The Martyrdom of St Catherine

The Martyrdom of St Catherine

Title

The Martyrdom of St Catherine

[cda 2011]

Painting on limewood (Tilia sp.)

Medium

Painting on limewood (Tilia sp.)

[Heydenreich, cda 2011]

St Catherine is a legendary figure, the beautiful, educated and incalculably rich king's daughter from Alexandria. According to the legend, she suffered martyrdom under Emperor Maxentius (c. 278-312), after arguing with 50 heathen philosophers and converting them to her Christian beliefs. She was condemned to be broken on the wheel,

St Catherine is a legendary figure, the beautiful, educated and incalculably rich king's daughter from Alexandria. According to the legend, she suffered martyrdom under Emperor Maxentius (c. 278-312), after arguing with 50 heathen philosophers and converting them to her Christian beliefs. She was condemned to be broken on the wheel, but an angel of the Lord destroyed the wheel and killed 4,000 of the heathen who had gathered to watch, whereupon the guard and the wife of the emperor became Christians. Finally Maxentius ordered the beheading of Catherine.

Attributions
Lucas Cranach the Elder

Attributions

Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Fenyö 1955]

'Unbekannter Meister'
[Takács 1909, 453]

Production dates
about 1508
about 1508/1509

Production dates

about 1508

[Heydenreich 2007 A, 65]
[Grimm 1998, 69]
[Grimm 1994, 35, 299]

about 1504

[Fenyö 1955, 68-71]

about 1505

[Brinkmann, Exhib. Cat. Frankfurt 2007, 1932]
[Friedländer, Rosenberg 1978, 68, No. 11]

about 1506-1509

[Schade 1974, 37]

about 1508/1509

[Messling , Exhib. Cat. Brussels 2010, 118]
[Koepplin, Exhib. Cat. Basel 1974, Bd. II, 552-53]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 112 x 95 x 1.6 cm (original size of panel)

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 112 x 95 x 1.6 cm (original size of panel)

  • [Heydenreich, cda 2011]

Signature / Dating

None

Owner
Ráday Library of the Reformed Church, Budapest
Repository
Ráday Library of the Reformed Church, Budapest
Location
Budapest
CDA ID
HU_HCBC
FR (1978) Nr.
FR011
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/HU_HCBC/

Provenance

  • 1791acquired by Count Ráday in Leipzig from the art dealer Thiele
    [Koepplin, Exhib. Cat. Basel 1974, Bd. II, 552]

