Page 214 - The mystery of faith

GREGORIO FERNÁNDEZ

(Sarria, Lugo c. 1576 – 1636 Valladolid)

22. Moses and Elijah (?)

c. 1610–1612
Wood, polychromed
Each 35.5 cm (14 in.) high
PROVENANCE: Carmelite Brothers of Burgos by 1612?; Francisco Marcos, Salamanca

T hese two sculptures, which appear to have been paired originally, probably decorated an
ostensorium, in Spanish custodia, which is a particular type of tabernacle altarpiece
associated with the veneration of the Eucharist.1 Often extremely large, these altarpieces
were customarily decorated with numerous statuettes or paintings, or a combination of both.
A very small proportion of these ostensoria have retained their original sculptural decoration in toto,
partly because the relatively small size of the statues involved (between 30 and 70 centimetres in height)
made them all too portable and easily dispersed. The resulting diaspora of their sculptural decoration
now makes it difficult, and in some cases impossible, to fully reconstruct these altarpieces.

While we do not, as yet, possess any documentary evidence for the attribution, based on a stylistic
analysis, we can securely ascribe these works to Gregorio Fernández and date them to the earlier part
of his career at the beginning of the seventeenth century. Documentary evidence survives that verifies
that Fernández participated in the production of several ostensoria throughout his career: in some cases,
producing reliefs for tabernacle doors, and in others, making series of sculptures to decorate these
altarpieces.

The iconography of these two works is somewhat ambiguous, but their physiognomy, the small heads
slightly bowed and set on cylindrical necks, and long flowing beards, as well as their costumes of tunics
under long mantles, are all standard in depictions of Old Testament figures, such as the Patriarchs, the
Prophets and particularly Moses. Here, Moses can also be distinguished by the uncovered head, which
is more common in his iconography, and the two massive tablets – the Ten Commandments – upon
which rest the Prophet’s right arm and part of the mantle. One can perceive a frisson of
Michelangelesque influence in the energetic facial expression, an influence Fernández assimilated via
the work of Pompeo Leoni.2 This impact of ‘Los Leoni’ is also evident in two works by Fernández for
the nearby Franciscan Convent of San Diego in Valladolid that were made with the participation of his
workshop (Fernández neither painted his own figures, nor designed the architectural framework of the
altarpieces to which he contributed). These two sculptures, made to decorate an ostensorium, are
allegorical figures of Charity and Hope. Fernández managed to capture and combine the refinement
and elegance of court Mannerism with Baroque naturalism so successfully that these works were
formerly attributed to Pompeo Leoni.3

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