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Lot Essay
Christ is seen half-length rising out of his sarcophagus. With his eyes averted and his arms fully extended, this is the archetypal image of Christ as the Man of Sorrows. A theme that meditates on Christ's suffering in the Passion and derives from a text in Isaiah, it was a popular devotional subject in both medieval Italy and Northern Europe. Similar compositions were executed in Siena in the fifteenth century by contemporaries of Martino, notably by Giovanni di Paolo (formerly Peter Jay Sharp collection, New York) and the Osservanza Master (Pinacoteca Nazionale, Siena). Underdrawing, especially the hatching in Christ's chest, is clearly visible. This panel, which on its edges shows signs of having been removed from an engaged frame, is noteworthy for its signature registering the participation of two artists, Andrea di Guido and Martino di Bartolomeo. Presumably this panel, perhaps a lateral section of a predella, formed part of an altarpiece painted by both artists. Since 1930, when it was first attributed to Martino by Millard Meiss, the attribution to this artist has not been questioned.
A successful and prolific painter, Martino di Bartolomeo is first documented as a member of the Artists' Guild in Siena in 1389. Little is known of his training but Piero Misciattelli (op. cit.) suggests that Andrea di Guido, first recorded in the same artists' registry in 1355, may well have been his teacher. Martino's first known works - frescoes with biblical scenes - were painted not in Siena but for the church of S. Giovanni in Cascina in Pisa in 1398. During this decade he was also active in Lucca where he would have been influenced by the neo-Giottesque style of Spinello Aretino. While in Pisa he collaborated with Giovanni di Pietro da Napoli on a number of altarpieces which were jointly signed. The modeling of the face, the fluidly drawn hair (both redolent of the figures by Taddeo di Bartolo, Martino's rival in Siena), and the insistent linear quality of the body suggest that this is a later work painted after Martino's return to Siena some time after 1405.
A successful and prolific painter, Martino di Bartolomeo is first documented as a member of the Artists' Guild in Siena in 1389. Little is known of his training but Piero Misciattelli (op. cit.) suggests that Andrea di Guido, first recorded in the same artists' registry in 1355, may well have been his teacher. Martino's first known works - frescoes with biblical scenes - were painted not in Siena but for the church of S. Giovanni in Cascina in Pisa in 1398. During this decade he was also active in Lucca where he would have been influenced by the neo-Giottesque style of Spinello Aretino. While in Pisa he collaborated with Giovanni di Pietro da Napoli on a number of altarpieces which were jointly signed. The modeling of the face, the fluidly drawn hair (both redolent of the figures by Taddeo di Bartolo, Martino's rival in Siena), and the insistent linear quality of the body suggest that this is a later work painted after Martino's return to Siena some time after 1405.