Exhibitions

Kronach 1994, No. 120a
Frankfurt, London 2007/08
Brussels, Paris 2010/11

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Exhib. Cat. Paris 2011 118-119
EditorGuido Messling
TitleCranach et son temps [Paris, Musée du Luxembourg]
Place of PublicationParis
Year of Publication2011
Exhib. Cat. Brussels 2010 118-119 20
EditorBozarbooks & Lannoo, Guido Messling
TitleDie Welt des Lucas Cranach. Ein Künstler im Zeitalter von Dürer, Tizian und Metsys [anlässlich der Ausstellung "Die Welt des Lucas Cranach", Palast der Schönen Künste, Brüssel, 20. Oktober 2010 - 23. Januar 2011]
Place of PublicationBrussels
Year of Publication2010
Exhib. Cat. Frankfurt 2007 132-133 11 p. 133
EditorBodo Brinkmann
TitleCranach der Ältere, [Frankfurt, Städel Museum, 23 Nov 2007 - 17 Feb 2008]
Place of PublicationOstfildern
Year of Publication2007
Exhib. Cat. Madrid 2007/2008 361
EditorFernando Checa
TitleDurero y Cranach. Arte y Humanismo en la Alemania del Renacimiento [Madrid, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza]
Place of PublicationMadrid
Year of Publication2007
Heydenreich 2007 A 63, 65, 67, 68, 80, 86, 99, 101, 102, 105, 108, 112, 113, 119, 122, 161, 174, 182, 189, 205, 216, 298, 316, 317, 323
AuthorGunnar Heydenreich
TitleLucas Cranach the Elder
Place of PublicationAmsterdam
Year of Publication2007
Link https://lucascranach.org/application/files/6116/2097/3099/Heydenreich_2007_Lucas_Cranach_the_Elder.pdf
Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005 54 (English version 25) under no. 5
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
Exhib. Cat. Eisenach 1998 114-117 No. 13.3 Figs. 13.3, 13.3a-c
EditorWartburg-Stiftung, Eisenach, Fachhochschule , Ingo Sandner
TitleUnsichtbare Meisterzeichnungen auf dem Malgrund. Cranach und seine Zeitgenossen. Ausstellungskatalog und Tagungsband Katalogteil 1; 2: Werkstatt und Schüler Cranachs; 3: Süddeutsche Meister; 4: Albrecht Dürer und sein Kreis; 5: Rheinische Meister
Place of PublicationRegensburg
Year of Publication1998
Pages229-240
Grimm 1998 69-73 Figs. 9.2, 9.5, 9.8
AuthorClaus Grimm
TitleDie Anteile von Meister und Werkstatt. Zum Fall Lucas Cranach d.Ä.
Publicationin Ingo Sandner, Wartburg-Stiftung Eisenach and Fachhochschule Köln, eds., Unsichtbare Meisterzeichnungen auf dem Malgrund. Cranach und seine Zeitgenossen, Exhib. Cat. Eisenach
Place of PublicationRegensburg
Year of Publication1998
Pages67-82
Heydenreich 1998 A 188-189, 193, 196 Figs. 21.6, 21.7, 21.11, 21.12, 21.18
AuthorGunnar Heydenreich
TitleHerstellung, Grundierung und Rahmung der Holzbildträger in den Werkstätten Lucas Cranachs d.Ä.
Publicationin Ingo Sandner, Wartburg-Stiftung Eisenach and Fachhochschule Köln, eds., Unsichtbare Meisterzeichnungen auf dem Malgrund. Cranach und seine Zeitgenossen, Exhib. Cat. Eisenach
Place of PublicationRegensburg
Year of Publication1998
Pages181-200
Sandner 1998 B 87, 89, 91, 92
AuthorIngo Sandner
TitleCranach als Zeichner auf dem Malgrund
Publicationin Ingo Sandner, Wartburg-Stiftung Eisenach and Fachhochschule Köln, eds., Unsichtbare Meisterzeichnungen auf dem Malgrund. Cranach und seine Zeitgenossen, Exhib. Cat. Eisenach
Place of PublicationRegensburg
Year of Publication1998
Pages83-95
Exhib. Cat. Kronach 1994 299-301, 371 120a Fig. 120a
EditorClaus Grimm, Johannes Erichsen, Evamaria Brockhoff
TitleLucas Cranach. Ein Maler-Unternehmer aus Franken [Festung Rosenberg, Kronach 17.05 - 21.08.1994; Museum der Bildenden Künste, Leipzig 07.09 - 06.11.1994]
SeriesVeröffentlichungen zur bayerischen Geschichte und Kultur
Volume26
Place of PublicationAugsburg, Coburg
Year of Publication1994
Grimm 1994 31, 35 Fig. A19
AuthorClaus Grimm
TitleLucas Cranach 1994
Publicationin Claus Grimm, Johannes Erichsen, Evamaria Brockhoff, eds., Lucas Cranach. Ein Maler-Unternehmer aus Franken, Exhib. Cat. Kronach 1994
SeriesVeröffentlichungen zur bayerischen Geschichte und Kultur
Volume26
Place of PublicationAugsburg, Regensburg
Year of Publication1994
Pages18-43
Schade 1994 B 13
AuthorWerner Schade
TitleCranach in Umrissen
Publicationin Allmuth Schuttwolf, ed., Gotteswort und Menschenbild. Werke von Cranach und seinen Zeitgenossen, Exhib. Cat. Gotha
Place of PublicationGotha
Year of Publication1994
Pages13-14
Schade, Schuttwolf 1994 18
AuthorWerner Schade, Allmuth Schuttwolf
TitleMalerei und Plastik
Publicationin Allmuth Schuttwolf, ed., Gotteswort und Menschenbild. Werke von Cranach und seinen Zeitgenossen, Exhib. Cat. Gotha
Place of PublicationGotha
Year of Publication1994
Pages15-94
Exhib. Cat. Berlin 1983 77
EditorAltes Museum, Berlin
TitleKunst der Reformationzeit
Place of PublicationBerlin
Year of Publication1983
Friedländer, Rosenberg 1979 68 No. 11 Fig. 11
AuthorMax J. Friedländer, Jakob Rosenberg
EditorG. Schwartz
TitleDie Gemälde von Lucas Cranach
Place of PublicationBasel, Boston, Stuttgart
Year of Publication1979
Strieder 1975 170
AuthorPeter Strieder
TitleLucas-Cranach-Ausstellung in Basel (Ausst. Besprechung)
JournalKunstchronik
IssueJg. 28, Heft 5
Year of Publication1975
Pages165-171
Exhib. Cat. Basel 1974/1976 89, 552-553, 743 No. 414 Pl. 5
AuthorDieter Koepplin, Tilman Falk
TitleLukas Cranach. Gemälde, Zeichnungen und Druckgraphik
Volume1, 2
Place of PublicationBasel, Stuttgart
Year of Publication1974
Link http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bsz:16-diglit-104522
Schade 1974 37
AuthorWerner Schade
TitleDie Malerfamilie Cranach
Place of PublicationDresden
Year of Publication1974
Link http://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/schade1974
Végh 1972 Fig. 23
AuthorJános Végh
TitleDeutsche Tafelbilder des 16. Jahrhunderts
Place of PublicationBudapest
Year of Publication1972
Perger 1966 76, Fn. 22
AuthorRichard Perger
TitleNeue Hypothesen zur Frühzeit des Malers Lukas Cranach des Älteren
JournalWiener Geschichtsblätter
IssueJg. 21, H. 3
Year of Publication1966
Pages70-77
Stange 1964 138
AuthorAlfred Stange
TitleMalerei der Donauschule
Place of PublicationMunich
Year of Publication1964
Fenyö 1955 68-71
AuthorIvan Fenyo
TitleAn Unknown Early Cranach
JournalBurlington Magazine
Issue97
Year of Publication1955
Pages68-71
Takács 1909 453
AuthorZoltán von Takács
Title[Sammlungen] Breslau
JournalDer Cicerone. Halbmonatsschrift für die Interessen des Kunstforschers und Sammlers
Issue1/14
Year of Publication1909
Pages452-453

