A Cardinal thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

A Cardinal

Panel
ca. 1470 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The V&A purchased this and another panel (inv. no. C.408-1919) from the stained-glass dealer Grosvenor Thomas in London in 1919. The other panel shows a male civilian, and is also now half-length. Both panels have been cut down from larger compositions and framed at the sides with fragments of non-original glass. The figures stand in an architectural setting, presumably once topped with canopies. The backgrounds are painted in leaf diaper - blue behind the cardinal, red behind the young man.

Although we do not know the original location of the panels, they may have been painted in Rouen about the years 1450–75. The distinctive drawing style and the careful smear shading of the face suggest this connection. They may be compared especially with the heads of prophets in a Tree of Jesse window in the church of Saint-Maclou in Rouen, of about 1470.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleA Cardinal (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Stained glass
Brief description
Stained glass panel, half figure of a cardinal, hands clasped in an attitude of piety, France (probably Normandy), ca. 1470
STG
Physical description
Stained glass panel. Half figure of a cardinal, hands clasped in an attitude of piety. The background is painted in blue leaf diaper.
Dimensions
  • Height: 71cm
  • Width: 64.5cm
Subjects depicted
Summary
The V&A purchased this and another panel (inv. no. C.408-1919) from the stained-glass dealer Grosvenor Thomas in London in 1919. The other panel shows a male civilian, and is also now half-length. Both panels have been cut down from larger compositions and framed at the sides with fragments of non-original glass. The figures stand in an architectural setting, presumably once topped with canopies. The backgrounds are painted in leaf diaper - blue behind the cardinal, red behind the young man.

Although we do not know the original location of the panels, they may have been painted in Rouen about the years 1450–75. The distinctive drawing style and the careful smear shading of the face suggest this connection. They may be compared especially with the heads of prophets in a Tree of Jesse window in the church of Saint-Maclou in Rouen, of about 1470.
Bibliographic reference
Williamson, Paul. Medieval and Renaissance Stained Glass in the Victoria and Albert Museum. London, 2003. ISBN 1851774041
Collection
Accession number
C.407-1919

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Record createdJuly 28, 1998
Record URL
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