This remarkable and impressive monumental escutcheon is carved with the arms of the Ayala, a prominent noble family in 16th-century Spain. The shield, which is flanked by two putti in elegant Mannerist poses, illustrates the strong influence of the Italian Renaissance on contemporary sculpture. It almost certainly surmounted the tomb of an important and prominent.mes mber of the Ayala family. The shield stands in the tradition of a slightly earlier but comparable shield bearing angel from the workshop of Felipe Bigarny (circa 1475-1542), dating to circa 1536-1542 and bearing the similar arms of Avellaneda, in the Museo nacional de escultura in Valladolid (inv. no. CE2851).

(fig. 1)

The present group finds close stylistic concordances with the work of the celebrated late 16th-century Spanish sculptor Esteban Jordán (circa 1530-1598) who was active mostly in León and Valladolid. Compare the putti, for example, with the two angel with similar poses, one leg placed behind the other, on Jordán's masterpiece, the choir screen in León cathedral (from 1577). Compare also with the hairstyles, broad facial features, and mannerist poses, seen in Jordán's figurative reliefs from the same monument. Also interesting is the use of gilding, as in the present group, to enliven the otherwise non polychromed marble reliefs (fig. 2). The facial types of the putti are also reminiscent of Juan de Anchieta (1533-1588) who was active in Northern Spain around the same t.mes .

(fig. 2)

The present escutcheon must have adorned the tomb of an important.mes mber of the Ayala family. A possible candidate is found in Diego López de Ayala (circa 1480-1560) who was an influential envoy of the Archbishop of Toledo, Cardinal Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros at the court of Ferdinand II (1452-1516) and the future Charles V (1500-1558). Ayala was superintendent of works at Toledo Cathedral for much of the 16th century and played an important role in bringing the innovations of Italian Renaissance art to Spain. He died in 1560 and his tomb was installed in the Monasterio del Carmen Calzado, which was sadly destroyed in the Napoleonic wars. The present escutcheon is in an appropriate Italianate style and dating, although, in the absence of an engraving or documentary evidence (the surviving documents do not.mes ntion such an escutcheon), this remains only a possibility.

The present relief further recalls some works by Nicolás de Vergara el Viejo (active 1542-1574) and his son, Nicolás de Vergara el Mozo (1542-1606) who were active in Toledo and worked on the Cathedral. Compare the present putti with the shield bearing angels on the bronze grate surrounding the tomb of Cardinal Cisneros, which are similarly mannerist in style, although in bronze and on a much smaller scale (fig. 3). An interesting comparison is found in the putti above a portal in the Tavera Hospital in Toledo which was completed by Juan Bautista Monegro (1545-1621) (fig. 4), who was also responsible for the sculpted figures of angels flanking El Greco's Veil of Saint Veronica (formerly Convento Santo Domingo el Antiguo, Toledo; private collects ion).

(fig. 3)
(fig. 4)

Whilst an exact attribution for the present escutcheon with putti remains elusive, the group certainly comes from a significant funerary monument, and is imbued with the elegance of the Italian High Renaissance.

RELATED LITERATURE

J.J. Martín González, Esteban Jordán, Valladolid, 1952; M de Lozoya, Escultura de Carrara en España, Madrid, 1957; L. V. Toranzo, Juan de Anchieta: Aprendiz y oficial de escultura en Castilla (1551-1571), Valladolid, 2012