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Saint Christopher (recto)

Maker

Netherlands (artist)
1530-1540

Formerly attributed to
(artist)
1450-1516

Title

Date of Production

1530-1540

Medium

black chalk, pen and brown ink (recto), pen and brown ink (verso) on laid paper, all four corners cut

Dimensions

Height: 17.1 cm
Width: 12.8 cm

Accession Number

D.1978.PG.178

Mode of Acquisition

Count Antoine Seilern, bequest, 1978

Credit

The Courtauld, London (Samuel Courtauld Trust)

Copyright

Work in the public domain

Location

Not currently on display

Keywords

Label Text

According to a 14th-century German version of 'The Golden Legend', Saint Christopher was guided by a hermit to serve God by carrying people across a river. One day a child asked to be carried across, but, as the waters deepened, he grew so heavy that the Saint struggled to reach the opposite bank. This drawing shows the moment at which the child reveals himself to be Christ, and tells the Saint that he has been carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. The child raises his hand in benediction, while Saint Christopher's staff has miraculously branched into a tree. On the far bank, the hermit waits anxiously, holding a lantern. Crossing a stretch of water had, since Antiquity, been used to signify a rite of passage. Here it marks a moment of revelation, as Saint Christopher comprehends the magnitude of Christ's purpose on earth.

Provenance

Marquis Charles de Valori, Paris (1820-1883), L.2500; Colnaghi (London); purchased there by Count Antoine Seilern, London (1901-1978), 14 July 1958 (£1200).; Princes Gate Bequest 1978

Exhibition History

The Four Elements, The Courtauld Gallery, London, 1996

Master Drawings from the Courtauld Collections, Courtauld Institute Galleries, London, 16/10/1991-19/01/1992

Drawing - Technique and Purpose, Victoria & Albert Museum, London, 28/01/1981-26/04/1981

Literature

Koreny, Fritz, Hieronymous Bosch. Die Zeichnungen. Werkstatt und Nachfolge bis zum Ende des 16. Jahrhunderts, Turnhout, Brepols 2012
no. 50
ill. (recto and verso)
rejected as Bosch, reassigned as Netherlandisch c. 1530-40

Master Drawings from the Courtauld Collections, Courtauld Institute Galleries, London, 1991
cat. no. 12
pp. 32, 173
ill. on p. 33

Drawing - Technique and Purpose, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1981
cat. no. 144
as Bosch ...More

Seilern, Count Antoine, Paintings and drawings of Continental Schools other than Flemish and Italian at 56 Princes Gate, London SW7, London 1961; III
no. 178
pl. III
given to Bosch and dated c. 1480 ...Less

Inscriptions

Watermark: Watermark: none.

Inscription: Recto: lower right, brown ink, later addition: Dürer’s monogram. Verso: upper left, brown ink: “Durer”; lower centre edge, dark brown ink: “Coll.on de Valori”.

Collector's mark: Recto: lower right, stamped in blue ink: Marquis Charles de Valori (L.2500).

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