1. Hungarian Late Gothic Painting and Sculpture (15-16th c.)

The four panels belonged to the high altarpiece of the Church of St. Catherine or of the Church of the Virgin in the Old Castle of Selmecbánya (present-day Banská Štiavnica, Slovakia), a town famous for its precious metal mines. The pieces are the most outstanding examples of late Gothic painting in Hungary. According to the inscription on the tomb slab in the lower part of the Resurrection, they are the work of a certain master “M S” from 1506. Because of the threat of the Turkish invasion, the town was forced to dismantle and store in a safe place the valuable and much appreciated work soon after its erection. Four further panels showing the infancy of Christ belonged to this winged altarpiece, three of which survive (Visitation, Nativity, Adoration of the Magi). The sculptures that probably filled the central case are lost. The four panels of the Passion were visible in the lower tier of the altarpiece in its close state, with the scenes from the infancy of Christ above. The unknown master of exceptional talent knew the greatest artists of his day well. He used Dürer’s, Schongauer’s, Mantegna’s and Pollaiuolo’s prints as models for his compositions, but he did not follow these slavishly. The masterful drawing is combined with a fascinatingly rich, varied and personal colour scheme, and the details are executed with great invention.