Friday, 16 November 2018

"Flemish School" is copy after Hans Memling (or the Master of the Embroidered Foliage)

Galerie Moderne, from Belgium, sells on 11 December 2018 a "Flemish School" oil on panel estimated at 1,000 to 1,500 Euro.

It's a good copy after Hans Memling, the "Virgin and Child" from Burgos, but with a different background (which points to a slightly later date than the original, 1510-1520 probably). That work has also been attributed to the Master of the Embroidered Foliage though, and is then in turn more loosely based on Memling examples.

The work for sale is nice (dirty and somewhat damaged). The label on the reverse seems to indicate that the work was in Spain in the late 1930s (either this, or it has been added much later to legitimize a fake). I haven't found an online database to cross-check the label to the actual records of what the Spanish  government seized or stored in these years, it might help to get much more information on this work.

If the work isn't a 19th century (or later) pastiche / fake, then the estimate is clearly to low and it should fetch 8,000 to 10,000 Euro as a good, early follower of Memling.

UPDATE: sold for 3,900 Euro, way above estimate but still only half of mine...

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