Beschreibung:

An Italian marble relief of St. John the Baptist after Tino di Camaino (c.1285-1337), depicting the saint wearing a cloak over a wool tunic, holding and pointing to a scroll, inscribed 'ECCE AGNUS DEI', in an integral arched frame, the back inscribed 'ESHER' and with inventory numbers '28635', possibly Napoli, 50 x 39.2cm, mounted in a later oak and velvet frame, 66 x 54.2cm (overall). Provenance: The Countess of Midleton, Eastwell Park Estate, Kent, thence by descent. Captain and Mrs Brodrick of Dunley Manor, Hampshire. Tino di Camaino was born in Siena, the son of the architect Camaino de Crescentino. He was a pupil of Giovanni Pisano and later followed his master to Pisa and subsequently worked in Florence where he executed the famous tomb of Bishop Orso at Santa Maria del Fiore and a bust of St. John the Baptist for the Florentine Baptistry, now in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo di Santa Maria del Fiore. In 1323 he worked in Naples for the King Robert of Anjou and executed several funerary monuments, including the tomb of Catherine of Austria in San Lorenzo Maggiore, with further works in the church of Badia Cava dei Tirreni. The present lot bears a close resemblance to a relief of St. John the Baptist and Prophet which features in Francesca Baldelli's 2007 Tino di Camaino monograph and which was sold by Casa Semenzato in Florence, 15th December 2001 for £128,000. Another related triple relief of the Madonna and child, St. Catherine of Alexandria and St. John the Baptist can be found in the Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena's collection at the Museo Son Donato. Read more »