His
notname is derived from a shuttered
altarpiece at the
Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne, created c.1503. The central part of the triptych is a
Holy Kinship scene, with
Saint Catherine and
Saint Barbara, which also makes it a
mystical marriage tableau. It was commissioned, presumably for donation to a church, by Nikasius Hackeney, a tax administrator at the Imperial Court, and includes
donor portraits of him and his family. An attempt to identify the Master as , a painter who was active in Cologne at roughly the same time, was inconclusive. The works attributed to him are rich, numerous and varied, ranging from large altarpieces to small devotional paintings and
stained glass boxes. The size of his output suggests that he was operating a large workshop. Speculation on where he may have originated and received his training centers on resemblances to the work of
Stefan Lochner and certain
Flemish painters, such as
Rogier van der Weyden,
Justus van Gent and
Hugo van der Goes. Connections have also been suggested with the
Master of the Life of the Virgin and the
Master of the Saint Bartholomew Altarpiece. Art historians distinguish two periods in his work. Around 1490, he appears to have made a trip to the Netherlands, after which his tones become darker, his
composition more precise and his scenes more realistic. These new trends come to full fruition in an epitaph painted for the curé Jacob Udeman von Erkelenz, in 1492. Other major works include: • An "Altarpiece of the Seven Joys of Mary" (c.1480). Originally in the
Benedictine convent in Cologne; now in the
Louvre Museum. • Three "Masses of Saint Gregory" one each in the
Museum Catharijneconvent (Utrecht), the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum (originally at
Heisterbach Abbey) and
Kolumba, the
Cologne diocesan museum. • "Circumcision of Christ", originally part of the altarpiece at
St. Kolumba, Cologne, now at the
Alte Pinakothek in Munich. It was a donation from the Municipal Councilor, Johann von Questenberg and his wife. • "Apocalyptic Madonna", at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum. It was commissioned by the family of Count
Gumprecht II of Neuenahr in 1484, to commemorate his recent death. == References==