Bidspirit auction | Circle of Juan Martínez Montañés

Circle of Juan Martínez Montañés (1568–1649) – Saint Martin of Tours - A large panel sculpture in high and low relief depicting Saint Martin of Tours offering his cloak to a beggar. A carved, polychrome and gilded wooden sculpture that retains its original frame. In the first Sotheby’s catalogues, from which it originates, the work is attributed to the circle of the master Juan Martínez Montañés (Alcalá la Real, 16 March 1568 – Seville, 18 June 1649), and is thought to have been executed around the year 1600. The format and dimensions of this work suggest it may have come from a dismantled or lost altarpiece, which has yet to be identified or studied. The significance of this work at the Sotheby’s Parke Bernet auction (Los Angeles, USA, 1976) was such that this relief was reproduced in the accompanying catalogue as a full-page illustration, in both black and white and in colour, as well as appearing on the front and back covers of the catalogue (see images). This work stands out within Spanish religious art as it transitions from the late Renaissance to the Baroque period. Dimensions: 1.17 x 1.15 m. Provenance: Early, unknown. USA, Sotheby’s Parke Bernet Los Angeles: Auction 25–28 October 1976 (sale 197), lot 60 Spain, private collection. This consignment has been granted a valid Definitive Export Licence for immediate export to any country in the world.