ANONYMOUS RHENISH ARTIST
Illuminated cutting of Initial ‘S’ with the Nativity of Christ, from a Choir Book, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Germany, (Lower?) Rhine, c. 1470-80]

Charming cutting echoing elements of Flemish panel painting by Rogier van der Weyden.

95 x 90 mm. Single cutting of initial ‘S’, painted in blue, ornamented with plump acanthus, modelled with fine white lines, initial outlined with white dots, against a highly burnished gold, the lower open counter of the ‘S’ including the scene of the Nativity of Christ, the hut placed in the middle, a landscape vista visible on the left and right, the upper open counter of the ‘S’ occupied by pairs of singing angels on left and right, with God the Father in the center, verso not visible, very minor losses, generally in good, fresh condition, framed.

The charming initial ‘S’ portrays the Nativity of Christ in a tumbledown, open shed supported by a tree trunk and covered by a thatched roof. In the center, the Child lies on the ground on top of the folds of the Virgin Mary’s ample blue robe, while Joseph dressed in white appears on the right, holding a candle which he shields from the wind to preserve the flame. The ox and the ass (symbolic of the Old and the New order) are in the middle ground, interrupted from their meal deposited in a trough that separates them from the space of the holy family. Above, two pairs of praying angels dressed in white and with curly blond hair herald the arrival of the Savior. Christ as Salvator Mundi appears in the center holding a globe and raising his hand in blessing. The initial must come from a Choir Book where it would have illustrated a chant from the Feast of the Nativity or Christmas Day on December 25; perhaps it opened the Response at Matins “Sancta et immaculata virginitas quibus laudibus …” (O Mary, how holy and spotless is your virginity).

We have located one possible sister leaf, an initial ‘A’ depicting a Cistercian monk praying before an altar (Philadelphia, Free Library, Lewis E M 44:19). The Philadelphia cutting is attributed to the Lower Rhine and dated c. 1480. Although it is significantly larger, the treatment of the initial with its blue acanthus, the thick burnished gold ground, and the limited, somber palette invite comparison with the present cutting.

Intriguing are the references in the cutting of the Nativity to the central panel of Rogier van der Weyden’s Bladelin Triptych of about 1450. Although not directly copied, the figures appear in similar dispositions but reversed; details such as Joseph shielding the candle and the Christ Child posed on Mary’s garment are revealing of a relationship between the two compositions. So too the angels above, although arranged differently, echo Rogier’s painting. We are grateful to James Marrow for pointing out that models related to the posing of the figures in the Bladelin triptych circulated widely in Germany, both in paintings and manuscripts, as for example in a copy of the Nativity by the Master of the St. Petersburg Liber Precum from a Prayer Book of c. 1488/89 from Cologne now in the Russian National Library in St. Petersburg (MS Lat. O.v.I. 206) (see Logutova and Marrow 2003).

Provenance
(1) Collection of Carl Askonas (1883–1946) and Rosa Askonas (née Rosa Fürth, 1891–1980), Vienna and later Montréal. Following the annexation of Austria in 1938, the Askonas family fled to Canada, settling in Montréal. At the time of their emigration, their art collection was seized by the Gestapo, including an entry described as “Buchminiaturen des Mittelalters”. It remains unclear whether the present cutting was among those items confiscated. The majority of the collection was subsequently restituted to the family in the late 1940s (see Sophie Lillie, Was einmal war: Handbuch der enteigneten Kunstsammlungen Wiens, vol. VIII of Bibliothek des Raubes, Vienna, 2003, pp. 109–111.

(2) By descent to the heirs of Carl and Rosa Askonas.

LITERATURE
Unpublished; Related literature, see Shirley Blum, Early Netherlandish Triptychs, A Study in Patronage, Berkeley, CA, 1969 (for the Bladelin Triptych); Margarita G. Logutova and James Marrow, Liber Precum. Vollständige Faksimile-Ausgabe der Handschrift Ms. Lat. O.v.I. 206 der Russischen Nationalbibliothek in St. Petersburg (Codices Selecti, Vol. CVIII), 2 vols. (Graz, ADEVA, 2003).

