Catalan School: late 15th century – early 16th century.

Catalan School: late 15th century – early 16th century.
"The Miracle of Saint Blaise."
Tempera, oil, and gilding on panel.
The back has been reinforced.
Measurements: 55 x 52 cm; 62 x 59 cm (frame).
This work likely formed one of the side panels of an altarpiece dedicated to Saint Blaise of Sebaste, bishop and martyr. The figure of the saint occupies the center of the composition and is depicted wearing the liturgical vestments befitting his episcopal dignity: a pluvial and a miter. He carries a crosier and holds an open book, facing the viewer, on whose pages the saint’s name is still legible—a detail that helps identify the scene’s central figure. Saint Blaise appears seated on a large millstone that, miraculously, floats on the surface of a small pond. Before him stand two knights, one of whom expresses his amazement at the miracle through an expressive gesture of surprise. This figure wears a short green tunic, beneath which the inner brocade sleeves are visible, along with red stockings and a short-brimmed hat of the same color. The richness of the fabrics and the color combination of his attire suggest a high social status. Likewise, the formal characteristics of these garments provide a significant clue for dating the painting to between the late 15th century and the early 16th century.
Behind the figures in the foreground unfolds a vast, panoramic landscape that draws the viewer’s gaze toward a grove and a walled city, whose walls are crowned with towers and battlements. In the background, a naturalistic-looking sky completes the composition and helps create a greater sense of spatial depth. This interest in landscape depiction, as well as in the articulation of different planes and the observation of natural and architectural elements, constitutes one of the most significant features of the pictorial renewal experienced by Catalan art during the 15th century.
These innovations are linked to the influence of what is known as the “New Flemish Realism,” an artistic movement represented by masters such as Jan van Eyck, Robert Campin, and Rogier van der Weyden, whose contributions profoundly transformed European painting of the time. The meticulousness of the depiction, the attention to material qualities, and the construction of spaces endowed with increasing realism helped shape a pictorial language that, due to its scope and significance, has at times been equated with the development of the Italian Renaissance, to the point of being considered a sort of “Northern Renaissance.”The reception of these models in the Spanish territories, and particularly in Catalonia, did not, however, entail a literal adoption of Flemish innovations, but rather their adaptation to local technical and aesthetic traditions, as well as to the social, economic, and religious circumstances of the time. This panel is a testament to that convergence of artistic languages. Painted primarily in tempera, with some retouching in oil, it retains techniques characteristic of the Gothic tradition, while incorporating solutions aimed at enhancing the naturalism and visual richness of the depiction.
Contributing to this sense of sumptuousness are the gilded details executed using the “embutido” or “embotit” technique, a process that involves applying gold leaf to reliefs previously modeled in plaster. This technique creates effects of volume and relief, particularly visible in elements of the clothing and episcopal iconography, such as the crosier, the miter, and the saint’s halo. The gilding does not merely serve an ornamental function; it also helps to underscore the sacred dignity of the figure and intensify the solemn character of the image, in keeping with the aesthetic and devotional values of Gothic painting.
Meanwhile, the reverse side of the panel bears traces of its material history and the interventions it has undergone. Alongside several wooden crossbars from a modern restoration, remnants of the so-called Gothic endrapat are still visible—a technique in which strips of linen fabric were adhered to the joints between the planks that formed the support. This process, carried out during the preparation of the panel, was intended to reinforce the panel’s structural integrity and reduce the risks associated with the natural movement of the wood. Its partial preservation serves as a testament to traditional carpentry and painting-support preparation techniques, and provides insight into the technical aspects involved in the creation of medieval altarpieces.