Kneeling angel, wooden statue

The angel’s body, carved almost completely in the round, is covered in feathers. Two rectangular mortices used for attaching the wings to the back are still visible. Worn primer can be seen on the angel’s blue-lined cloak, which also bears traces of gilding on its outer surface. The feathers were also gilt.
The upper left side of the angel’s head was probably not visible in its original positioning, as the carving in this area is rough. In the original composition, the statue would have been the figure on the left, and thus, the angel may have been turned a little to the side. The work may have been part of a composition showing Mary Magdalene’s ascension to Heaven and perhaps belonged to the same altarpiece as the three angel figures with similar dimensions found in 1895 in the Cathedral of St. Elizabeth and now kept in the collection of the Východoslovenské Museum in Kassa (S191, S192, S193).

Provenance:
Ipolyi Collection. ‘194. Angel with scales. Wooden statue. 15th c. Very fragmented and rotted.’ (Lakatos-Balla 279)

Bibliography
Genthon-1948, 151. – Lakatos-Balla-2012 279.

Provenance

Ipolyi gyűjtemény. “194. Pikkelyes angyal. Faszobor. XV. sz. Igen töredezett és korhadt.” (Lakatos-Balla279)

Bibliography

• Lakatos-Balla Attila: Ipolyi Arnold püspök hagyatéka Nagyváradon. Miscellanea Historica Varadinensia III. Nagyvárad 2012 279.
• Magyarország műemléki topográfiája I. Esztergom 1. Esztergom műemlékei (összeállította: Genthon István; Budapest 1948), 151.