Bartolomé de Castro (Artist working in Palencia... Lot n° 19

Bartolomé de Castro (Pintor active in Palencia at first half of 16th century)                                                                      Saint Blaise resuscitates a dead man  Palencia, circa 1500-1525 Oil on panel 74 x 56 cm  This is a previously unknown painting by the artist Bartolomé de Castro, a painter who was active in the Palencia area in Spain in the first quarter of the 16th century. The painting depicts a miracle from the life of Saint Blaise, in a style which leads us directly to the master, who we know from different signed paintings which have survived until the current time, such as a Saint Dominic in the Lázaro Galdiano Museum (Madrid), a Saint Onufrius in the Masaveu collection, and a Madonna and Child crowned by angels from Villoldo (Palencia), which is now in a private collection. The panel formed part of an altarpiece from which at least one other compartment is known, Anne and Joaquim’s embrace at the Golden Gate, which confirms that the original set combined hagiographical scenes with others dedicated to the Virgin Mary.  Additionally, other panels are known that have the Virgin Mary and Christ as their themes, which are also in private collections and which could have formed part of the same reredos. The geographical provenance of the paintings by Bartolomé de Castro (Villoldo, Requena de Campos, Paredes de Nava, Lantadilla and Becerril de Campos) confirms that he must have trained and developed his career in Palencia, being directly influenced by Pedro Berruguete, whose paintings he appears to know first-hand.   Provenance: Private collection, Switzerland. Bibliography: previously unknown. Reference Bibliography: PILAR SILVA MAROTO, “En torno a Bartolomé del Castro”, en Homenaje al profesor Hernández Perera, Madrid, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 1992, pp. 437-452. ISABEL MATEO GÓMEZ, “Bartolomé de Castro: formación y estilo”, Boletín del Seminario de Estudios de Arte y Arquitectura, 68, 2002, pp. 199-224. With the repport of Dr. Alberto Velasco, to whom we thank the cataloging of this work.