Spanish-Philippine School; ca. 1700. "Saint Anthony of Padua with Child". Carved wood, gilded and polychrome. Silver potencies. Presents faults in the

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OLD MASTERS & SCULPTURE - Day 2

By Setdart Auction House

Jun 1, 2021

Set Reminder 2021-06-01 09:45:00 2021-06-01 09:45:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : OLD MASTERS & SCULPTURE - Day 2 https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/setdart-auction-house/old-masters-sculpture---day-2-6999
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• Lot Description
  Spanish-Philippine School; ca. 1700. "Saint Anthony of Padua with Child". Carved wood, gilded and polychrome. Silver potencies. Presents faults in the carving. Size: 44 x 27 x 21 cm; 11 x 20 x 20 x 17 cm (base). Wooden sculpture carved in round bulk representing St. Anthony of Padua with the Child Jesus in his arms, wearing a Franciscan habit, richly decorated with elements of vegetal character, standing on an ornamented base. Stylistically it follows late-baroque precepts, looking for the naturalistic fall of the drapery and expressiveness in the face, when opening the lips. The figure shows a great classical influence in its execution, due to the folds of the tunic, already mentioned, and the posture adopted by the saint, which is very reminiscent of the Praxitelic curve. The saint looks down in a reflective attitude, while the Child, seated on the book held by St. Anthony, brings his arms close to his face, in a gesture of intimacy between the two. The piece stands out not only for the carving, but also for the elements made in silver, which gives a greater distinction to the work. Both the potencies, as well as the cross and the lily, which the saint holds in his left hand, stand out for the detail of their workmanship. Saint Anthony of Padua is, after Saint Francis of Assisi, the most popular of the Franciscan saints. He is represented as a beardless young man with a large monastic tonsure, dressed in the brown habit of the Franciscans. One of his most frequent attributes is the book, which identifies him as a sacred writer. Another distinctive iconographic feature is the branch of lily, an element taken from his panegyrist Bernardino de Siena. St. Anthony is usually presented with the Child Jesus, in allusion to an apparition he had in his cell. It became the most popular attribute of this saint from the 16th century onwards, being especially popular in the Baroque art of the Counter-Reformation. He was born in Lisbon in 1195 and only spent the last two years of his life in Padua. After studying at the convent of Santa Cruz in Coimbra, in 1220 he entered the Order of Friars Minor, where he changed his first name, Fernando, to Antonio. After teaching theology in Bologna, he traveled through southern and central France, preaching in Arles, Montpellier, Puy, Limoges and Bourges. In 1227 he participated in the general chapter of Assisi. In 1230 he was in charge of the transfer of the remains of St. Francis. He preached in Padua and died there at the age of 36 in 1231. He was canonized only a year after his death, in 1232. Until the end of the 15th century, the cult of St. Anthony remained located in Padua. From the following century he became, at first, the national saint of the Portuguese, who put under his patronage the churches they built abroad, and then a universal saint. This Hispano-Philippine sculpture reveals a set of artistic influences that fills it with content. It is a work of art made under the Spanish influence, filtered through America, and carved in the Philippines by both local and Chinese artists settled in the archipelago. The Sangleyes or Chinese of the Philippines, urged by the demand for Christian religious works, attended the Spanish orders having as models sculptures, prints or engravings sent from the metropolis, but without forgetting the features of the oriental anatomy. For this reason, the eyes are slanted, with bulging eyelids made with a double flange, configuring a face with protruding cheekbones that departs from the classical ideal of contemporary Europe. The anatomy, on the other hand, shows a clear classical base combined with the baroque naturalism typical of this type of pieces since the 17th century, but nevertheless denotes an introspective and hieratic sense that we do not find in European pieces. In fact, all these different characteristics, typical of its oriental origin, were highly appreciated in the metropolis.
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