fee ee ee Terézia Kemy 2 Poles (wie, Asm, 10), BA 1, 28-29, 162-166, 180-182 sowie Kéry (wie An. 10), usin, 2 G. Schmid, .Beitige 2um godichen Keyptoportit ia Frankreich" in dere, Maldon Gas, spunk wed uci, bg, von M. Roland, Graz 2005, Ba. 2, 529-340, hier 340, ‘eam G. Pocht, Zr Genes ds Portas,” in Sigmund 2 Be PATRONAGE OF ST LADISLAS FRESCO CYCLES ® Cod. pal eo DURING THE SIGISMUND PERIOD IN CONNECTION Pe aber ie ier vrpealon These mia ich ch eh bei Mees Baro q WITH A CONTRACT OF INHERITANCE rina sowie Michal Schauer, Dreden bedanken. Yet, [don’t believe it is possible to store ready topics and ‘retrieve them fom a drawer when their turn has mechanically come they wither, or rather our afinity with them withers "ss in SK, he nd binbpiof writ Zohn Fb (197-1970, sn "nent or already complete. An excerpt of this record appears in the eighth volume ‘the Zsigmondkorioklevér published in 2003: 258“Memoriale Nycolsi in fine de Staz. Johannes Weichardi city judge before the ‘As under the Angevins, the closest analogies are the cult of St George, which Jury of Szomolnok town Nycolaus de fine in villa Staz dicta unacum uxore sq sas at its peak throughout Europe, and the Bohemian court's veneration of St "gary fiom the 11th century on it reached astonishing height "For Sigismund, who founded the Order ofthe Dragon in 1408 and wore the badge ofthe English Order of Se George, veneration of the martyr wasa serious matter. the hus- 9) ‘St Ladislas monuments inked either directly to the king or to the royal rsi- band singula clenodia uxorisue sive aurea seu argentea will give ad ecclesiam in ‘Smélnicz in honore Beate Katherine, pro monstrantie seu clacs preparatione, sine. recusatione et quarumivis contradictione amicarum. All this has been registered by the libro civitatis nostee mayori of Szomolnok.”* 7 hypothesis, however, are worth proposing despite So fir this is the only written document known in which a fresco depicting the The art ofthe tapestry in Europe was at its zenith in this history of Se Laislas (Ladi | period. Enormous, imported textiles filled with hunting scenes and love stories fiom knights ales may have graced Sigismund’s coure Some of those which tay : anges of residence may have con- special legal status.” The document tells about the inka i tained episodes from the legend of St Las ingellecual sophistication and devotion, and costs of ordering a fresco at that time. The pa ] than a century earlier and just happened tore mination in the fist dee~ Prevalence of the Legend of St Ladislas in Hungarian fine arts during ades of the 15th century. the reign of Sigismund of Luxembourg, ‘The history of St Ladislas in the court of Sigismund of Luxembourg Duting the reign of Sigismund of Luxembourg (1387—1437), the cule of Se Ladis- ‘as was an organic continuation of the kind of courtly representation employed by the Hungarian Angevins. The Westen concept of the Christian knightly ideal sill < provided the example, although the benchmark and centre of taste was the royal tory of Hungary. Thanks to the need of patrons for representation, the walls of court An indisputable, although often overlooked fict, was the persistence, with ‘churches in flourishing setlements (today nothing more than insignificant villages) ‘minor fluctuations, of Sigismund’s veneration of St Ladislas throughout his entize ‘were rapidly adomed with superb quality fresco cycles. These works were an im- reign. From the very moment he ascended the throne, 4 epesmindseent Bijpcovce, SK) in the County of Seepes Seentmihdy Ladil's former triumphs aginst cha any, SK) inthe reqion of Calloko; Vortnalma (Cervenica pri Sabinov nonbelievers in the spit ofthe new order of Knights, Christ, ea attention because of an tunusual structure (as in Bibarcfilva) or a rare motif or 261_genre scene (as in Vitalva [Vitkovce, SK)), or costume (such as S¢ Ladislay leather shield in Kilyén), In Sepsibesenyé the series was probably painted a time, since the mesage of the rudimentary 14th-century cycle was no ts program, meaning, and characters had faded, but because the subj itself was 2 completely new cycle was added ‘mulas, and innovation was bypassed. ‘Ac the beginning of the 15th century, the structure of cycles for the most part i followed a scheme developed in the previous century. The number of scenes vi ied and sometimes direct stylistic connections can be found between the cyc of these reveal the cultivation, broad knowledge, and special spiritual needs patron. Cycles