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Title

Presentation of the Virgin. Fragment of an altarpiece

Bigarny, Felipe [style of] (Langres, Borgoña, ca. 1473 - Toledo, 1542)

Generic classification
Sculpture
Object
Relief
Date
ca. 1515-1530
Century
First quarter of the 16th c.
Cultural context / style
Renaissance
Dimensions
49 1/2 x 35 in
Material
Wood
Technique
Gilded, Gilded And Painted
Iconography / Theme
Presentación de la Virgen en el Templo
Provenance
Possible origin in the province of Burgos (Burgos, Spain)
Current location
Hearst Castle (San Simeón, California, United States)
Inventory Number in Current Collection
529-9-4787
Object history

This relief was part of an altarpiece that no longer exists. Nine panels from the ensemble have been located, eight of them in the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Art Museum (Indiana University, USA) and one in Hearst Castle (San Simeon, California, USA). The scenes preserved from the set at the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Art Museum are as follows: Annunciation, Birth of Christ, Birth of the Virgin, Betrothal of the Virgin, Visitation, Adoration of the Magi, Presentation of Christ in the Temple and Flight into Egypt. For its part, in Hearst Castle is found this relief with the Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple (Stratton, 1994; Merino de Cáceres and Martínez Ruiz, 2012).

In addition, according to information provided by Caleigh Law, assistant to the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Art Museum, there is a sculpture of the Assumption of Maryin the Loyola University Museum of Art (Chicago, United States) that would also be part of the altarpiece. This piece was attributed to the circle of Philip Bigarny by Stratton (1994).

Although the reliefs have been attributed to Philip Bigarny because of their formal characteristics, we do not consider this hypothesis to be correct. Although we do not have documentation in this regard, we are inclined to think that they come from Burgos due to the style and way of working the figures, as well as their polychromy. The piece was in the hands of Pedro Ruiz, an antique dealer based in Alava who was in charge of exporting works of art of Spanish provenance to the United States (Martínez Ruiz, 2011). The first sales in New York were possible thanks to the help of Clarke Art Galleries, and this relief was auctioned on May 12, 1920 (Merino de Cáceres and Martínez Ruiz, 2012). That same year it was acquired by the communication magnate William Randolph Hearst, who was decorating his new residential complex in San Simeon (California). Today the relief remains at Hearst Castle.

Description

This relief represents the Presentation of the Virgin. It shows five figures arranged as follows: on the right side of the panel are the priest Zechariah and the Virgin Mary, who is kneeling. Next to them, St. Joachim, St. Anne and St. Elizabeth complete the scene, which is set inside a temple. The monumentality of the figures, as well as their polychromy, refers to the Castilian environment, specifically to Burgos.

* 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.
Citation:

Isabel Escalera Fernández, "Presentation of the Virgin. Fragment of an altarpiece" in Nostra et Mundi. Cultural Heritage from Castile and Leon around the world, Fundación Castilla y León, 2025. https://inventario.nostraetmundi.com/en/work/448

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The Marriage of the Virgin. Fragment of an altarpiece

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Adoration of the Magi. Fragment of an altarpiece

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The Presentation in the Temple. Fragment of an altarpiece

The Presentation in the Temple. Fragment of an altarpiece

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