Title

Ceiling

Generic classification

Object

Date

Century

Cultural context / style

Dimensions

Material

Technique

Provenance

Current location

Object history

The eventful history of this beautiful roof from Castile is typical of so many valuable examples of Spanish timber-frame architecture that made their way to the United States amid the fervor of American collecting in the early decades of the 20th century. This trend was also influenced by the fashion for building modern residences in the Spanish Revival style, in whichSpanish roof structures took center stage. The volume of wooden roof structures from the 14th and 15th centuries—and even from the early 16th century—that crossed the Atlantic to meet the modern demands of antique dealers, collectors, and museums in the U.S. was extraordinary (Martínez Ruiz, 2024). One of the most active figures in Spain during those years—and responsible for the marketing and export of a significant portion of these artifacts—was the American architect Arthur Byne, a scholar of Spanish art, who published, together with his wife Mildred Stapley Byne: *Decorated Wooden Ceilings in Spain* ( Byne and Stapley Byne, 1920), a book that, while bringing international attention to the uniqueness of this artistic expression so deeply rooted in the Iberian tradition, also proposed exceptional designs for American architects and interior designers. The book became a sort of catalog of the designs that could be purchased and exported from Spain. It is worth noting, in this regard, that the Bynes, in addition to their public work as scholars, were actively involved as clandestine art dealers (Merino de Cáceres, 1985; Merino de Cáceres and Martínez Ruiz, 2012).

Ignacio Ferrer Pérez-Blanco recently highlighted this beautiful cover—currently housed at the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History (Corpus Christi, Texas)—in an interesting study. The author —towhom we are grateful for the information he provided regarding his research on thiswork—has not only meticulously studied the structure but has also revealed details about its arrival in the United States This was made possible by his analysis of the correspondence between Arthur Byne and the architect Fiske Kimball, who served as director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art from 1925 to 1955. According to the author, Kimball first contacted Byne on June 27, 1927, expressing interest in the possibility of acquiring works of art from Spain. A few months later, Kimball received from Byne a list of 32 items, among which was a “mudejar domical ceiling: good example of the fusion of Moorish-Christian art; period late XV century"; in that letter, which he had to accompany with photographs, he stated: “The photographs show the ceiling partially demolished; in reality, it is excellent preservation. Dome is set up in large segments to avoid confusion. Size of room 32'-6'' square. 10,000$" (Ferrer-Pérez Blanco, 2026, p. 4). According to information provided by Arthur Byne in a letter sent in 1928 regarding the ceiling in question, he noted that the structure had remained in its original location, but due to the demolition of the building, he had been forced to give the necessary orders for its dismantling and relocation. At that time, therefore, the ceiling was in his possession, although the high cost of storing it forced him to sell it as soon as possible. Clearly, Byne was very eager to part with the ceiling, as he took the opportunity to inform his client that the structure’s condition was much better than he had initially anticipated, and therefore extensive restoration work would not be necessary. Driven by the desire to sell, he lowered the initial price to $8,750: “It is a purchase which I can recommend; it is unique, in remarkable state of preservation, and simple to re-erect-" (Ferrer Pérez-Blanco, 2026, p. 5). We know full well that Arthur Byne was known for being truly persuasive when he wanted to sell a work; he was very skilled at it, and in this transaction he was no less so, as Kimball ended up accepting the offer. As was customary, he insisted to his client on the need for discretion regarding the transaction; the export had to receive as little publicity as possible to ensure its success. The truth is that the buyer was disappointed during the process of assembling the structure at its new location, as he discovered that some of the pieces were not antique and, despite the plans sent by Byne for their proper reinstallation, they did not seem to fit together properly to form the intended whole (Ferrer Pérez-Blanco, p. 8). This brings to mind other cases in which the agent came under scrutiny due to the questionable antiquity of some works he sold in the U.S. This was the case, for example, with the sale of a coffered ceiling to the Nelson-Atkins Museum (Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.) in 1932, which turned out to be a modern reproduction of the ceiling covering the sacristy of Tarragona Cathedral (Aguiló Alonso, 2003, pp. 285–290).