Research History / Discussion

“However, it seems that this borrowing was mainly one-sided and Durer barely responded to the challenge,127 whereas Cranach pursued the artistic competition even while he was court painter in Wittenberg. Durer painted the Martyrdom of the Ten Thousand Christians for the Saxon Elector Friedrich III between 1507 and 1508.128 Cranach finished the Budapest Martyrdom of St Catherine (fig. 40)129 of approximately the same size and proportion at about the same time. It probably relates to a further meeting of both artists. As the features of the wooden support for the Martyrdom of St Catherine differ noticeably

from those of other Wittenberg works (see p. 65), it seems likely that the panel was produced outside the workshop, perhaps even in Nuremberg.130 This assertion is supported by the observation that Cranach probably used motifs of the Heller Altarpiece, which were being produced at the same time

in Durer ’s workshop (1507/09).131 In addition, Cranach gave this work special attention in terms of composition and technical execution. The preliminary design on the panel appears to have been drawn in a concentrated way and with shadows partially deepened by hatching (fig. 87). This is reminiscent of Durer ’s urge for precision.132 Subsequently, Cranach applied the reddish imprimatura .133 In the course of the painting process, the composition was corrected again; the colour, plasticity as well as the materiality were modeled with an extra ordinary sensibility. Some passages of paint were accentuated in a graphic way with a pointed brush, which again reveals a direct relation to Dürer’ s meticulous painting (figs 273, 278).”

[Heydenreich 2007 A, 318]

'The panel in Budapest was first identified by Fenyö 1955 as an early major work by Cranach and ranks with its confident underdrawing and both assured and careful jewel-like rendering among the highest quality panels by Cranach, in which workshop participation is unlikely. The date of the painting however remains controversial. Fenyö and most recently Brinkmann suggest 1504/05, during the initial period of Cranach's activity at the Wittenberg court, whereas Koepplin and Grimm advocate a date about 1508/09, directly before or after his journey to the Netherlands. The relationship of the panel to the 'Martyrdom of St Catharine' from 1506 in Dresden (FR 014, Fig. 78), which depicts the subject less dramatically and more flat, is frequently addressed within this context. Not only the soft manner of blending paint in the vegetation and the accomplished spatial setting of the central group of the henchmen and the saints, for which the jumble of falling men serves as a backdrop suggest a creation date after this painting; but also the affinity of the two central figures to the woodcut from about 1508/09 depicting 'The Beheading of St John the Baptist' (No. 67) points in this direction.

