Bartolomé del Castro

(active Palencia, first half of 16th Century )

Scenes from the Life of Saint John the Baptist: The Baptism of Christ; John the Baptist in the wilderness; and Salome Asking Herod for the Head of Saint John the Baptist 98.7 x 60.8cm (38 7/8 x 23 15/16in).; 98.7 x 79.2cm (38 7/8 x 31 3/16in). and 99.4 x 60.8cm (39 1/8 x 23 15/16in). (3)

Footnotes

Provenance
Church of Requena de Campos, near Palencia, Spain
Art Market, Barcelona, by 1969 (see literature)
Private Collection, UK
With Schaeffer Galleries, New York
The Collection of John R. Blewer, Owensboro, Kentucky, by April 1969, and thence by descent to the present owner

Exhibited
Travelling exhibition, Spanish Primitive Paintings of the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries: Santa Barbara, Museum of Art, 11 July - 6 August 1961;
San Francisco, California Palace of Legion of Honour, 19 August - 17 September 1961; Pasadena, Pasadena Museum of Art, October 1961; San Diego, Museum of Art, November 1961


Literature
C.R. Post, History of Spanish Painting, New York, 1947, vol. IX, p. 800 (as Hispano Flemish)
C.R. Post, History of Spanish Painting, New York, 1950, vol. X, p. 427 (as by Bartolome del Castro)
J. Blewer, Bartolome del Castro, circa 1500, pp.1-11, ill., fig. 4
A. Avila, Imagenes y simbolos en la arquitectura pintada espanola, Barcelona, 1993, pp.247-8, 350, ill, pl. 98
I. Mateo Gómez, 'Bartolomé de Castro, formation and style', in Boletín del Seminario de Estudios de Arte y Arqueología, vol. 68, 2002, pp. 200, 205-6, ill, pp. 213, 218-9, figs. 15, 24-26 (as location unknown)


The present works once formed part of the retable at the Church of Requena de Campos, near Palencia, Spain, and hung in the west nave. From photographs at the Amatller Institute, Barcelona, we know that it consisted of 6 panels of similar sizes, mostly depicting scenes from the life of Saint John the Baptist, along with three smaller panels at the base (fig. 1). Chandler Post suggests, through close comparison to a few known signed works by the artist, such as the Madonna at Villoldo and a Saint Dominic in the Lazaro Galdiano museum, Madrid, that the author of this altarpiece is Bartolome del Castro, an artist active in the region of Palencia in the first quarter of 16th century. (Post, ibid, vol. X, p.427).

Little is known about del Castro's life, but it is clear that he was influenced by great artists working in the area, such Juan de Flandes (circa 1460-1519) and Pedro Berruguete (1450-1504). Jose Guidol, director of Amatller Institute, Barcelona, wrote to Schaeffer Galleries in New York 'the discovery of new paintings by [Castro], as the Retable of St John, added new material which makes his artistic personality much more appreciated... he possesses a very strong personality with surprisingly tactile values. He can be pointed to as the most revolutionary personality of the School of Palencia' (see: Blewer, ibid, p. 3).

The present panels show distinctive features that can be seen in other works by the artist; the treatment of faces and meticulous detail of Herod's hair in the Salome scene recalls the bearded figure of Melchior in the Epiphany in the Lazaro Galdiano museum, Madrid; the rendering of Christ's anatomy in our Baptism scene is reminiscent of St. Onuphrius in the Masaveu Collection, Madrid; and an almost identical version of Saint John the Baptist in the Wilderness, with the large elongated figure against a green background, was offered at Christie's, London, 22 April 1988, lot 27.

The altarpiece from Campos de Requena was dismantled and dispersed on the art market in Barcelona before 1969. A panel of Saint Peter, originally forming part of the lower section of the retable, was offered at Alcala Subastas, Barcelona, 13 December 2017, lot 261 (82 x 70cm).