BUST OF A BISHOP Northern France, 15th century... Lot 10

BUST OF A BISHOP Northern France, 15th century Stone; polychrome H. 29 cm This bishop, in the prime of life, wears a richly decorated cope with foliage, with an attention to detail comparable to that seen on a Tournai funerary relief in the Metropolitan Museum, depicting a bishop in profile at prayer (fig. 1). He has the same mouth with pursed lips underlined by a round chin that can be seen on the statue of a young man from the same region (fig. 2). He differs from it by his jovial air. With his face bordered by strands of hair that curl up on either side of his head and his small squinted eyes, our bishop looks as if he is looking at the world with astonishment.