Maquette for St Michael and the Devil

Details

Sir Jacob Epstein (1880-1959)
Maquette for St Michael and the Devil
bronze with a light brown patina
21 in. (53.4 cm.) high, including wooden base
Conceived in 1956.

Provenance

Lady Cochrane; Sotheby's, London, 14 December 1966, lot 23.
Anonymous sale; Christie's, London, 4 November 1983, lot 124, where purchased by the present owner.

Literature

R. Buckle, Jacob Epstein Sculptor, London, 1963, p. 393, no. 624, pl. 624, another cast illustrated.
E.P. Schinman and B.A. Schinman (ed.), Jacob Epstein, A Catalogue of the Collection of Edward P. Schinman, Cranbury, 1970, p. 55, another cast illustrated.
E. Silber, The Sculpture of Epstein, Oxford, 1986, p. 223, no. 502, clay model illustrated.

Special Notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

In November 1955 the architect of the new cathedral at Coventry, Basil Spence selected Epstein to produce a model of St Michael's victory over the Devil to adorn the new building. The committee insisted on examining a maquette before confirming the commission and in early 1956 Epstein modelled a terracotta version, from which the present work was cast. The new cathedral was named St Michael's and Epstein's finished figure of the warrior angel towers some twenty feet above the cathedral steps.

More from 20th Century British Art Including Good Friday, Daisy Nook and Five Important Paintings by L.S. Lowry

View All