The Betrothal of St Catherine

The Betrothal of St Catherine

Title

The Betrothal of St Catherine

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

Painting on wood

Medium

Painting on wood

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

St Catherine is depicted accepting the ring from the hand of the infant Christ, while kneeling in prayer in front of the icon of the Virgin and Child that has been brought back to life. Three other Virgin saints and brides of Christ, often depicted with the Virgin Mary, accompany

St Catherine is depicted accepting the ring from the hand of the infant Christ, while kneeling in prayer in front of the icon of the Virgin and Child that has been brought back to life. Three other Virgin saints and brides of Christ, often depicted with the Virgin Mary, accompany the saint in the painting - St Barbara, St Dorothy and probably St Agnes of Rome. A donor, perhaps an abbot kneels at the lower right edge of the painting. He is depicted in half-profile and his face exhibits the features of a portrait.

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

Attributions
Circle of Lucas Cranach the Elder
Lucas Cranach the Elder

Attributions

Circle of Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Exhib. Cat. Osek 1996, 36, No. 27]

Production dates
after 1520
1510

Production dates

after 1520

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

1510

[Exhib. Cat. Osek 1996, 36, No. 27]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 104 x 65 cm

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 104 x 65 cm

  • [Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

Signature / Dating

None

Owner
Regionální muzeum v Teplicích
Repository
Regionální muzeum v Teplicích
CDA ID
CZ_MT_Osek39
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/CZ_MT_Osek39/

Provenance

  • from the collection of the former monastery gallery in Osek
  • removed in 1950
    [Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

Exhibitions

Brüx 1928, no. 218
Prague 2005, no. 26

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Chamonikola 2005 B 24 (English version 10, 11)
AuthorKaliopi Chamonikola
TitleLucas Cranach a ceské zeme/ Lucas Cranach and the Czech Lands
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
Pages13-33 (6-15)
Show Literature
Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005 108, 109 (English version 42) 26 Pl. p. 109
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
Show Literature
Opitz 1928 36 27
AuthorDana Stehlíková
Title800 Jahre des Klosters in Osek, (1196 - 1996)
Place of PublicationOsek
Year of Publication1996
Show Literature
Opitz 1930 18 20
AuthorJosef Opitz
TitleDie Galerie des Stiftes Ossegg
SeriesNordwestböhmische Heimatbücher
Volume3
Place of PublicationKomotau
Year of Publication1930
Show Literature
Exhib. Cat. Brüx 1928 56 218
AuthorJosef Opitz
TitleGotische Malerei und Plastik Nordwestböhmens
Place of PublicationBrüx-Komotau
Year of Publication1928
Show Literature

Research History / Discussion

In 1928 [the panel] was exhibited by Josef Opitz [Exhib. Cat. Brüx 1928, 56, No. 218] who identified its author as a pupil of Lucas Cranach the Elder working in this area and dated the painting to the second quarter of the 16th century. He identified the figure of a donor as a Benedictine abbot. Opitz [...] ranked it among the group of works called 'Cranach's School'. He did not identify the coat of arms of the donor, but interpreted the heraldic figure as an ass. [?]

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

The origin of the panel in the Osek gallery allows the assumption that the donor may have been an abbot of the Cistercian monastery as his clothing with a black mozzetta and a coat may indicate. In such a case the person could be Abbot Martin who held this office in the 1520s. However the coat of arms has not yet been identified.

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

  • The Betrothal of St Catherine, after 1520

Images

Compare images
  • overall
  • overall
  • irr
  • detail
  • detail
  • detail
  • detail

Technical studies

03. 2018Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • irr

Underdrawing

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Material:

- the initial design may have been executed with a dry drawing material, pen; erste Anlage eventuell trockenes Zeichenmedium, Stift; and subsequently reinforced with a fluid black medium and a brush

Type/Ductus:

- detailed and to some extent traced underdrawing; probably after a pre-existing design

- delicate to slightly broader lines

- occasional hatching-strokes in the areas of shadow

Function:

- relatively binding for the final painted version; lines delineate the main contours and describe essential details and facial features; occasional hatching-strokes

Deviations:

- minor corrections were made to forms during the painting process; no large changes

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- not possible

[Sandner, Smith-Contini, Heydenreich, cda 2019]

  • photographed by Ingo Sandner
  • photographed by Gunnar Heydenreich

Condition Reports

Date2005

In the past the whole painting was reduced by at least 10 cm (more than half of the coat of arms of the donor along the lower edge is missing as well as the attribute of the saint on the right).

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

Conservation History

Date1970 - 1975

The treatment was carried out in the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005, 42, No. 26]

  • conservation treatment by B. Slánský

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'The Betrothal of St Catherine', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/CZ_MT_Osek39/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'The Betrothal of St Catherine', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/CZ_MT_Osek39/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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