We thank Senior Consultant Sandra Hindman and Peter Bovenmyer for their assistance in preparing this sale and James Marrow for consultation on this entry.

This lot is located in Chicago.

Christopher Brink

Associate Vice President, Head of Sale, Senior Specialist, Books & Manuscripts

[email protected]312.334.4217

Darren Winston

SVP, Head of Department, Books and Manuscripts, Philadelphia

[email protected]267.414.1247

Darren Winston, Senior Vice President at Freeman’s, has served as Head of Department for Books & Manuscripts, Philadelphia, since 2018. He has been a trustee of the Rosenbach Museum and Library since 2022, is a member of The Manuscript Society, The Bibliographical Society of America, and Philadelphia’s Philobiblon Club.

Raised in northern New Jersey, Darren moved to New York City in 1988 and began his career there as a bookseller in 1995. He spent the next 18 years selling to private clients and at East Coast book fairs. In 2003 he moved with his young family to Sharon, Connecticut where, in 2009, he opened his own bookshop. Darren Winston, Bookseller offered rare and vintage books, prints, fine art, and more, and hosted over 50 book signings and art shows. He was a trustee and, later, Board President, of the Sharon Historical Society, and for six years a trustee of Indian Mountain School in Lakeville, Connecticut.

Darren has hosted the radio program "Darren Winston's Book Report" for NPR-affiliate WHDD since 2009, appeared in the 2014 book-themed documentary The Paper Trail, and in 2024 he joined Antiques Roadshow as a books and manuscripts appraiser. From 1999 to 2005, Darren was the buyer and consultant to the Fine and Rare Books Department at Asprey, the British luxury goods company, at its New York headquarters. While there he spearheaded various in-store events including readings by Salman Rushdie and Dominick Dunne.

In 1993, Darren was hired as a Creative Consultant to Columbia Records, where he assisted in the repackaging of their 12-record Aerosmith back catalogue. He later sold his extensive collection of Aerosmith memorabilia, which he began amassing at the age of 14, directly to the band.

Darren now lives on the Main Line, outside Philadelphia, with his wife, two children, and dog. The family travels frequently to his wife's native England and Scotland. When not bookselling, he plays guitar in Pumped, an Aerosmith tribute band. Darren also appears on the top-rated PBS television program Antiques Roadshow.

Sandra Hindman

Senior Consultant, Medieval and Renaissance Manuscript Illumination

[email protected]312 280 1212

Sandra Hindman, Senior Consultant, is a leading expert in Medieval and Renaissance manuscript illumination. Professor Emerita of Art History at Northwestern University, Professor Hindman is author, coauthor or editor of more than twelve books, as well as numerous articles on the history and reception of illuminated manuscripts and on medieval rings. She is a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America, the National Antique and Art Dealers Association of America, the Syndicat National de la Librairie Ancienne et Moderne, and the Syndicat National des Antiquaires,The Grolier Club and the Caston Club. In 2023, the French Republic named Sandra Hindman a Chevaliere de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters). She is the owner and CEO of Les Enluminures Paris Chicago and New York founded in 1991.

Western Manuscripts and Miniatures

ANONYMOUS RHENISH ARTIST
Illuminated cutting of Initial ‘S’ with the Nativity of Christ, from a Choir Book, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Germany, (Lower?) Rhine, c. 1470-80]

Western Manuscripts and Miniatures

ANONYMOUS RHENISH ARTISTIlluminated cutting of Initial ‘S’ with the Nativity of Christ, from a Choir Book, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Germany, (Lower?) Rhine, c. 1470-80]

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ANONYMOUS RHENISH ARTIST
Illuminated cutting of Initial ‘S’ with the Nativity of Christ, from a Choir Book, illuminated manuscript on parchment [Germany, (Lower?) Rhine, c. 1470-80]