Described for the First Time by Schwarz in 1910
Great Franciscan — Patron of the Animals
Ridinger, Johann Elias (Ulm 1698 – Augsburg 1767). S. Antonius de Padua. Half-length portrait of St. Anthony with elliptic gloriole sitting to the left, worshipping the child Jesus in his glory gliding in the clouds. The folded hands resting on an opened book, from under which a long blossom branch projects. Mezzotint. In the wide lower text margin inscribed as above. 20⅞ × 15¾ in (53.1 × 39.9 cm).
Provenance
Counts Faber-Castell
their Ridinger sale 1958
with its lot no. 172
on the underlay carton
Radulf Count of Castell-Rüdenhausen
(1922-2004)
Schwarz (1910) 1533; Reich auf Biehla (1894) 311; Counts Faber-Castell (1958) 172.
Not in Thienemann (1856) , Stillfried (1876) , Weigel, Art Stock Catalog I-XXVIII (1838/57) , Silesian Ridinger collection at Boerner XXXIX (1885) , Coppenrath Collection (1889 f.) , Gg. Hamminger (1895) , Helbing XXXIV (Arbeiten von J. E. und M. E. Ridinger; 1900) , Rosenthal, Ridinger list 126 (1940).
Of fine round about wide-marginedness: left 2 cm, above + right 2.5, below 3 cm. – The front of optically generally slightly age-marked general impression with, however, chiaroscuro of rich contrast. The white top margin on the back with mounting traces with two pertinent little holes.
Anthony (Lisbon 1195 – Padua 1231) “joined the Order of Augustinians in 1210, of St. Francis in 1220, traversed as mighty penitential preacher Southern France and Upper Italy … and was canonized by Gregory IX in 1232. According to the legend he shall have preached to the fish when men did not listen to him, therefore he is looked upon as
patron of the animals
in whose honor in Rome the feast of animal consecration
is celebrated Jan. 17-25. His mystic and ascetic writings were published with those of St. Francis. His memorial day is June 13” (Meyers Konv.-Lex., 4th ed., I, 657/II).
The proven rarity of the present picture already preprogrammed as according to expert Sandrart (1675) the technically conditioned extremely fast wearing off mezzotint plate permits 50-60 good impressions only.
Correspondingly already in 1856 Thienemann, pages VIII & 270 :
“ The mezzotints are almost not available in the trade anymore
… all worked by and after Joh. El. Ridinger (are) that rare that they are to be found almost only in some public, grand print rooms. I have come across most of the described ones only in the famous print room at Dresden … ”
Not even there then the present one which, overlapping generations, remained unknown to Thienemann as Stillfried as well and could be presented after further decades only by Schwarz.
Offer no. 14,964 / EUR 870. / export price EUR 827. (c. US$ 1000.) + shipping
„ Sie haben wieder einmal in unverkennbarer Weise Ihr Unternehmen und Ihre Philosophie dargeboten. Ich wünsche Ihnen – beiden – auch in diesem Jahr viel Erfolg und Gefolgschaft von Ihren alten und hoffentlich auch neuen Kunden und natürlich auch persönliches Wohlergehen … “
(Herr D. L., 4. Januar 2010)