBASTIANUS MATI. SC.... and ...S. SCA. APPOLONIA VIRGINIS a pair, both tempera on panel Quantity: 2 PROVENANCE Painted for Zanobi di Manno, Piazza de Nerli, Florence 1457 (see Literature below); With Galleria Luigi Bellini, Florence, from whom purchased in 1925 by Richard M. Hurd, New York (original single panel with Saints Sebastian and Apollonia flanking The Meeting of Saints Zenobius and Ambrose ); His sale, New York, Kende Galleries, October 29, 1945, lot 12 (panel cut into three sections); With A. and E. Silberman Gallery, New York, circa 1950; Norman G. Hickman, by 1973. EXHIBITED New York, Newhouse Galleries, Inc., The Collection of Richard M. Hurd, Esq., May 1937, no. 13; Southhampton, New York, Parrish Art Museum, Art from Southampton Collections, August 4- September 2, 1973 (lent by Norman G. Hickman). LITERATURE B. Berenson, The Italian Pictures of the Renaissance, 1932, p. 388; Newhouse Galleries, The Collection of Richard M. Hurd, Esq., exhibtion catalogue, New York 1937, no. 13, reproduced; B. Berenson, Italian Pictures of the Renaissance, Florentine School, vol. I, London 1963, p. 156; N. di Bicci, Le Ricordanze (10 Marzo 1453-24 Aprile 1475), Pisa 1976, pp. 75-76, cat. no. 148. NOTE These paintings once formed the right and left wings of an integral panel depicting the Meeting of Saints Zenobius and Ambrose. According to Neri di Bicci's Ricordanze (see Literature below) the artist received a private commission in 1457 to paint an altarpiece depicting the meeting of these two bishop saints standing between the figures of Saints Sebastian and Apollonia. The painting remained intact until after the 1925 sale (see Provenance below) but by the time it was exhibited in 1937, the panel had been altered. The central section depicting Saints Zenobius and Ambrose was given to the Grand Rapids Museum, Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1946 by the Herpolscheimer Company and remains in their collection.
The Madonna and Child with a Bishop Saint, Saints Catherine of Alexandria, Margaret of Antioch and Francis of Assisi oil on canvas, transferred from panel 53 1/2 x 76 3/4 in. (135.9 x 194.9 cm.)
