A Triptych: the Raising of Lazarus on the central compartment with a kneeling male donor, presented by Saint Jacob and accompanied by his sons on the left wing, his wife, kneeling, presented by Saint Catherine and accompanied by her daughters on the right

Because the wings and the central compartment are not of the same dimensions, the triptych must have been made up at a later date, which is also suggested by stylistic differences. For the attribution of the central compartment, compare with the altarpiece of the same subject, signed and dated 1573, in the Cathedral of Tournai (C. van de Velde, "Nieuwe gegevens en inzichten over het werk van Frans Pourbus de Oudere" in Gentse Bijdragen, 1979/80, p.127, fig. 3), where an almost identical architectural background appears, and where the composition is dominated by similar repoussoir figures, echoing the style of Frans Floris. Based on this comparison, the central panel in the present lot must have been cut down when the wings were added, in a shape similar to the Saint George triptych, dated 1577, in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Dunkerque (C. van de Velde, op. cit., p.130/1, fig. 8-10; central compartment destroyed in 1940). The wings, possibly from a slightly earlier date, probably derive from a triptych executed for private devotion, hence the difference in style.
We are grateful to Dr. D. de Vos from the Groeningemuseum, Bruges, for suggesting the attribution on the basis of a photograph.