originating inthe Sigismund period reflect che same political timeliness “Hungarian Kingdor ‘was first formulated in the Bull of Constance issued on 19 September | frequently quoted in defence of patronage rights: “The hinterlands of Hungary, x bordering on the land of nonbelievers, is known as the bastion and shield of Chriss inthe Hungsian minds in seach ofthe Golden eco The don the orignal wory among the evens ‘spplement epuode td glen thesvs nthe config proliferation of copies, aration snd complain, he concrete eve ofthe onl ony become vey etn and anaviday blared Teonographi cavotes and ual iyi characeites emerged int sof the mythical legend of the Argon: inserted episodes not mentioned in Kerlés bat All these interpolated decades: St Ladislas's physiognomy in the Tereske cycle follows the ficial features, painted as a counterpart to the St Ladislas cycle."*In the Sepsikilyén cycl 262 against Ladslas of Naples were just as present completely new interpretation of | Church of Készonimpér in Cs © St George killing the dra ~ Patrons of the cycles "As in the Angevin period, the patrons of the cycles were the secular aristocrats. ‘Although in most cases the identities of the donors cannot be definitely estab- | ished, occasionally genealogic and archontological research leads to a precise "identification of the family and name, Chronologically, the earliest case | church of Bantornya in Zala County. "shop, the frescoes were commissioned family of Alslendva. The se- ries beginning in the uppermost field on the northern wall is at present in a fag- ‘mentary tate. The beginning and ending parts have been destroyed. The northern. “segment framed in red-ochre was presumably dedicated entirely to the battle at " Kerlés, The individual scenes were accompanied by inscriptions above, but these fn the Roman Catholic the eye of Karak in Gamr County, in which check the peri of Sigmund of Lacesbonrg, fe by Misia Prokopp in 2003 as Frank Sadeény Inthe Church ofthe Holy Spit in Zsegra,Sepes County, insertion ox- aking te Holy Sacrament on the south wall of the entry infos that Pope Joba XXII gamed vistors tothe church a 20-y indulgence Theft that the chi fo pt th ‘ume period shi aon commis ree te er cot eid ce \ a eS pce eer eet ‘263,whitewash by Jozsef He 1854-1934) a the end ofthe 19th century. One of {Zsigray families); in other words, almost without exception they were the barons Sigismund of Luxembourg. They adjusted the decoration ofthe churches under their patronage to the samples and expectations emanating from the court, and gave precedence to these trends. The intellectual ogan of the aula, loca traditions tenebat” 4 Both the scene showing cional habits of certain families together shaped the various ‘opposite wall can the patrons known today, not one was a member of the » A the same time, given how the founders and ater mem- \ er even more strongly to the Si tion reveals the identity of the patron, who is perhaps among the most mentioned donors in art historical literature in this period. Important ion ofthe depictions. Although at p someone in the Order of the Dragon commissioned a cycle of St Ladislas, mem- bors may sill have had the bate sone painted on their property. Pehaps they ea forerunnets, with soch comminions giving a sign of their common 35 In Saékelydlya, Kaonimpér and Vizsly, the legend of St George =| piety together shaped the special devotion to many branches ofthe Bebek family phenom: alongside the battle of Kerlés may refer to this still unclear connection. member of the League, cleverly employed the cul for political purposes on th ‘The role of the bourgeoisie in the spread of the cult of St Ladislas and the ideological background that would justly the pretender’ chim to the n the Sigismund period not only the barons, but the urban middle cls also con- throne. His som, especially Lisl6 Bebek, tributed to the expansion of the veneration of St Laiss toa national scale. The ‘were contented to imit the popu forms in which their activites were expresed were almost without exception as sociated with the guilds ~~ Ia Buda, the church dedicated tothe three Hungarian saints inthe cemetery ofthe Church of Our Lady was granted the license to issue indulgences in 1334.