Dating from the latter half of the 15th century, this very rare and beautiful Nottingham alabaster figure depicts St. Anne teaching the Virgin Mary to read. Sadly it has suffered at the hands of the iconoclasm that swept the country after the English Reformation, initially under Henry VIII and Edward VI and then again under Elizabeth I and Oliver Cromwell. Part of the face of the Virgin has been hacked off and the lower quarter of the figure is missing. Despite this vandalism, it is still a very beautiful and moving piece of sculpture. A very similar example was sold at Sotheby's on the 8th July 2005 and the estimate was £7000- £9000. It measures 22 inches high x 10 inches wide x 4 inches deep and the backboard on which it is now fixed measures26 inches high x 16 inches wide.
Ref: 10544
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