Furthermore it is remarkable that the underdrawing of the henchman is even closer to the figure of his colleague in the woodcut. In addition to the printed graphic prototypes by Dürer and the Monogrammist MZ (Nos. 18 and 19) shown here, Cranach may, as suggested by Grimm, also have known the depiction of the martyr on the inner side of the right wing of Dürer’s Heller-Altar, created in Nuremberg between 1507 and 1509. Cranach was in the free imperial city (freie Recihsstadt) in January and July of 1508 from where he set off to the Netherlands. Of interest in this respect is Heydenreich’s observation that the construction of the panel differs from those created in Wittenberg during these years, so the painting could have been created on a journey. Unfortunately the origin of this important painting is unknown before 1791, when it was acquired in Leipzig as a work by Dürer.’

[Messling , Exhib. Cat. Brussels 2010, 118-119]

  • The Martyrdom of St Catherine, about 1508

Images

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Technical studies

2011Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • detail

Support

- four boards, widths between 19.5 and 26 cm, top from left to right: 24/24.8/24.7/21.5 cm, bottom from left to right: 25.8/19.5/24/26 cm

- glued butt joints, the edge of the panel is straight

- there are no visible damages in the wood

- the joints are covered on the front of the panel with strips of canvas (width 3.5-5 cm; thread count 15 x 15 threads/cm)

- the reverse of the panel has been carefully smoothed (original), a brown coating may be later

- a groove running around the edge of the panel is marked with incised lines; it was probably used to hold the panel in a frame (and may be of a later date)

- three dovetailed cross-battens on the reverse are probably not original, but may correspond to the lost originals

Ground and Imprimatura

- white ground, probably a glue-chalk mixture, a relatively thin application

- the barbe along the edge of the ground is intact on all four sides

- imprimatura: a pink admixture (lead white, red lead), stripy application over the entire surface, partially visible on the surface

- a black painted band runs around the edge

Underdrawing

Paint Layers and Gilding

- gilding: various garments were gilded during the painting process – beforehand they were worked up extensively in paint

Framing

- new frame: rebate frame, black

  • written by Gunnar Heydenreich

10. 2010Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • irr

Underdrawing

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Materials:

- fluid, black medium and brush

Type/Ductus:

- freehand underdrawing

- thin to relatively broad lines; occasional hatching-strokes

Function:

- only partially binding for the final painted version; lines delineate contours and describe the essential details and the facial features; some representation of volume (hatching-strokes)

Deviations:

- alterations made during the painting process to clearly define form; changes (e.g. position of the henchman)

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Smith, Sandner, Heydenreich, cda 2012]

  • photographed by Ingo Sandner
  • photographed by Gunnar Heydenreich

2007Technical examination / Scientific analysis

Support

'The support consists of four broad limewood boards in a vertical arrangement. The planks are almost twice as thick as usual (1.6 cm).

On the front the joins are completely covered with canvas strips (fi gs 44, 45). Three dovetailed cross-battens on the back are probably original. Such techniques of stabilising the joins are rare on Cranach’s painting supports. There are also other differences compared to later practices, which will be considered further on. There is little doubt that this painting support came from a different professional panel maker . The cost for transporting supports was relatively high compared to those of production. Was this support made at a place where Cranach stopped during his travels, perhaps even in

Nuremberg? The methods used are found on various Nuremberg supports of the same period.'

[Heydenreich 2007 A, 65]

Ground and Imprimatura

'On the panel depicting the Martyrdom of St Catherine (c.1508, ffig. 40), the black line on the upper and lower border ends with the barb, leaving some bare wood visible on the edge of the panel. The black paint covers the wood left and right

as far as the edge.52 A painting by Rembrandt , produced some 100 years later, may aid an understanding of this phenomenon (fig. 75). The Artist in His Studio53 shows a large panel standing on an easel. Grooved battens were temporarily attached to the upper and lower edge in order to stabilise the panel. It could thus be moved safely within the workshop. This assumes that there were similar pieces of squared wood as interim devices to exert a stabilising force used in the Cranach workshop during the early Wittenberg years. It is conceivable that they formed part of the temporary frame used during grounding when the aqueous medium might cause the panel to distort.54 It remains to be investigated whether they also served to hold the boards during joining.'

[Heydenreich 2007 A, 86]

Paint Layers and Gilding

'In X-radiographs of the Budapest Martyrdom of St Catherine (c.1508), changes in the choice of material, for example, gold leaf instead of a robe painted yellow, are revealed. The brocade robe of the falling prince, including the drawing of the pattern, was completed first with paint before being covered with

gold leaf and a new pattern (ifi gs 183, 184). To what an extent this alteration is a result of the artist reviewing the work from an aesthetic point of view or the commissioner expressing certain wishes cannot as yet be ascertained.'