% From the end of the 14th century the church was frequently mention. ‘SK).3 The latter is covered by a 19eh- ‘known only from a brief 18th-centur ). Not only is the identity of the don: in Porson, 100, traces ofthe cut of St Laiss exist fom the fist half of the century The statue of St Ladi, originally intended for private devotion, of Szalonna frescoes (dated 2 [Andris Szepes. At the end ofthe 198 the nave of che round chat : Sealonna, This work, which ar historians had previously only assumes ‘was probably made atthe same time as the ffescoes in Szalonna:? commissioners and donors of St Laisa legend in the ft decades ofthe che immediate surroundings of the king, or were among the most influential prelates (¢he Bini, Bebek, Nagymihilyi, Seécséayi, and time the private chaps cha wal painting ofthe saint bearing a shield with time, an altar of St Ladislas, consecrated several yeu ealier, was listed in the provostal church of St Martin. Soon afer, an altar dedicated to St Ladshs was erected inthe church of St Michael. The guidelines ‘numerous guilds and St Ladislas Day customs confirm the veneration ofthe sain? 265,= from its unusual status and as a consequence of the personal intentions (w) is expecially likly given thatthe majority of inhabitants of he town were Ger tan who shal fered fom tbe, Hangar in their cul and ios et ‘onic ro e ‘The jic reference in this source to the commissioner offers art historians dealing with the subject few answer o the unzeoved problem concering the Si Talis eyelen Indsponble,howeves, is when the fn pate chien, de poten 2d bo ek ra, chop | Laas el. The Erol question of wheter the legend of S Lads was achally painted in the por church of Al Saints in Str on the other hand otis sy fra uinan- en ‘According tothe second stipulation in the contact, the wife died fine, the husband woul have to donate a git silver clenodi to the Chutch of Se Cath eed i eae {ale and the labor coas mst have been exaly equ wo the com of punting the >) tn 1408, the chapel of St Ladisas was built in the northem suburb of Kas “1 P (Kotice, Sk), and it frequently appeared in documents through 1458. In an wi ‘daved papal supplication submitted in 1418, Margit, the a butcher a, SK), which was under royal protection and received a staple right re unusual-"The commissioning of the wall paintings of Sts Stephen and Ladislas in the sanctuary of the parish church Se James masked direct imperial intentions since the population, which had a ferent economic life and customs, mostly reinforced the cult of saints transplanted fom their birthplace(All ths is evident in the depiction of the Hungarian 30, since the painter, completely unversed in local iconography, placed instead of a batle-axe in the hand of St Ladislas.* The dedication of the church at the same time advertised the consistent continuation of | activites and the cule of Francis, which developed under the Angevines*7/ To undentand the spread of the cult in an urban setting, the Trandlyvanian Saxon communities are worth examining. The most significant among them were the sever “seas” ("sedes"), mary Iund in Sts found any medieval cenodium in che church of Szomolnok. The liturgical objects in question of course could have been destroyed over the centu~ is, districts under the control of Nagyszeben (Si thus using negative results as our starting point, then 1d died first, and the wife had to carry out her husband's ‘wishes. This means the legend of St Ladislas lies concealed somewhere under the present ayer of paint. Hopefilly wall soundings performed in the near future and investigations will provide a satisfying answer to this question. In any case, this source remains in- valuable for art historians researching the cycles of St Ladisls. continually renewed by later rulers. Is legal status was similar to that of fee royal ‘owns By the time of Sigismund of Luxemburg Nagyszeben had become one of the largest economic powers among the towns. Is legal position, which probably Sigismund, lay behind the agreement entered into in 1432 by the people of N: szeben and their parish priest, Miklés Rynisch. According to this the priest required to say thirteen royal masses in the parish church of Our Lady. One was, According to the information listed the citizens (or guilds) together had churches, chapels, and altars erected bearing the name of St Ladistas. exist eon Anna Lesa’ Journal, Budapest, Archives of the PtSi Literary Maseum, V light on the pragmatic approach of the tows text of the document gives a precise time limit to when the demand for represen: tations of the legend of St Ladisls spread through court and secular aristocracy t0 ‘wealthier citizens. Miklés, who acquired a fortune from the copper and silver ‘mines, was certainly not motivated by personal devotion (since his patron saint ‘was St Nicholas of Myra). Instead he wished to preserve the cycle on the his local church in conformance with national propaganda or its expectations. This 266,‘The mining community wat etablshed inthe 12th century by the Saxons of Seep, nc Hee it Sime er x oti 1, (Charles Rober bestowed the rank of ee mining town onthe setement. granting righ nerds ‘mine, holding marke, hun an fish In the lth century twas the seat ofthe ming chamber.2 Tn the bate scene, he figure of St Lass ste most intact. 