• Cologne, 1447
  • Tempera and oil (?) on panel
  • Inv. 272

The Presentation in the Temple / The Stigmatisation of Saint Francis

Stefan Lochner

Presentation in the Temple, possibly together with Nativity (Bayerische Staatgemäldesammlungen, Alte Pinakothek, Munich), with which it creates a coherent thematic whole, forms part of a diptych whose outer sections were Crucifixion and The Stigmatisation of Saint Francis. The identical thickness and dimensions of both panels reveal their common origin.

The symmetrically aligned characters, framed by precise architectural elements that create a monumental effect, are arranged in the scenic space around a small central altar. In the foreground can be seen the Virgin and Anna the Prophetess, while Saint Joseph, who stands further in the background, holds a basket containing two doves, the offering of the poor ordered by Moses. The latter figure is evoked in the stained-glass window, showing the Tablets of Law. The gesture of the child, reaching out to touch Simeon the Priest’s neck, softens the severity of the whole.

The use of some realist representation, evident in the volume of the figures, the angular folds in the clothes, the detailed treatment of the precious stones and the crack in the surface of the altar base, allows us to conclude that the painter must have come into contact with the art practised by the great contemporary Flemish masters. On the back of the panel (which, as stated above, was originally the outer section of the diptych), Saint Francis is shown, in a less elaborate style, receiving the wounds of the cross on Mount Alvernia.

Bettendorf, Aachen; Lord Northwick Collection, Thirlestaine House, Gloucs, sale in 9 August 1859 (no. 919); Redfern; James Jones’ Sale, Lechlane Manor, 24 june 1921, (no. 955). Acquired by Calouste Gulbenkian through Duveen, London, 22 august 1921.

H. 35.5 cm; W. 22.5 cm

Cologne 1993

Frank Günter Zehnder (ed.), Stefan Lochner. Meister zu Köln. Herfunkt-Werk-Wirkung, exhibition catalogue. Cologne: Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, 1993, pp. 326–7, no. 47.

Chapuis 2004

Julien Chapuis, Stefan Lochner. Image Making in Fifteenth-Century Cologne. Turnhout: Brepols Publishers n. v., 2004, pp. 71, 267–8, no. 41-43.

Sampaio 2009

Luísa Sampaio, Painting in the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum. Lisbon/Milan: Calouste Gulbenkian Museum/Skira, 2009, pp. 16–17, cat. 1.

Brussels 2010-11

Van Eyck to Dürer, Early Netherlandish Painting and Central Europe 1430-1530, exhibition catalogue. Brussels: Lannoo Ed., Groeningemuseum, 2010, pp. 252–3.

Lisbon 2011

Calouste Gulbenkian Museum. Lisbon: Calouste Gulbenkian Museum, 2011, p. 97, cat. 72.

Cologne 2011-12

Glanz Größe des Mittelalters, exhibition catalogue. Cologne: Museum Schnütgen, 2011, p. 450–3, no. 209.

Updated on 15 june 2022

Cookies settings

Cookies Selection

This website uses cookies to improve your browsing experience, security, and its website performance. We may also use cookies to share information on social media and to display messages and advertisements personalised to your interests, both on our website and in others.