Family Ties and the Commissioning of Art: On the Donors and Overpaintings of the Netherlandish Passion Altarpiece
Family Ties and the Commissioning of Art: On the Donors and Overpaintings of the Netherlandish Passion Altarpiece

Summary/Abstract: The article reviews the studies of Mai Lumiste of the Netherlandish Passion Altarpiece in Tallinn. Then the social and liturgical context of the altarpiece is discussed, with a special focus on the commissioners of later overpaintings. The questions to be addressed are: Would the original iconographic programme with four Franciscan saints have suited the context of late medieval Tallinn? Which altar in Tallinn was the overpainted altarpiece meant for? Who were Lippe and Grest, and what was the connection between them? How did the altarpiece become a possession of Urban Dene? What was the connection between Dene and Bock? When and why were their figures overpainted? What can recent technical studies reveal about the coats of arms and donors found beneath the visible ones? All this is relevant for an understanding of the role of family ties and personal networks in the commissioning of art in the late medieval and the early modern eras, as well as for a better understanding of the nature of changes made to this altarpiece over the centuries.

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