2 lois Ramer fine mentioned the cycle in Slatin, which had been covered in whitewash, in ‘comput on wal painting: "the eutent pai pect sad, dhat daring the fit years fe his illus Regist Cu ac pelle in equ sidensum.” See S. Timon, Imago Noe ‘Panaric,macentns reg, provincia, bana econ tons hurgae Hisar genre sci perpen, Viena 1754, 41. | 2 "The wall painting recovered from under the 19th ceneury hisoriciing layer of pint reveals fagments ofthe wresing scene. The Cuman wears whit clothes ied with a back bee His frog tether can be cleacydicerned, St Lads is abo seen in white attire. In the present ate of ‘he wall puting (17 September 2004) a headles gl in ed cuts the Achilles tendon of the ‘Cuan with alng-handled weapon (Batle-ate) hel ia her ight hand. The lef side of| eee eee ve on pig wat Som fe (Ung] of te Noga fn of > Kepgon can. The fmiy ree wo compe by Pl Engel. The ptr’ ree graniher and (eae er bh sued Lint (dy eg a sy oe poe eb ee ‘oscetly high Bequrny ofthe nae Lin ong mene of te cn (@ 8 or) vol 1 158-9. re ee ae E Sea | Sc Ladi: “a memory of master Gergely on of Linc, we announce tat Chr, king of | memes ofthe Order ofthe Dragon not mentioned bere. Enik Csskovits pointed ou an {nteresng phenomenon: a conspicuously large number of members se ot on piriages for 3 ‘riety of eons, See E, Cskovin, Kieipko mayer zarniook, Bodapest 2003, 151-54. ‘salle of Pope John XXIL Rome, 1334, VI 11, edition: Veet monuments isi Haga — ‘ofthat to the church of Se Gorge. Evry pret ving there required to celebrate mass ona ‘tia mara prem manda ela ex tabs Vata deprompt, e. A. Theine, ‘week: once on Tuesday in honour of the dead, and another time in honour of St George 2mZsuzsa Urbach TWO UNDERDRAWINGS BY THE MASTER OF THE ST ANDREW ALTARPIECE seum of Fine Ars Szépmiivészeti Mizeum) in Budapest. The spectacular inffared reflectographics' have not been published yee. ‘The ewo well-known panels ofthe Intemational Gothie style ae ateabuted re- cently tothe Master ofthe St Andrew Altapiece, working most probably in Vienna round 1430-1440 whose conventional name originated fom a curious paradox, "namely ftom the fagments ofan altarpiece from the Neukloster in Wiener Neu~ "sade. These panels were taken to Se Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna and completed | there with a statue of St Andrew. They stayed there until 1973, when the panes were taken to the Dom- und Diézesanmaseum.? The panels treated here are not fom the same series, but from another Passion-series of unknown origin. In the early 19th century four panel were inthe remarkable collection of Mik- Jos Jankovich in Pest. This collection was donated to the Hungarian National Mu seum in 1836, later the paintings were handed over to the Museum of Fine Ars in 1875, to be more precise to its predecesior. The four panels were in the Museum of Fine Ads until 1934, when, according the so-called Treaty of Venice two panels fiom the series were handed over to the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, in ‘exchange for Hungarian works of art. Thus The Entry into Jonsaem and The Last ‘Supper are in Budapest, The Betayal of Christ and The Mocking of Christ are in Vi- [Nothing is known of the provenance of the panels, athe detailed inven- snkovich's painting collection remained unfinshed.® Here I do not intend © Catrall ctor eld Se as and th other Hunan it ing) nt rigid wo the Ange; which tlh nd of the 1h cenury determine’ the ‘pity and iconography of Hangin Faiciars, completly anerplored so. Fata ola pert Stet hs 150 oct la ere The megs ad * Path Ind vcd i oath onan A. rick, wo. I, Pow 196, 368-69. the four Pasion panels in the Sleske Museum (Silesian Museum) ech Republik) were parts of the same alarpiece. Theie uncertain origin is said to be in the Valley of the river Vin (SK). Recently the possibilty of placing the ‘origin ofthe dispersed altar into the northwest Hungarian region arose.> 272 273