This auction has ended. View lot details

Own a similar item?

Submit your item online for a free auction estimate.

Lot offered by Bukowskis, part of the Bonhams network

Lot 103

Jacques de Stella
(Lyons 1596-1657 Paris)
The Madonna and Child 71.5cm. (28 1/8in). diameter

Old Master Pictures

5 December 2012, 14:00 GMT

London, New Bond Street

Sold for £97,250 inc. premium

Own a similar item?

Submit your item online for a free auction estimate.

How to sell

Looking for a similar item?

Our Old Master Paintings specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.

Find your local specialist

Ask about this lot

Poppy Harvey-Jones

Head of Sale

Tel: +44 20 7468 8308

Poppy.Harvey-Jones@bonhams.com

Jacques de Stella (Lyons 1596-1657 Paris)

The Madonna and Child
signed 'STELLA. f. 1651' (on ledge, lower right)
oil on canvas, tondo
71.5cm. (28 1/8in). diameter

Footnotes

Stella employed a similar domestic motif with The Virgin feeding the Infant while an angel blows on a brazier in a canvas, 66 x 52 cm., in Blois, Musée Communal du Château (see: S. Laveissière & G. Chomer, Jacques Stella (1596-1657), exh. cat. (Lyon, 2007), cat. no. 76, ill. p. 144). The tranquil and delicate sensibility of the scene, with its gentle, cool tones lit by the fire of the brazier, is pervaded by the solemnity with which the Virgin prepares food: no doubt an allusion to the Eucharist.

While the chronology of Stella's output is far from settled, the present dated work can now be securely added to his very mature phase, executed some time after his return to France in 1634. He had quickly been retained in Paris by Cardinal Richelieu in the service of Louis XIII and was inundated by official favours: a royal warrant as Peintre du Roi, lodgings in the Louvre, a pension and, later, the chain of the Order of Saint Michel. The Virgin and Child, however, owes much to Stella's sojourn in Italy, where his friendship with Poussin was highly formative and where he came into contact with a variety of other influences, including the art of Raphael, the Carracci and Domenichino. It was in Rome that he also acquired a taste for realistic detail, often of a rustic kind, and for the effects of nocturnal light, all of which are evident in the present canvas.

Additional information

This auction is now finished. If you are interested in consigning in future auctions, please contact the specialist department. If you have queries about lots purchased in this auction, please contact customer services.
Buyers' Obligations
ALL BIDDERS MUST AGREE THAT THEY HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD BONHAMS' CONDITIONS OF SALE AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THEM, AND AGREE TO PAY THE BUYER'S PREMIUM AND ANY OTHER CHARGES MENTIONED IN THE NOTICE TO BIDDERS. THIS AFFECTS THE BIDDERS LEGAL RIGHTS.
If you have any questions about the Conditions of Sale, please contact your nearest client services team.
From 28 June 2025, the import into the EU of non-EU property of a certain age (and in some categories above a certain value) is subject to additional requirements. Under the relevant EU Regulation, it is the Buyer's sole responsibility to assess whether any Lot meets the criteria for import into the EU. The refusal of any required Import Licence or Importer Statement, or any delay in obtaining such Licence or Statement shall not give rise to the rescission or cancellation of any Sale, nor allow any delay in making full payment for the Lot.
Buyers' Premium and Charges
For all Sales categories, buyer's premium excluding Cars, Motorbikes, Wine, Whisky and Coin & Medal sales, will be as follows:
Buyer's Premium Rates
28% on the first £40,000 of the hammer price;
27% of the hammer price of amounts in excess of £40,000 up to and including £800,000;
21% of the hammer price of amounts in excess of £800,000 up to and including £4,500,000;
and 14.5% of the hammer price of any amounts in excess of £4,500,000.
A 3rd party bidding platform fee of 4% of the Hammer Price for Buyers using the following bidding platforms will be added to the invoices of successful Buyers for auctions starting on or after 6th July 2024 – Invaluable; Live Auctioneers; The Saleroom; Lot-tissimo.
VAT at the current rate of 20% will be added to the Buyer's Premium and charges excluding Artists Resale Right.
Payment Notices
For payment information please refer to the sale catalog.
Shipping Notices
For information and estimates on domestic and international shipping as well as export licenses please contact Bonhams Shipping Department.
- Old Master Paintings