[Heydenreich 2007 A, 216]

1998Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography

Underdrawing

“Kopf und Oberkörper des Landsknechtes sind stark verändert. Der Henker war stärker nach rechts gebeugt. Durch die Zurücksetzung des Kopfes strafft sich der einst leicht gebeugte linke Arm, und der zum Schwert greifende rechte Arm erhält mehr Raum für den erwarteten tödlichen Schlag. Die Absicht einer erhöhten Dramatik war wohl der Grund für die genannten Veränderungen der Komposition.“

[Sandner 1998, 115]

„Kopf der Katharina: Neben der lockeren Linienführung des Umfeldes überrascht die konzentrierte, genaue Zeichnung mit zwar sparsamer aber verbindlicher Ausbildung der Details. Im Brustbereich sind sogar einige Schraffuren angelegt.“

[Sandner 1998, 116]

„Kopf des Landsknechtes: Der Kopf wurde in der Malerei deutlich nach links versetzt. Das Ohr der Unterzeichnung sitzt unter dem rechten Auge“

[Sandner 1998, 117]

09.03.1994Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • X-radiography
  • x_radiograph
  • x_radiograph
  • x_radiograph
  • x_radiograph

20kV, 6mA, 2,20 min, 4 Films

  • photographed by Pröll

1994Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Micro-sampling / cross-sections
  • Instrumental material analysis

Analyse of cross-sections; Incident light microscopy; UV fluorescence; EDX:

Probenliste Heydenreich [136]

Cross-section No.: EP 053

Brief description of paint: violet robe on black underpainting

Sample location: Fold in St Katharine’s robe, violett on black

Sample No.: 054

Incident light microscopy: yes

Incident light microscopy, photograph: yes

UV fluorescence: yes

UV fluorescence, photograph: yes

EDX: yes

EDX photograph: no

Observations:

5. varnish

4. red lake pigment and glassy, white amorphous lumps, in UV weak orange-red fluorescence

EDX: Pb!, Al!, traces of Ca, and K, indicating a red lake on a substrate containing aluminium

3. brown-black layer, large black and fine red pigment particles, in UV particles with a yellowish fluorescence are also visible, the red particles do not exhibit any characteristic fluorescence

EDX: red pigment Fe!, Si!, indicating a red iron oxide rich in silicon, the matrix also contains Ca, Cu, Ti – the black underpainting consists of black with the addition of iron oxide and a small amount of chalk? And a copper containing pigment (sicative)?

2. orange-pink layer, orange-red and white pigments, with a strong yellow fluorescence in UV and red pigments, with an orange fluorescence; light red imprimitura, which has run into an air-bubble in the chalk ground

1. traces of a black underdrawing; not detected with EDX

0. white ground

Commentary: The underdrawing is partially visible here. Pink imprimitura. Aubergine coloured robe with black underpainting (with the addition of red) and modulated with a red lake glaze

Probenliste Heydenreich [138]

Cross-section No.: EP 055

Brief description of paint: red piece of cloth on the trousers

Sample location: thief, thin strip of cloth beneath the hand on the left

Sample No.: 057

Incident light microscopy: yes

Incident light microscopy, photograph: yes

UV fluorescence: yes

UV fluorescence, photograph: yes

SEM/EDX: yes

SEM/EDX photograph: no

Observations:

3. red layer, vermillion pigment particles, blood red in UV, no further layer visible

2. white layer, light grey-white trousers,

EDX: Pb and traces of Ca, underpainting in lead white

1. orange-pink layer, white and orange-red pigments (orange-red in UV),

EDX: only Pb, imprimitura consists of lead white and red lead

0. white layer, becoming more transparent towards the top, ground

Commentary: Imprimatura (lead white and red lead) containing lead on a white ground. The trousers are underpainted with a light grey-white paint and are finished with vermilion red stripes.

[Heydenreich, unpublished examination report, 1994]

  • written by Gunnar Heydenreich

Conservation History

Date1994

Treatment:

  • removal of varnish and old retouching/overpaint

(see photographs taken before and after treatment in: [Exhib. Cat. Kronach 1994, 300, 301])

[Heydenreich, CDA 2011]

  • conservation treatment by Thomas Brachert

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

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