Undoubtedly, the disappointment of the Philadelphia museum’s director explains why it was displayed only during the exhibition: “Persian Art and Its Influences,” held between November and December 1932, after which it remained in storage for 63 years, until its eventual sale in 1996 to the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History. This institution currently preserves the work, thanks to a donation made by the philanthropist Radcliffe Cheston Jr. The museum built a new gallery to house the canopy. In connection with this relocation and reconstruction, some clues regarding the ceiling’s origin came to light: “originally graced the top of a long stairwell in a palace in Palencia in northern Spain"(Ferrer Pérez-Blanco, 2026).

Naturally, the next question that arises is: From which palace, from which location in the province of Palencia, might —atleast a significant portion of the pieces that make up thisceiling—have come? If we accept this clue, it is worth noting that there is a rich and varied body of evidence regarding “Lo Blanco” woodwork in the province of Palencia; obviously, when we think of palaces, the complex of the Santa Clara Monastery and the Palace of Pedro I in Astudillo—a Mudejar gem of the province—immediately springs to mind, as well as a site that has undergone various renovations and from which notable examples of Mudejar woodwork have emerged, such as its choir stalls, sold in 1931 and now scattered among the Detroit Institute of Arts in Chicago, the Mission of San Diego in California, and the National Archaeological Museum. But the roof structures of that complex are older; the later chronology of this roof leads us to consider other palatial buildings that, in Byne’s time, were in private hands and subject to advanced deterioration. This was the case, for example, with the palace of the Counts of Buendía, in the town of Dueñas (Palencia), which, despite having played a prominent role in history and boasting beautiful wooden ceilings, has survived to the present day in a state of complete ruin. Quadrado even highlighted the ceiling of one of its opulent rooms: “In early May 1470, they (referring to the Catholic Monarchs) arrived at that town and stayed at the palace of Don Pedro de Acuña; the great hall with its painted coffered ceiling is still preserved today, though it lacks the splendor and opulence that earned it the epithet ‘golden’ (Quadrado, 1861; Lavado Paradinas, p. 208) This palace of Pedro de Acuña suffered a fire around 1471; consequently, the structure that survived into the 20th century was not the one in which the Catholic Monarchs stayed, but a building constructed after that fire, dating from around 1500. When Lavado Paradinas conducted his study on Mudejar woodwork in the province of Palencia, he was still able to see some of its rooms and the remains of its roofs; the building was then used as a workhouse and was in a state of serious disrepair, but we have included here his description of what he observed on the staircase—a space of particular interest to us given the reference it provides: “In the corner of the courtyard, adjacent to the section facing the first gallery described, there is an early 16th-century staircase leading up to the second floor, where remnants of coffered ceilings remain—largely lost and even covered by flat ceilings. These are unpainted coffered ceilings with very simple incised decoration […] The section corresponding to the palace’s noble halls (now owned by the Cuadros family) preserves better examples on wooden ceilings, but all of them date from the early 16th century”(Lavado Paradinas, 1977, pp. 209–212). It should be noted that the Cathedral of Palencia preserves some ceiling muqarnas from Dueñas (Pérez Martín, 2020, pp. 51–52); however, little remains of this Acuña palace, and the nobility associated with this former residence is now scarcely mentioned in historical sources, making it difficult to draw clear conclusions regarding the specific origin of the piece in question.

Description

The roof covers a 10 x 10-meter room. The structure begins with a lower frieze that frames the upper part of the room; as it rises, following the geometric patterns defined by the wooden elements, a symbolic dialogue is established between the square and the circle, ultimately forming a beautiful metaphor for the celestial vault. This is made possible by the transformation of the square into a regular octagon, which in turn subdivides itself until it forms eighteen radial segments that make up the dome. Geometric shapes and numbers that carry clear symbolic meaning, not only because the square and the circle are perfect figures that lead to theOne—divinity—but also because of the number eight —the eighthday, a symbol of resurrection—and its progression to sixteen signified the transition from the earthly to the celestial. The carpenters of “lo blanco” were, in a sense, building firmaments out of wood, for such significance these ceilings took on in temples, monasteries, and palaces.

Locations

• ca. 1928

  region

  Possibly from the province of Palencia, Palencia (Spain)

• ca. 1928 - 1928

  dealer/antiquarian

  Arthur Byne and Mildred Stapley Byne, Madrid (Spain) *

• 1928 - 1996

  museum

  Philadelphia Museum of Art, Filadelfia (United States)

• 1996 - present

  museum

  Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History, Texas, Corpus Christi, Texas (United States)