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Title

Female Bust. Saint Martha?

sculptor

Juni, Juan de (Joigny, ca. 1507 - Valladolid, 1577)

Generic classification
Sculpture
Object
Sculpture
Date
ca. 1545
Century
16th c.
Cultural context / style
Renaissance
Dimensions
H20 x 1/2 x W 17 5/16 x D 9 1/2 in.
Material
Wood
Technique
Gilded, Polychrome, Carved
Iconography / Theme
Santa Marta
Provenance
Possible origin in the province of Valladolid (Valladolid, Spain)
Current location
The Hispanic Society of America (New York, United States)
Inventory Number in Current Collection
LD2411
Object history

Juan de Juni is one of the most renowned sculptors of the Spanish Renaissance. This sculptor had great mastery in stone, terracotta and wood, creating figures of great dramatic charge through elaborate facial expressions, realistic attitudes and veracity of body movement. His work reflects a deep knowledge of Italian mannerism and classical sculpture, skills that may have been acquired in France through Italian artists based in Fontainebleau. Very little is known about his life prior to his arrival in Spain, where he developed his career, but it is believed that Juni was born in Joigny (Burgundy) (Codding 2017, 176).

This sculpture, preserved at the Hispanic Society of America, was acquired by this institution, along with another similar bust, St. Mary Magdalene?, in 2016, after purchasing both from the Madrid art gallery Coll & Cortés. The carving and polychromy of the busts resemble the sculpture of Saint Anne preserved in the Museo Nacional de Escultura in Valladolid (inv. CE0394), and this may be the third bust to complete a work for a community of nuns based on the active and contemplative life (Codding 2017, 176).

Description

Normally, this type of sculptures have the function of preserving relics of saints in their interior, but when they leave their religious context, they are usually emptied, making it difficult to identify the saint. One of the busts resembles the Magdalena sculpted by Juni for the Villafañe chapel. Therefore, if one of the busts represents Mary Magdalene, it is very likely that the other represents her sister Martha. According to tradition, Mary Magdalene embodies the contemplative life, while her sister, the active life. Juni, following this tradition, shows Mary as an attractive woman engaged in religious meditation and Martha with an expression of suffering derived from the active and material life whose labors have weakened and worn her out (Codding 2017, 176).

* The relative location of dealers, antique shops, art galleries, and collectors leads us to the places where they were based or had one of their main headquarters. However, this does not always indicate that every artwork that passed through their hands was physically located there. In the case of antique dealers and art merchants, their business often extended across multiple territories; sometimes they would purchase items at their origin and send them directly to clients. Similarly, some collectors owned multiple residences, sometimes in different countries, where they housed their collections. It is often difficult to determine exactly where a specific piece was kept during its time in their possession. Consequently, the main location of the dealer or collector is indicated. These factors should be considered when interpreting the map. Refer to the object's history in each case.
Bibliography
  • CODDING, Mitchell A. (coord.) (2017): Tesoros de la Hispanic Society of America: visiones del mundo hispánico, Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid.
Citation:

Cristina Borreguero Beltrán, "Female Bust. Saint Martha?" in Nostra et Mundi. Cultural Heritage from Castile and Leon around the world, Fundación Castilla y León, 2025. https://inventario.nostraetmundi.com/en/work/270

Female Bust (Saint Martha?)

The Hispanic Society of America

The Hispanic Society of America

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