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The Culture Minister, David Lammy, has placed a temporary export bar on The Crucifixion, a painting by the Netherlandish artist Karel van Mander the Elder. This will provide a last chance to raise the money and save the painting, which is the only known work of this artist existing in the UK.

Pictured (right): The Crucifixion by Karel van Mander the Elder.

The Minister’s ruling follows a recommendation by the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest, run by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA). The Committee recommended that the export decision be deferred on the grounds that the painting is of outstanding significance for the study of Dutch art in the Golden Age.

The Passion

Karel van Mander the Elder is principally known as the author of the Schilder-boeck (1604) which contains advice on the practice of painting that greatly influenced his contemporaries and successors, in particular those who contributed to the Golden Age of Dutch art. The Crucifixion, an ambitious and atmospheric painting and the only known work by van Mander in the United Kingdom, is an exceptional example of the artist’s work, both in its subject matter and its quality. The snow-covered background and the onlookers’ apparent indifference to the tragedy before them enhance the painting’s dark mood. Its retention would provide an exciting opportunity to study how van Mander put his theories into practice.

Van Mander was a Mennonite who was forced to flee the southern Netherlands for religious reasons during a troubled period of political and religious turmoil in the Netherlands at the end of the sixteenth century. The Crucifixion, one of only around thirty surviving works by van Mander, raises questions about the artist’s personal faith and the depiction of religious imagery and possibly the artist's thoughts about the state of the world at that time. It also combines references to many of the major traditions and influences in Flemish landscape and recalls works by Breughel, Lucas van Leyden and Jacques de Gheyn.

Karel van Mander (1548-1606) was not just a painter but also a talented draughtsman, art theorist, historian, playwright and poet. He travelled to Italy in 1573 and spent time in Florence and Rome before working his way moving North to Vienna and eventually settling in Haarlem. Although he worked on a variety of commissions and became a member of Harrlem’s Guild of St Luke he ultimately died a poor man in Amsterdam. His Passion painting The Crucifixion is in oil on oak panel and measures 67 x 117.5 cm. The work is signed and dated Kvmander/1599. It is in good condition and has secure provenance dating back to the seventeenth century.

Export Licence

The decision on the export licence application for The Crucifixion is being deferred for a period ending on 18 February. This period may be extended until 18 May if a serious intention to raise funds with a view to making an offer to purchase the painting at the recommended price of £ 471,775 (including VAT) is expressed.

Anyone interested in making an offer to purchase the painting should contact the owner’s agent through:

The Secretary
The Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest
Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA)
Victoria House
Southampton Row
London
WC1B 4EA

The MLA works to provide strategic direction and leadership for museums, libraries and archives across England - building knowledge, supporting learning, inspiring creativity and celebrating identity. Acting for the benefit of the museums and library sector and the public, MLA leads the transformation of museums, libraries and archives for the future. For more information about the work of the MLA, visit The Museum's, Libraries & Archives Council website.

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