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Object history

It is a funeral complex dedicated to Doña Mencía Enríquez de Toledo, second wife of Don Beltrán de la Cueva. This was a prominent figure during the reign of Henry IV and the Catholic Monarchs, Duke of Alburquerque and Master of the Order of Santiago. Originally, it was intended to be part of a much larger funerary complex. The undertaking was carried out posthumously upon the death of Don Beltrán de la Cueva. The first sculptural group would be dedicated to Don Beltrán, his first wife Mencía de Mendoza, and his third wife María de Velasco. The second sculptural group would be dedicated solely to Mencía Enríquez de Toledo, his second wife, and a third for Gutierre de la Cueva, bishop of Palencia and Beltrán's brother. (Codding, 2017).

The tomb of Doña Mencía Enríquez de Toledo was located in the transept of the Convent of San Francisco de Cuellar, in Segovia, in front of the main altar. The commission began in 1498 and was completed around 1525 (Miguel Ángel Marcos Villán, 1998).

At the time of the confiscations in the 19th century, the convent gradually lost the few artistic vestiges that remained. The convent was sold by the last Duke of Alburquerque in 1915 to Bienvenido Álvarez. The entire artistic enterprise of the convent was then sold, including the tombs of Beltrán de la Cueva. These were sold and distributed to museums around the world by Lionel Harris, founder of the firm The Spanish Art Gallery, which acquired the funerary ensemble, and from whose firm it passed into the hands of Huntington, who acquired it for the Hispanic Society (Lenaghan 2015).

Description

Elaborated in alabaster, the set for which the sepulcher of Doña Mencía was originally destined began to be sculpted in 1498, and finished around 1525. This gives it an interesting peculiarity. The entire work of Gutierre de la Cueva follows a marked Gothic style, while that of Mencia is Renaissance. It was elaborated in different periods and by different workshops (Codding, 2017).

The lower set of Mencía Enríquez de Toledo began to be made under Gothic influence. The upper pediment is entirely Renaissance because of its absolute inspiration in the pediments of Roman and Greek antiquity.

It is not known with certainty who were in charge of elaborating the work, but it is known that both the lower and upper parts were made by different workshops. The lower part is thought to have been made by a workshop in Burgos. The theory is supported by the similarities with the effigies of the Cartuja de Miraflores by Gil de Siloé, and inspirations in the work of Felipe Vigarny. The tomb of Doña Mencia, together with a relief of the Resurrection, is surrounded by four saints. The upper part, the pediment, a bust of Christ is surrounded by sculptures of St. Anthony of Padua and St. Francis. It was made by a Toledo workshop. It is thought to be from the circle of Vasco de la Zarza, one of the first Spanish artists to adopt the Renaissance trend. This would be supported by how this part of the work is essentially Renaissance (Lenaghan, 2000) (María José Martínez Ruiz, 2008).

Locations

• ca. 1525 - 1905

  convent

  Convent of San Francisco, Cuéllar, Cuéllar (Spain)

• 1905

  dealer/antiquarian

  The Spanish Art Gallery, London, London (United Kingdom) *

• 1906 - present

  museum

  The Hispanic Society of America, New York (United States)