Title

Assumption of the Virgin

Berruguete, Pedro [attributed to] (Paredes de Nava, ca. 1445 - Madrid, ca. 1503)

Generic classification

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Object history

This panel, attributed to Pedro Berruguete, was part of an altarpiece that was dismantled. The earliest record we have of it places it in the collection of Raimundo and Luis Ruiz, two antique dealers from the early 20th century (Martínez Ruiz, 2011). Thanks to photographs from the Moreno archive—now preserved at the Spanish Institute of Cultural Heritage—it is possible to trace some of the works that the two brothers sold in the United States (Martínez Ruiz, 2022). 

In 1929, the Ruiz brothers took advantage of theBarcelona International Exposition to exhibit part of their collection. Among the pieces they brought to the exhibition were nine panels by Pedro Berruguete that caught the attention of collectors. Laínez (1943) and Post (1947) provided further information about the nine panels. It was the American Hispanist who stated in Volume IX of*A History of Spanish Painting* that the set originated from an altarpiece dedicated to the Life of the Virgin.

Although the set was dismembered, nine panels known to have been part of it are still accounted for:

• King Solomon. Since 1971, it has been housed in Falaise, a residence managed by the Nassau County Department of Parks and Recreation in the United States (Young, 1975).
•  King David. The panel is housed at Bowdin College in the United States.
• The Prophet Isaiah. In 1975, Young located this panel in Madrid (Spain); however, after tracking the piece, we have confirmed thatit was put up for sale in 2011, and its current whereabouts are unknown. 
• The Prophet Jeremiah. In 1975, Young placed this panel in Madrid, Spain.
• The Nativity of the Virgin. It was acquired in 1948 by Abbot Escarré and is currently housed in the museum of the Abbey of Montserrat.
• The Visitation. The last report came from Young in 1975, who stated that it was in Madrid, Spain. Its current whereabouts are unknown (Silva, 2003). 
• The Annunciation. Currently housed at the Bilbao Museum of Fine Arts (Spain). 
• The Dormition. It was acquired in 1948 by Abbot Escarré and is currently housed in the museum at Montserrat Abbey.
• Assumption of the Virgin. It is housed at the Davis Museum atWellesley College in the United States.

In addition to these nine panels, the Museum of Pontevedra houses a painting by Pedro Berruguete depicting the Marriage of the Virgin. The dimensions of the work (144 x 91 cm) match those of the panels depicting the life of the Virgin, as do the subject matter and the date. Therefore, we propose the hypothesis that it may also have been part of the set.

Although the provenance of the altarpiece is unknown, it seems plausible to assume that Berruguete created it during his stay in Palencia, given the similarities between the figures in the predella and those in other works executed by the painter in the 1480s–1490s, such as the altarpiece of Santa Eulalia in Paredes de Nava (Palencia). These panels were part of an earlier altarpiece dedicated to Saint Joachim and Saint Anne, on which Alejo de Vahía likely collaborated as a sculptor (Zalama, 1988). Inocencio Berruguete and his brother-in-law, Esteban Jordán, were responsible for the new altarpiece, placing the six panels by Pedro Berruguete depicting the saints of Judah on the predella (Zalama, 2013). Returning to the dismembered panels, Young (1975) dated them to around 1485 based on their Italianate elements, the treatment of perspective, the spatial organization, and the modeling of the figures. It should be noted that around this time, in addition to the altarpiece in Paredes de Nava, Berruguete also created the one in Becerril de Campos (Palencia).  

After the altarpiece was dismantled, nine of the panels that had formed part of it ended up in the hands of the Ruiz brothers (Laínez, 1943; Post, 1947), who ran an antiques business in Madrid (Martínez Ruiz, 2011). They made repeated visits to the Castilian dioceses with the aim of meeting the demands of the North American market, becoming pioneers in the international antiquities trade (Martínez Ruiz, 2010).

On December 9, 1925, Raimundo Ruiz sold“five important paintings by Pedro Berruguete” at an auction held at American Art Galleries (New York): Visitation, Nativity of the Virgin, Dormition, Solomon, and Assumption of the Virgin (lots 739A–739E). This last panel appeared in the auction catalog under the title“Coronation of the Virgin,”and its description was as follows:“A mandorla, or almond-shaped glory, with the Virgin robed in blue and crimson, standing on the crescent moon and surrounded by angels, three of whom are crowning her”(December 9, 1925, Spanish Antiquities; pottery tiles, furniture, ironwork, lamps, paintings, etc., American Art).

This panel was sold to Abraham M. Adler, an art dealer and collector who, together with Norman Hirschl, founded the firm Hirschl & Adler Galleries in 1952. In 1965, he and his wife, Lillian Levinson Adler, donated the piece to the Davis Museum at Wellesley College (United States), where it is currently housed.

Description

The painting depicts the Assumption of the Virgin, the moment when Mary is taken up into heaven after her death. At the center of the composition stands the Virgin, her hands clasped in prayer. She wears a blue cloak and a red skirt, colors that stand out against the golden background. Six angels surround Mary and accompany her on her journey to heaven: at the bottom, three of them hold up the crescent moon on which the Virgin rests; while at the top, three angels hold a magnificent crown above Mary.  

Locations

• Last quarter of the XV^th c.

  region

  Possible origin from Castile and Leon, Castilla y León (Spain)

• First quarter of the XX^th c. - ca. 1925

  dealer/antiquarian

  Raimundo Ruiz, Madrid (Spain) *

• ca. 1925

  auction house

  The American Art Association / The American Art Galleries, New York (United States)

• Second quarter of the XX^th c. - ca. 1965

  private collection

  Abraham M. Adler and Lillian Levinson Adler, New York (United States) *

• 1965 - present

  museum

  Davis Museum, Wellesley (United States)