Thursday 28 July 2016

Bolognese Miniature: What is it, and Where is it?

[Click for a larger image]
I would like to know the subject of this miniature in the style of Niccolò da Bologna, and where it is now.

The scene appears to show two moments in the life of a monk-saint (perhaps St Benedict or St Anthony Abbot?). Left of centre an old bearded monk lies on the ground, apparently speaking a few words beginning "ubi e... " to Christ above, who holds a scroll and points to our left, apparently banishing two winged devils; to the right a second monk or hermit carries the first into a building or chapel. Can anyone identify this scene?

The miniature is a cutting, sold at Christie's in 1961, described as follows:

At the Christie's sale it bought for £36 by "Haas", presumably the bookselling business Otto Haas, which since 1955 had been owned by Albi Rosenthal. Does anyone know where it is now?

2 comments:

  1. Peter, I'm not sure if you've already identified this scene or not, but I believe it is the following legend of Saint Anthony Abbot, as you can read here, in the second paragraph.

    Best,
    Chris Platts

    https://web.archive.org/web/20130123065522/http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/golden153.htm

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. I showed this image at the Boston MSS conference in November 2016 and the audience was able to point me to St Anthony and the Golden Legend; I should have updated this page accordingly.

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