La polychromie d’une sculpture beauvaisienne en bois du XVIe siècle

The Polychromy of a Wooden 1 6th Century Statue from Beauvais. Before its restoration, two later additions of paint covered the polychrome oak statue of Saint Mary Magdalen (part of the collection of the Musee national du Moyen Age in Paris). Their removal brought to light a remarkably rich layer of polychromy which represents numerous aspects of the techniques and decor from the late Middle Ages that were still in use during the 16th and 17th centuries : water-based or mordant gilding, decors of colored glazes, sgraffito, and applied brocades of an extraordinarily fine quality. The date of 1539, discovered during the restoration, is completely in keeping with the style of the statue. However, an even earlier layer of paint was detected on certain limited areas of the sculpture. This was, most probably, a partial layer, done as a trial, in preparation for the definitive application of the polychromy in 1539 and may be considered unique for this period. The stylistic analysis of the statue showed that the Saint Mary Magdalen, which was thought to belong to the work attributed to Jean Le Pot, was, in fact, executed by an atelier in Beauvais.