ATTRIBUTED TO FELIPE VIGARNY (1475-1542), CIRCA 1520-30

Felipe Vigarny was Burgundian by birth and training, but he arrived in Burgos in 1498. His panels for the cathedral there, including the Christ on the Road to Calvary, are often cited as the first renaissance works in Spain. The present bust of a woman compares closely with Vigarny's work from later in his career, when his early training had absorbed some of the late gothic mannerism prevalent in the local tradition. In particular, the saints carved in relief in roundels around the sides of the tomb of Cardinal Gonzalo de Lerma (circa 1524, Burgos Cathedral, Chapel of the Presentaciòn) display the same square chin, small mouth and distinctive backward twist to the head as can be seen here. The drapery style is also consistent, carved as it is in small, rippling folds.